OMG! June 2014

OMG! June 2014

1 BEARDED BEAUTY!

June 2014

ORCHID MONTHLY GOSSIP

WE ARE 8!

Page 3

New Menus!

Chicke n gette , Spinach, C & Mas o carpon ure Pie

Ch

herr e&C ocolat

ffle y Wa

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O-LAND’S FIRST M I C R O B R E W E RY !

Pages 6&7 Pages 8&9

The Football Edition!

O-League 2013/14 Wheelchair Football Association World Cup Roadshows June Fixtures England’s World Cup Squad

Page 3 Page 10 Page 11 Page 15 Page 16

Facebook

The Alexandra

3,400+ Likes!

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June 2014

Message from the Editor... y d upwards as they sa Anyway, onwards an p Cu ld le, the two Wor and in true Orchid sty out ge success (read ab roadshows were a hu e’s gst other stories, ther it on page 11). Amon Vin ), 10 Match (page the WFA Powerchair ry in Poulton-Le-Flyde Hamer’s microbrewe w dishes (pages 6 & 7) and ne years ur fo en be it s (page 12). ha w us from our new men Changing tack, ho p? and charity Cu As always, the news since the last World ew ph ne y m g ition. bysittin ries complete the ed sto I vividly remember ba d he tc wa I t ils upstairs wh who was screaming goal row the ball into the Rob Green literally th of m England’s first ga e paul.holman@ o.uk for USA’s equaliser in or chidg roup.c the tournament. to ing try ies of England Ah, the fond memor Good times… give me a coronary.

onth id! 8 years old this m Happy Birthday Orch lehave a birthday doub and to celebrate, we All O-Land birthdays spread in this edition. the r achievements over along with some of ou last decade.

Paul H.

OMG! SHOUT-OUTS! er Leanna Fish, Wa rrington @ Hare & Hounds

ently promoted “Leanna, our rec ed r, has just pass ge na Assistant Ma nal rso Pe for d ar Aw her EDI Level 2 She’s also doing Licence Holders. ping to get on ho is d her NVQ an d anna has worke Le .

STEPS in 2015 ort sh a in el lev s thi so hard to get to d we are sure period of time an ure ahead with fut t ea she has a gr Orchid!”

Ann Marsden & Hounds, (Manager @ Hare Warrington)

Super impressed with your team or a specific team member?

Send your shout-out to Paul Holman at paul.holman@orchidgroup.co.uk

Fleur Mun

ro @ Shaw F arm, Chelm sford

“Fleur is an whilst lim under 18 worke r ited to th e tasks s who, to perform he go out o whilst on duty, w is able fh ill always she can er way to help in . She is any way fl e x comes in ib with a m le and often oment’s She has notice. since go ne from garden ru bein n waitress ner to an accom g a ! Thanks p Fleur for lished hard wo all your rk!”

Belinda C he es r @ Shaw Farm, Che eman lmsford)

(Manage

l & T ifh f y r a D , wic Debbie otel, Nor Head H @ Kings

ut to shout-o e a big These lovely iv g to ing “I’d like aryl and Tiff. whopp ,D ecure a e s Debbie th f to o d part elpe ladies h staff party as e will be a W r . £250 fo Day incentive mer re sum s Mother’ g this with a p se girls e tin celebra n. Every day th ognition is c oo party s ard and the re irls!” h sg work so omed! Thank lc very we as P age

Thom ead Kings H ) @ r e g a ich n w a or M N Hotel, (Deputy

June 2014

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OMG!PAGE 3

MAX-IMUM EXPOSURE! OM Get oG! PAGE n 3!

Send pics a us your na n u next md get featu ghty red onth’s editio in n!

Maxine Belbine (Head Chef @ Parson’s Pig, Crawley) provided a tribute to Conchita Wurst, aka.

Eurovision’s 2014 winner ‘The Bearded Lady’ along with a World Cup theme in anticipation of Rio 2014.

John Terry’s already asked for her number.

O-LEAGUE 2013/14 Congratulations are in order for Marc Lewis...

O-Land’s Cash & Banking man at Orchid Office. Marc’s team Republican Blowfish topped The O-League 2013/14 with a score of 2,257 - 87 points ahead of second placed Martin Mason’s Willowdene Warriors.

Marc’s prize is two tickets to a Manchester United box for one of their games in the 2014/15 season. I’m sure he’ll love it, being a huge Liverpool fan!

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June 2014

OMG! WHAT ARE YOU

SHOUTING ABOUT! Our very own happy news stories from across Orchid RE’S NORTH CHESHI B OF COMMUNITY PU THE YEAR!

ger at the Mike Davies, Mana eth, sat lch Cu Cherry Tre e in d posed for an y dl re self-assu ht.. He had rig the photo to your pub had just good reason. His Cheshire h rt won CAMRA’s No the Year! The of b Pu ity Commun e accolade th n Cherry Tre e wo er, g reat be of ity al for its qu itment to the mm co d atmosphere an local community.

A judges One of the CAMR wish I had st ju reflected ‘ I hin walking a pub like this wit me!”. Fantastic ho distance of my the brilliant achievement fr om Tre e and, ry er team at the Ch recently with the new menu couldn’t have ing tim launched, the be en swe eter!

ELY’S EEL DAY!

Yes it’s a real thing. This is Britain we live in. Embrace the madness! The High Flyer is located in Ely, the cathedral city that held the traditional bash. Some of the city’s events included a World Eel Throwing competition, an Annual Town Crier Competition and even an eel tasting session.

Below is a little picture of the guests who stayed the weekend. Nothing out of the ordinary then…

BLUE MOON SHROUDS RED DEVILS If you’re a United fan look away now. The Sawyers Arms in Manchester, usually decorated in the red of Manchester United, turned sky blue in May after Man City’s Premier Leaguewinning squad paraded down Deansgate Road. Rooney and co were a distance memory to the hoards of City fans, who took up every possible vantage point to get a glimpse of their heroes!

R ’ DINNE S N A R E VET Belle in

phis terans The Mem held a ve ntly. on t g in rece W arr s ea party reunion t many American of d lt a h u s They s a re dance a arrington n e t t a in here in W , the their links war. As always s e o or h t d during elle opened its B is h p Mem ted their and trea a o guests t day. le memorab

June 2014

CHARITY ALE METER!

WE FOLLOW ORCHID PUBS WHO REALLY KNOW HOW TO DO THEIR BIT FOR CHARITY!

Has your pub d on something amaz e in charity? Tell us g for about it and be next to fe ature in OMG!’s Charity Meter!

Memphis Belle Warrington

£3405 For decades now the customers at The Dog and Gun have been putting money into the charity boxes for Keswick Mountain Rescue. They’ve also been filling the nooks and crannies in the walls and the aged old beams on the ceiling with loose change! The pub holds a quiz every Thursday evening which is done by their in-house quiz master Amy Britcher. Instead of charging for the quiz, the pub just asks that customers provide a donation of their choice for Keswick Mountain Rescue. Super!

The Memphis Belle team recently held an evening event for their customers to help raise money for the Help For Heroes charity. The night, which was organised by regular customers with the help of Managers Tim and Shelia Smith, was a great success! They had a brilliant band, warm hot pot, a buzzing atmosphere and to top it off they took over £7k net on the night! Brilliant event!

£2000

County Hotel LYTHAM

Dog & Gun Keswick

£500

From every pint of County Hotel Trinity Ale sold, 10p went to the Trinity Hospice – after a while, it starts to stack up to a considerable amount! Leanne and Craig would like to thank their staff at the County for a big push on the sale of the ale, as well as their thirsty punters!

The money is going to a tremendous cause!

Lattes, cappuccinos and mochas were the order of the day at the Anson this month when the team hosted a coffee morning for MS Society. Multiple Sclerosis is a disease that affects the brain and spinal cord, resulting in loss of vision, sensation, balance and control. A wonderful charity to support.

£132

Anson

Wallsend

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M T S R I F S ’ D N A -O L

June 2014

Pub

Thatched House

Location

Poulton-Le-Fylde (A Market Town on The Fylde Coast in Lancashire)

Manager

Why the Thatched House?

Platinum Partner, Vin Hamer, Manager at the Thatched House, always had a dream of installing a microbrewery to produce bespoke beers.

Vin Hamer

Was it a big project?

What is a Microbrewery?

A microbrewery, as defined by the brewers’ association, is ‘any brewer producing less than 15,000 barrels per year’. In recent times the term has also encompassed the concept of craft brewing.

Vin Hamer

(MANAGER @ THATCHED HOUSE, POULTON-LE-FYLDE)

...on his story...

“2014 is my 28th year as licensee. I was born in Blackpool - official Sandgrounder.

I have worked for Whitbread, S&N and joined Orchid in 2009. I spent 16 years in Northern Scotland based in both Inverness & Aberdeen. 28 years later I find myself three miles from where I was born, back in the county I love and

Certainly! Among other things Vin had to obtain approval from Revenue and Customs to be registered for duty, obtain a discharge permit from United Utilities to allow release of the brewery products and find and install a four-barrel brewing plant capable of producing 144 gallons of beer!

running the most famous pub on the Fylde. Cask has always been a part of every business and is by far the most interesting part of Thatched life.”

…on ‘Cask Ale Central’ “We have eight Cask ales available each day and our range is dominated by

M I C R O B R E W E RY !

June 2014

local brewers via the SIBA DDS system.

One handpull is dedicated to cask cider, one to dark ale (porter, stout, mild etc.), one to Tetley’s and five rotating guest ales.

Our average cask turnover is between 22/25 18 gallon barrels per week.

Twice a year we run our Beerfest where 100 real ales feature over a two week period. Customers collect their ‘beer miles’ along the way which has become a local tradition.”

…on ‘brewing up a storm’…

“Our first test brew will be a Blonde sub 4% real ale. We will brew half capacity initially and produce 72 gallons. Our customers will try the ale and rate each on a strict criteria called ‘Cask Marque Standard’ taste, aroma, appearance and temperature.

We will record these results to fine tune our house beer recipe for the future. Once we are happy with the brew it will be branded and we’ll move on to testing Gold or Pale!”

…on the Plant…

“Provided by Porter Brewing Company, our four barrel plant will have the ability to brew 144 gallons at any one time! The equipment consists of a cold and hot water liqour tank, a mash tun, copper, heat exchanger and two fermenting vessels.

In essence the brewing process is about extracting the fermentable sugars from the malt. Andy and James Booker are the father and son team who run the Lytham Brewery, with the help of mum Julie & Will the Head Brewer.

Andy is the contractor and designer of our micro plant and is perfectly placed to allow us to make the most of our new venture. We currently have the potential to be test brewing by late June/early July!”

…on his future…

“I hope to be able to showcase our beer at the Lytham 2014 Beerfest in September. Above all else however, I’d love to win CAMRA Pub of the Year 2014! You just never know!”

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June 2014

HAPPY 8TH BIRT 6th June

Cheryl Williams

(Assistant Manager @ The Mailbox, Birmingham)

27th June

14th June

(Manager @ Rock, Glasgow) 28th June

(Head Chef @ Belmont, Sutton)

(Manager @ Weavers Mill, Dundee)

21st June

Steven Samson Mark Roy

6th June

15th June

(Head Chef @ Cedar Tree, Caerphilly)

(Head Chef @ Crown Point, Sevenoaks)

Matthew Griffith

Piotr Lewinski

Ray Hill

Lisa Cleworth

(Deputy Manager @ Cherry Tree, Warrington) 12th June

7th June

30th June

(Property Administrator @ Orchid Office)

(Manager @ Belmont, Sutton)

Helen Houghton

Andrew Kolapo

Luke Tamplin

(Assistant Manager @ Olde Bull Inn, Gwent) 8th June

Jennie Walton

Matthew Gardner (OSM @ Orchid Office) 2nd June

John Watson

(Deputy Manager @ Magic Lantern, North Shields)

(Marketing Manager @ Orchid Office) 28th June 28th June

Zoe Gibbons

Dariusz Zarzecki

(Head Chef @ Weavers Mill, Dundee)

(Deputy Manager @ Hemlock Stone & Dragon, Nottingham)

18th June

27th June

(Cash & Banking @ Orchid Office)

Sian Edwards

(Management Account @ Orchid Office)

Claire Jakes 2nd June

Andrew Rennie

(Manager @ White Hart, Orpington) 15th June

Samuel Radcliffe

17th June

26th June

(Deputy Manager @ White Hart Hotel, Hook)

(Chef @ Tamar, Plymouth)

James Mears

(Assistant Manager @ Ty Glas, Cardiff) 21st June

Gareth Tibbles (Deputy Manager @ Young Pretender, Kings Langley)

(Manager @ Bell Fountain, Leicester) 4th June

29th June 8th June

Wayne Brooks

Scott Boseley

19th June

Paul Keen

(Assistant Manager @ The Mailbox, Birmingham)

Lia Finnigan (Deputy Manager @ Westbury Park Tavern, Bristol) 17th June

Steven Williams (Manager @ Ancient Oak, Cottam)

June 2014

THDAY ORCHID! 14th June

22nd June

Carl Elliott

Saeed Ankoti

(Manager @ Norbiton & Dragon, KingstonUpon-Thames)

(Head Chef @ Olton Tavern, Solihull) 16th June

Ubonrat Robson

10th June

Angela Chester

(Manager @ Owl & Pussycat, Barrow-In-Furness)

(Head Chef @ Hemlock Stone & Dragon, Nottingham)

22nd June

Kendrick Howe

11th June

(Manager @ Seven Stars, Stafford)

13th June

Carol Hill

(Fixed Asset Manager @ Orchid Office) 27th June

David Wright

(Manager @ Red Lion, Warrington) 7th June

Brian Henderson

Margaret ‘Rocky’ Quinn

(Manager @ Bellhouse, Manchester)

(Manager @ Travellers Inn, Sheffield)

21st June

10th June

10th June

Jason Deen

(Manager @ Westbury Park Tavern, Bristol) 30th June

Simon Hughes

(Manager @ Highfield Restaurant, Preston)

Sharon Penny

(Receptionist @ Orchid Office) 20th June

Miranda Kindon

Helen White

(Manager @ Cleveland Arms, Wolverhampton)

(Manager @ Flagship, Paignton) 15th June 7th June

Norman Macinnes

June Ogden

(Manager @ Priory, Wellingborough)

(Manager @ Hunters, East Kilbride) 6th June

18th June

Paul Kotrys

(Property Director @ Orchid Office)

10th June

Samantha Marsden

(Deputy Manager @ Three Nuns, Mirfield) 4th June

Dean Blake

Sonia Kershaw

(Manager @ Fair View Inn, Burnedge) 30th June

Charles White

(Manager @ Cock & Pheasant, Macclesfield)

(Manager @ Wulstan, NewcastleUnder-Lyme) 2nd June

Dean Dillon

(Manager @ Royal Marine, Sunderland) 5th June

Eddy Pede (Manager @ Rayleigh Lodge, Rayleigh)

Happy

y a d h t r Bi e r

to all ou

Junnders!

O-L a

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WFA

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June 2014

WHEELCHAIR

FOOTBALL

ASSOCIATION

Ten O-Landers got together on Saturday 10th May for a thrilling game of Powerchair football at Nottingham Trent University!

Powerchair football is a game of football played in power wheelchairs on a regulation basketball court with an oversized football. The goals are 6m wide and the game is played over two 20-minute halves. To move in the chairs, competitors have to control the joystick on the arm of the wheelchair.

Having taken part I can tell you, it’s not as easy as it looks! Sure, moving about is reasonably simple to master and moving with the ball can be easy enough. It’s the passing and shooting that is extremely challenging. It takes plenty of practice and even then you might not fully master it!

O-Land competitors were each sponsored to participate in the event, raising £1500 for the Wheelchair Football Association. Add to this the money raised from recycled shirts, taking the total raised for the WFA to £2,500.

Another great O-Land story!

Paul H. - OM G! Editor

June 2014

WORLD CUP ROADSHOWS O-Land hosted two fantastic World Cup Roadshows in May; one in the north at the Old Ball in Leeds and the other down south at the Red Lion in Kidlington.

Some of the events held over the two days included a game of human-table football, pictures taken in photo booths with replica World Cups and drink, social media, Project Fair Play and Carlsberg stalls. What a way to enhance World Cup fever!

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June 2014

Our New Menus Have Landed!

Have you tucked into our delectable new dishes yet?

If not grab a friend, your family and/or partner and head on down for a dining experience that you won’t forget! Some of the new dishes include:

All-Inns & FHD Summer Menu (launched 20th May)

mp op Ru 8oz T

Stea

k

BBQ Blow out

Do Drop Inns Food Menu (launched 15th April)

Bourbo

Mediterra nean Ve Lasag ne getable

Frie P an-

n Boar Burge r

nach, lton, Spi shire Sti auce Leicester & Pepper corn S Mushr o om

allop d Sc

s

hicken Flame C

Four Bird Pie

Challeng

en Bites ild Chick Mild or W

e

Roma Salad

CourChicken, Spinach, ne Pie gette & Mascarpo

Co okie Ja r

oup Pea & Ham S

Chocolate & Cherr y Waffle

rn n Bea Salmo

Great British Carvery Summer Menu (launched 3rd June)

Barbarie

ast Duck Bre

Lemon & Raspbe rry Sundae

Sundae Rocky Road

aise

Facebook

June 2014

The Alexandra in Harrogate 3,400+ Likes

“Our Facebook page is incredibly important to us. Not only is it an amazing space to advertise for free but it keeps our customers, staff and regulars in touch with each other thanks to the sharing of content, tagging of photos and checking in to our pub online.”

Our top tips are as follows:

• The right amount of posting - we find that overposting can deter people. We post every other day to make more impact with our core messages.

• Keep posts short and sweet - a few lines with a photo are always our most popular posts. We keep posts informal and fun but make sure there is nothing offensive. We also spell check our posts to save embarrassment!

• Promotion of events - every band night is promoted along with major upcoming sporting events.

• Post timing - we aim to post during our quiet periods just to remind people about current inhouse offers.

• Scheduling posts – we schedule at the most effective times, i.e. after 6pm or around lunchtime – times of the day when Facebook activity is at its strongest. Additionally, the scheduling option is a godsend. If I’ve got a busy week, I tend to schedule 5/6 posts in the same sitting for the upcoming seven days.

• Respond to messages – we respond to messages as soon as possible, good or bad, to keep customers up-to-date and give our audience the confidence that we are listening and responding to them.

Recently bands, magicians and even clairvoyants have messaged us on Facebook wanting to host nights in our pub!

• Posting up-to-date photos - we try to post photos of all our major events. Everyone loves to see their face on a cracking night out and will check our page regularly if they know they may appear. Getting people to our page gives us greater audience numbers for other posts recently submitted.

• Get staff sharing, tagging and checking-in to your pub – our audience figures increase rapidly when we get people tagging, sharing, liking and commenting. When people check-in to our pub, they are advertising for us!

• Keep it fun, clear and simple - post plenty of photos and keep your audience well informed and feeling appreciated. We’ve had nearly 100 extra likes since May’s OMG! article. Have fun!”

Ami Mateer (Manager @ the Alexandra, Harrogate)

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t n e m e l p p ales Su

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June 2014

S

WEDDING

CHERRY ORCHARD, WIRRAL

Idea

Method

“One of regular customers was planning on a budget wedding for her sister. She always liked the vintage scene and the old barn style of our pub.

“We decorated the pub ourselves the night before with the assistance and guidance of the bride’s sister. This was a great cost-saver for the family and didn’t take too much effort to decorate.

We decided it would be a great way of showcasing our venue by agreeing to the request. We even thought we could easily cover the food by providing a buffet similar to the ones we provide for funerals.”

Event

The customers loved the carvery that we offer so we decided to have this as our buffet, making sure we catered for the 90 guests in attendance.

We left the funhouse open on the day to allow the children to release steam and enjoy themselves. A band and a DJ were also organised for the evening, both arranged and supplied by the wedding party.

The venue was an exclusive hire for the wedding, to which we did not charge.”

Cost

“No cost to the pub other than some of the staff working overtime.”

Promotion

“We advertise the space for large private events on our function boards. We also post photos from previous events on our Facebook page to encourage future events.

Karen, the bride, thanked the pub on her Facebook page and tagged us. The photos were also uploaded and tagged on the Facebook wedding page for Wirral.”

Team Involvement

“Our team stayed behind the night before the big day to help set-up the venue. They all enjoyed doing something a bit different and even stayed late on the day of the wedding to lend a hand.”

Evaluation Total Spend Net Sales

- £0

- £2,764

Kirsten

“We were flexible in allowing a lower budget event. The result was fantastic exposure for our pub and the knowledge for us that we could host a big event!”

CONTACT: DEPUTY MANAGER KIRSTEN KING (CHERRY ORCHARD, WIRRAL) 0151 604 1241

WWW.3DPUBSPORT.CO.UK

JUNE FIXTURES

June 2014

OMG! Spor t

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June 2014

WWW.3DPUBSPORT.CO.UK

ENGLAND’S WORLD CUP

SQUAD

Behold. The winning squad of the 2014 World Cup in all its glory. Anton Chekhov once said “Man is what he believes.” Guess that makes me a delusional man.

OMG! Spor t

Goalkeepers

Fraser Forster 26 / Celtic / 1 Cap

Ben Foster

Defenders

Leighton Baines 29 / Everton / 22 Caps

Glen Johnson 29 / Liverpool / 50 Caps

Gary Cahill 28 / Chelsea / 22 Caps

Luke Shaw 18 / Southampton / 1 Cap

Phil Jagielka 31 / Everton / 24 Caps

Phil Jones 22 / Manchester United / 9 Caps

Ross Barkley 20 / Everton / 3 Caps

Adam Lallana 26 / Southampton / 3 Caps

James Milner 28 / Manchester City / 45 Caps

Steven Gerrard 34 / Liverpool / 109 Caps

Frank Lampard 35 / Chelsea / 103 Caps

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain 20 / Arsenal / 14 Caps

Jordan Henderson 23 / Liverpool / 8 Caps

Raheem Sterling 19 / Liverpool / 2 Caps

Jack Wilshere 22 / Arsenal / 15 Caps

Midfielders

Forwards

Rickie Lambert 32 / Southampton / 4 Caps

31 / West Bromwich Albion / 6 Caps

Daniel Sturridge 24 / Liverpool / 10 Caps

Wayne Rooney Danny Welbeck 28 / Manchester United / 89 Caps 23 / Machester United / 21 Caps

Joe Hart 27 / Manchester City / 39 Caps Chris Smalling 24 / Manchester United / 10 Caps