Issue11 by Rhythm & Booze

rhythm and booze Food, Booze, Bands & News - Issue 11 - January/February 2012

The woes of Werrington So popular was the pub crawl by bus feature in the last issue that we’ve researched another for this one. However, having read that his Greene King pub served ‘ping ding’ food and “for something fresher, carry on walking along Lincoln Road until you reach the Cock Inn”, Mike Chalk, Trainer (sic) Manager at The Crab & Winkle, wrote to ask the reason for my comments. So I wrote back: I can assure you that no offence was meant, simply that as a Greene King house you serve the same menu as other members in the chain and beer brewed in Bury St Edmunds which is 70 miles from the pub. The Cock Inn on the other hand serves locally sourced home cooked food and many of its beers are brewed less than 30 miles away, in fact with Oakham Ales and Castor Ales being so close, they often serve a guest ale brewed less than seven miles away. As I’ve heard nothing further from Mike, I hope that my reply cleared things up. Supermarket sweep? Staying on the subject of Werrington pubs, The Ploughman (which was awarded Pub of The Year by Peterborough CAMRA in 2011) has come under threat from the impending redevelopment of the Tesco store next door. Although there are plans to build a new family pub/restaurant elsewhere in the shopping centre, it would be offered to the highest bidder, putting maximum financial gain above any community aspect (believe

it or not, well run pubs are just as important as a post office or community centre) and would more likely than not, be tied to a single brewery, preventing it from serving the wide range of beers that The Ploughman has been commended for. To sign the petition, supporting the retention of The Ploughman, visit savetheploughman.com

T HE

W HI T E HOR SE A traditional village pub offering good food, real ale, comfortable accommodation & friendly service

Main Street, Empingham, Near Oakham, Rutland LE15 8PS 01780 460221 www.whitehorserutland.co.uk

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"I can't believe how dynamic and relevant these guys still sound" - Maximum Rock & Roll “Proper punk for proper punks is the best way to describe what The Destructors are all about!” - Mass Movement Magazine

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The Surrealist Sportsman’s Club In this issue, David ‘Dai’Roll turns his attention to Cribbage. Occasionally of an evening in a pub you’ll see people playing a game with cards and a peg-board that looks like a cross between Battleships and Mastermind. They are playing Cribbage, a game apparently invented by the poet Sir John Suckling in the early 1600s as a way of paying off his gambling debts. Think about that for a moment, he owed lots of money, so invented a game to win money, and people played him at his own game and they lost. Cribbage is still one of the few games that you are legally allowed to have small wagers on in pubs, as it is a game of skill not chance. The game is played with cards

dealt to the players who opt to discard either one or two (depending on how many are playing) so that they only hold a hand of four. The discarded cards form the ‘crib’, an extra hand of four cards for the dealer. The remainder of the deck is cut to show the starting card. Play continues with each player laying cards without exceeding 31. Points are scored for various plays. Once all of the hands have been played, points are scored again. The dealer can then score the crib hand as well. Pegs are moved around the board to keep a note of the scores. The first player to reach the target score (often

61 or 121) is the winner. Cribbage is regarded as the semi-official pastime of American submariners with the wardroom of the most senior vessel in the American navy having the honour of holding a particular cribbage board. Phrases from the game, ‘muggins’, ‘pegging out’ and ‘streets ahead’ being examples, have entered into common parlance. Cribbage is played in a number of local pubs and there is even a local league and we would like to hear from any local pubs where you can play it.

Hand & Heart

12 Highbury Street. Peterborough PE1 3BE 01733 564653

A traditional back-street pub with up to six real ales at any time nReal open coal fire in the bar nTraditional pub games nRegular beer festivals and live music nTraditional cider and perry available nCAMRA Cambridgeshire Pub of the Year 2010 nCAMRA Gold Award Winner 2010 nLocAle Accredited nMember of the Oakademy of Excellence nListed in the CAMRA 2012 Good Beer Guide

Avoid The Winter Blues with live music on Saturday nights

January 7th - Claddagh (four piece Irish band) 14th - Ain’t Misbehavin’ n 21st - Pennyless 28th - Country Knights

February 4 - Rocket ‘57 n 11th - Dr A's Rhythm and Grooves 18th - The Jazz Pidgins (tbc) th

The Golden Pheasant

Main Street, Etton, Peterborough PE6 7DA - 01733 252387

www.thegoldenpheasant.net

THE CHERRY TREE Winner of a CAMRA Gold Award, find us in the Good Beer Guide 2012 nFive Real Ales available including Landlord, White Dwarf plus various LocAles nOpen all day, everyday nQuality food at sensible prices, served daily nAmple parking nChildren’s play area nCovered smoking area nLive music every weekend 9-11 Oundle Road, Peterborough PE2 9PB - 01733 703495

www.cherrytree-inn.co.uk

by Cardinal Cox

Pub Scrawl

There’s a busy few months ahead for the arts in the Fenland area; starting with the Whittlesea Straw Bear Festival, held in Whittlesey, from 13-15 January. On 14 January Poets United will be performing at the town’s library from 12.30 to 13.30, and between 15.30 and 16.30, while the Cambridge Storytellers can be found at the United Reformed Chapel on Queen Street from 12.30 until 15.15. Time is running out to find the first Fenland Poet Laureate in a competition organised by Atelier East and the Wisbech and Fenland Museum. If you live, work or study in the area, then you have until 17.00 on 27 January to submit your poem on the subject of Fenland. For rules and further information, visit www.atelier-east.co.uk The excellent King’s Lynn Literature Festival is always worthy of an early mention; this year it will be held over the weekend of 9-11 March and further information can be found at www.lynnlitfests.com Overlapping this Fenlandbased event, which has been running since 1984, is the Oundle Literature Festival.

Held from 10-18 March, further information on the festival, which is in its’ tenth year, is available at www.oundlelitfest.org.uk With his beloved Brighton & Hove Albion playing at London Road on 21 January, ‘ranting’ poet Attila the Stockbroker (pictured above) will be topping off his trip to Peterborough with an appearance at The Coalheavers’ Arms, Park Street. Performing a selection of his poems and songs – aided by Nelson, his mandola – expect a mixture of classic material and tracks from new album, Bankers & Looters. The parishes of Barnack Ward, which includes Helpston, have issued a series of leaflets offering walks around John Clare country. Handy and informative, they are just right for those of us who fancy a stretch of the legs across the old Northants landscape and are available from the Visitor Destination Centre on Bridge Street, John Clare Cottage in Helpston and online at www.parishnews-online.co.uk/index.php/clarecountry-walks This issue’s Local Hero is someone I should have

The Cardinal’s Calendar 3 January/7 February – Poets United meet for a mixture of readings and writing to a pre-set theme. Ring Viv on 01733 340560 for details. 4 January/1 February – Peterborough Science Fiction Club at the Bluebell Inn, Dogsthorpe, meetings start at 20.00. 11 January/8 February – Pint of Poetry, Dash of Drama open mic nights at Charters Bar. Starting at 20.30, anyone wishing to read should arrive about 20.00, as it can get quite busy.

mentioned ages ago, the wonderful June Counsel. June served in the WRENS and during WWII was part of the large team at Bletchley Park who (building upon the Polish success before the start of the war) broke the ENIGMA code. Moving to Peterborough, she became a teacher and her first book, Mostly Timothy, was published in 1971. Her 1984 book, A Dragon in Class 4, was followed by a series of sequels and her adult short story collection, Once upon Our Time, was published in 2000 by Glyndley Books, with illustrations by Marcus Sedgewick. She inspired many children (and adults) to try and write, and for that she deserves to be awarded the title of Local Hero. Finally, World Book Night takes place on 23 April. If you know of any pubs or clubs that are planning to celebrate it then drop me a line at cardinalcox1@yahoo.co.uk nCardinal Cox is an enthusiastic amateur drinker who contributed the film notes for Peterborough Film Society’s last season.

Bussed in for a pint

Our crawl started at The White Horse in Empingham. Unlike last issue’s trip between Werrington and The Ortons, a pub-crawl on Kimes Buses, from Peterborough to Oakham, requires military precision. Not only is the Number 9 an hourly service, three of its journeys don’t run on a Saturday, meaning you will have to miss out Stamford and Oakham. A group of us caught the 10.40 service from Bay 9 of Queensgate Station, buying a £6 Adult Rover and arriving at Empingham in Rutland at 11.45. Getting off just after the crossroads, walk a short way forward until you find The White Horse (www.whitehorserutland.co.uk) on the opposite side of the road.

Time was tight, so we were unable to try the pub’s extensive menu but were able to warm ourselves by the open fire and enjoy a well-kept ale; three out of the four hand pumps were in use, offering a selection of Sharp’s Doom Bar, Adnams Southwold Bitter and Timothy Taylor Landlord. Leaving the pub, we turned left and walked to the stop to pick up the 12.20 towards Stamford, getting off four minutes later at The Plough (www.theplough -greatcasterton.co.uk) in Great Casterton. The bar, found by entering on the left, is a cosy room (complete with open fire) that serves Greene

King IPA and Wychwood Hobgoblin; for those with time to eat, there is a menu offering locally sourced and seasonal food. Once you leave The Plough, turn left and keep walking a short while until you reach Great Casterton’s other pub, The Crown Inn (www.crowninn.net), which has a menu offering bar snacks, pub favourites and a wide variety of pizzas. The beers on offer were IPA and Charles Wells Bombardier; unfortunately the IPA had turned but the landlady swapped our drinks for Bombardier with no problems and sent someone off to change the barrel. From the bus stop, just

The Plough is one of two pubs in Great Casterton. outside the pub, we caught the 13.24 service for the longest part of our journey, with the exception of the trip to Empingham. Looking out of the window as we went through Wittering, I noticed a pub called The Phoenix. Taking a look at its Facebook page (bit.ly/vo7Qdo), I’m glad we didn’t stop there, and instead arrived in Wansford at 14.03. From the bus shelter, walk back to the crossroads where the Old North Road meets Peterborough Road; continue onto Bridge End, walking across the bridge (taking care to avoid the traffic). On the left is the Haycock Hotel (www.thehaycock.co.uk), which includes the AA Rosette Award winning Orchards Restaurant. Three of the bar’s four hand pumps were in use, offering Crouch Vale Essex Boys, Bass and Southwold Bitter. Over the road is The Paper Mills, where we were very

impressed by its Sunday dinner, not to mention the bread and butter pudding, on a visit to the area at the start of last year. The beers on offer during this visit were Bateman’s Victory Ale, Woodforde’s Wherry and Fuller’s London Pride. Sadly The Cross Keys was closed, not to reopen until 18.30, so we walked back to the bus shelter to catch the 15.03 to Castor, arriving outside Fratelli’s Restaurant 10 minutes later. A bit of a breather As there wasn’t another bus until 17.23 – the bus leaves Stamford 10 minutes later than usual on this run – we hoped we could grab a bite to eat. Unfortunately The Prince of Wales Feathers (princeofwalesfeathers.co.uk) stops serving food at 14.30, so our late lunch was made up of crisps and nuts. Thankfully, the beer selection more than makes up for it,

offering Tydd Steam Leveller, Welton Headless Horseman, Breconshire Cribyn, Adnams Broadside and Imperial Palace Ale, brewed by the village’s own Castor Ales. There was also a hand pump dispensing Cromwell Cider. Leaving the pub, we retraced our steps past Fratelli’s and on to our final stopping point, The Royal Oak. A menu was written up on the chalkboard by the bar however, like the previous pub, we had arrived too late. The beers on offer were Jennings Bitter and familiar faces from our other stops, Landlord, Southwold Bitter and Wherry. After a couple of rounds, we went to the bus stop outside to board the final service of the day, the 17.23 to Peterborough. Earlier on we had planned to stop off at Longthorpe and then walk along Thorpe Road, but after a long day, everyone agreed that it was time to go home.

REVIEWS

James Apollo The Malt Cross, Nottingham – 22 November There’s no shortage of pubs in Nottingham and a fair number of them feature music of some sort or another. A recent addition to my list of good venues in the city is The Malt Cross in St James Street, just off Maid Marion Way. They have regular gigs there and I went along to check out American singer/songwriter James Apollo on his recent visit to the UK. It is a fascinating pub – a long, thin building with a galleried upper floor which gives it the overall feeling similar to being inside an old ship. The bar is on the ground floor and takes up most of one wall with a good choice of real ales plus various continental beers on draught and in bottles. The coffee’s not bad either. The small stage area is at the far end of the room on the upper level and James Apollo and musicians, upright bass plus mostly-brushed drums and percussion managed to share this with The Cadbury Sisters, who not only were the very fine support act for this tour but also provided backing vocals for James and handclapping as required. James’ songs tend to revolve around mostly dark, emotion-filled lyrics wrapped within shifting rhythms which see him arched over his guitar, producing a stirring blend of music which reflects his exceptional broad range of interests and influences. Behind the musicians, the lighting was casting huge shadows on the tall wall, adding to the almost gothic atmosphere. He was naturally featuring material from his current album, Til Your Feet Bleed, such as the deceptively titled Happiness, a few samplers for the next one he is already working on, plus songs such as Call Off The Violins from his splendid record Angels We Have Grown Apart. A cover of Bill Withers’ Ain’t No Sunshine brought the set to a close. It was fascinating stuff but sadly only a few had gone along to listen to this emerging talent on a Tuesday night and those of us who wanted to enjoy it had to compete with the chattering classes and casual bar tourers. Both performer and venue deserve better nights than this and both are certainly worthy of further investigation. Perhaps someone else can drive next time though? David Brown

Secret Affair 229 Club, London - 26 November Harrington jackets, striped jackets, shiny suits, tab collars, Ben Sherman and Fred Perry shirts, even a couple of ladies wearing knee-length PVC boots. Oh yes, it must be a mod revival night. A good night it was too with two revived outfits plus a DJ playing some suitable sounds from the likes of The Small Faces and The Who through to Eddie & The Hot Rods to keep us singing along between sets. First up were The Lambrettas for a fast and furious 45 minutes of mod music that remained true to the sound that gave them some success in the period 1979-1982 with singles and albums released on Elton John’s Rocket Records label. From the off the crowd were shouting for Poison Ivy, which gave them their biggest hit in 1980, and singer Doug Sanders promised they’d get it, but not until they blown the dust of a selection of their finest like the ever-cheeky Cortinas. Less than half-an-hour after The Lambrettas had scooted off, Secret Affair took to the stage, the 21st century version of another band that did us proud back in ‘79-’82. The original four-piece band formed by Ian Page and Dave Cairns, survivors from the New Hearts, had made an almost instant assault on the charts with Time For Action, a song whose lyrics seem as apt today as they did back then. Currently an eight-piece line-up with extra punch provided by a brass section plus some fine Hammond organ riffs, they gave us their hits such as My World, Let Your Heart Dance and Sound of Confusion, together with the moody sax-laced Streetlife Parade and even a couple of Motown classics for good measure. Their Glory Boys anthem and style statement as adapted by their loyal followers was saved for the first encore and while we might have heard the band sound better in the past, it was good to see and hear them in action again. It was certainly a night worth getting dressed up for. David Brown

I ♥ Peterborough The Key Theatre - 24 November Written by Joel Horwood, who won a Cameron

Mackintosh Award for the play Mikey the Pikey, I ♥ Peterborough is a black comedy which follows junkies Gary and Tiger as they attempt to honour the memory of their friend Stig. From getting chucked out of Stig’s funeral to a plot to steal and scatter his ashes, the pair lurch from one disaster to another with hilarious, if occasionally tragic results. As a scripted read through, in preparation for a visit to the Edinburgh Festival, there were limited props but shouted stage directions and an atmospheric soundtrack, performed by Doctor Who’s Arthur Darvil, filled in the gaps. Despite it’s title, and the odd mention of Eye and Burghley Road, there’s little to connect the play with Peterborough. However I’m sure that ambiguities such as “those posh boys from the public school” can be fleshed out a little before its Edinburgh debut. That niggle aside, I’m certain the play can go onto bigger and better things, perhaps even as a short film. The Stage, 16 Market Place, Market Deeping, Peterborough PE6 8EA So popular are the pubs that serve food in Market Deeping, it’s often difficult to find somewhere to sit at lunchtime. Unusually on my visit to The Stage, there were plenty of tables available. After a look through the menu I decided on the Stage Burger – a bacon cheeseburger – while my colleague, who went to place the order, fancied the home made soup of the day. After some considerable time my colleague returned, having been delayed by a faulty card reader. As we talked, we managed to lose track of time and it was only as I was finishing my pint of Timothy Taylor Landlord that I realised that we had been forgotten about. Asking a waitress what was going on, we were given a mumbled “I’m not sure”, with no hint of apology, and had to wait a bit longer before our food finally arrived. The tomato soup was home made as promised and came with a massive chunk of crusty bread, while the Stage Burger was 100% (good quality) beef and was accompanied by handcut, double-cooked, chips which could easily have come from one of Market Deeping’s award winning chip shops. Thankfully, the food made up for the delays we had faced, if not the piped Christmas music, and I was even given an excuse to have a second pint during my lunch break.

LISTINGS

Cock Inn 1305 Lincoln Road, Werrington Peterborough PE4 6LW 01733 322006

13 - Hooker 14 - Porky Pig 20 - On The Ceiling 21 - High Rollers 27 - Kit Kat Disco 28 - Jamin

04 - Slide to open 10 - Alladinsane 17 - Porky Pig 18 - Or wat 24 - Sellout 25 - Cutting loose

The Cherry Tree 9-11 Oundle Road Peterborough PE2 9PB 01733 703495

The Golden Pheasant Main Street, Etton, Peterborough PE6 7DA 01733 252387

January

07 - Sweet revenge 13 - Citizen Smith 14 - TBA 20 - Attic til Dawn 21 - Grumpy Old Men 27 - Black Rose 28 - Frankly my Dear

07 - Claddagh 14 - Ain’t Misbehavin’ 21 - Pennyless 28 - Country Knights

January 07 - The Wash 14 - The Sound Injectors 20 - The Returns 21 - Electric Warriors 27 - The Rainmen The Blue Bell Inn Welland Road, Peterborough PE1 3SA 01733 554890 January 06 - Jelly Fish 07 - Retrolux

February

nMobile disco for parties, weddings etc nExperienced, reliable DJ with an extensive selection of music and lights

nReasonable rates nCall David on 07946 817123

February 04 - Rocket ‘57 11 - Dr A's Rhythm and Grooves 18 - The Jazz Pidgins (tbc) The Hand & Heart 12 Highbury Street, Peterborough PE1 3BE 01733 564653 January 05 - Irish Music night 08 - The Contrast 19 - Captain Backwash and the Barley Boy & Girl Rafter Raisers 21 - Ian Graham & Kat Moore 26 - Cheese Club February 02 - Irish Music night 09 - Open Mic Night 16 - Captain Backwash and the Barley Boy & Girl Rafter Raisers 18 - Filthy Lucre 23 - Cheese Club

January

01 - The DavidsonWoods Band 06 - The OverDubs 07 - Slide To Open 13 - Pearology 14 - Under_Covered 20 - The Influence 21 - Halo 27 - Eclectic Ballroom 28 - Leon February 03 - One Eyed Cats 04 - Mid Life Crisis 10 - The R'n'B Band 11 - Frankly My Dear 17 - Retrolux 18 - The System 24 - High Rollers 25 - Taking Care Of Business Prince of Wales Feathers, 38 Peterborough Road, Castor, Peterborough PE5 7AL 01733 380222 January 14 - Karaoke 25 - Burns’ Night February 04 - One Eyed Cats * All listings given in good faith, Rhythm & Booze cannot be held responsible for any discrepancy.

To submit listings for the March/April 2012 issue of Rhythm & Booze, or to enquire about The Ostrich Inn advertising, email 17 North Street, simonstabler@aol.com Peterborough PE1 2RA before 9 February 01733 746370 2012.cember 2011. Rhythm & Booze, Issue 11 - Jan/Feb 2012. All written material, unless otherwise stated, © Simon Stabler

www.ministryofbrown.co.uk

Handmade in Castor