As I was very small for my age until my late teens when I then grew a foot in a year I BOUGHT my first pint at the age of 18 and it would have been in either the Thames Poly Sports Club in Kidbrooke Lane or The Red Lion Pub on Shooters Hill.
(That's not to say that friends didn't go to the bar on my behalf before that!)
15 - The Castle in Eltham...wonderful....£1.02 for Tenents Extra, 86p for Toby bitter...1985...used my dinner money saved from the week to purchase 2 1/2 pints.....
I was 14 / 15 and it was on my first lads holiday to Clacton. Caravan site bar and a pint of lager and lime was 18p. We hooked up with some other lads from Welyn Garden City who pursuaded us to drink Light n Bitter coz it was 2p cheaper. Two pints and I was pizzed. Only spent £10 that holiday and lived on doughnuts and chips...Those were the days.
Had been to a game over Upton Park, had a couple in the Queens before the game but hadn't gone to the bar to get them. On the way back, my mate suggested i went back to 'his local boozer', that he was well in there and the locals were sound (he was 16 !!). Phoned my mum to get the ok and off we went.
Absolutely sh*tting myself on the bus going down there. Got ten times worse when we walked in and got to the bar. Mate goes in a deep voice 'pint of Fosters please Micky' and i'm just standing there froze like a lemon. 'Micky' was the dad of the centre half in my U15 football team !
He was grinning like a demented idiot, then sarkily goes 'and what about you young Smudge'. Looking at my shoes, i somehow mumbled 'yeah, i'll have the same please Micky' and was too afraid to look up for about ten seconds. When i eventually looked up i saw he was halfway through pouring the pint, and the relief was like nothing i'd experienced before.
He had a word with me at football the next morning, and said he was alright about me going down there with a few mates, as long as we didn't go shouting about it, and behaved ourselves. Absolute top fella. Within weeks we had a crowd as regulars and would hog the dartboard all night playing killer. Happy days !
God, I can't remember but think it was the Marquee in Wardour St and would have been 14 or 15. Most likely a half as well as never had any money to spend on booze after paying to get in the club
16 in either the William Camden opposite Bexleyheath station or the Moon and Sixpence in Welling. In fact i don't think anyone was much older than 16-17 in the Moon anyway
Comments
(That's not to say that friends didn't go to the bar on my behalf before that!)
Ahh the days of fresh faced/spotty youthfulness!!
Had been to a game over Upton Park, had a couple in the Queens before the game but hadn't gone to the bar to get them. On the way back, my mate suggested i went back to 'his local boozer', that he was well in there and the locals were sound (he was 16 !!). Phoned my mum to get the ok and off we went.
Absolutely sh*tting myself on the bus going down there. Got ten times worse when we walked in and got to the bar. Mate goes in a deep voice 'pint of Fosters please Micky' and i'm just standing there froze like a lemon. 'Micky' was the dad of the centre half in my U15 football team !
He was grinning like a demented idiot, then sarkily goes 'and what about you young Smudge'. Looking at my shoes, i somehow mumbled 'yeah, i'll have the same please Micky' and was too afraid to look up for about ten seconds. When i eventually looked up i saw he was halfway through pouring the pint, and the relief was like nothing i'd experienced before.
He had a word with me at football the next morning, and said he was alright about me going down there with a few mates, as long as we didn't go shouting about it, and behaved ourselves. Absolute top fella. Within weeks we had a crowd as regulars and would hog the dartboard all night playing killer. Happy days !
The Castle in Eltham or The Royal down by mottingham station
must have been 16 i wouldn't have had thenerve to do it any earlier.
you young basta*d,when I see dates like that it makes me feel old.
What about me?
He's younger than my oldest!
17, Cutty Sark - Greenwich (1992, Carling £1.75)
Why thank you!!