<- Keith can't believe the drinks are really free!Yes the good old Duke of Wellington had one final night of old-school hard drinking and bad dancing on Saturday night, as it's changing hands shortly.
After 17 years of regular attendance I can't quite believe it's over. Never again shall we be told by Lee to 'drink up and fuck off'*
A concise history of me and the Duke:
1988 Get drunk in pub for first time, watching Miller play the guitar at the Duke every Wednesday.
1990? Brother Adam forms legendary band Stone House as the first of several line-ups to play the Duke in the hope of rock stardom and maybe impressing the girls.
1993? I destroy half of garden wall while climbing over it in order to avoid paying at the door. I never tell anybody about what I have done and feign alarm and surprise when the damage is pointed out to me.
1995 Rare video footage of Duke recorded in classic home movie 'The Good Years', published by Jude-Ra the Everliving.
2001 A space oddyssey. 'E's become prevalent, as does loud dance music and spontaneous hugging. Partying at the Duke reaches a new high.
2002 The come down. Duke closes it's doors for 18 months for a posh refit!
Add to that all the Christmas lock-ins, the Summer BBQs, the countless friends and acquaintances made, and the one thing that never changed - the Hardys! Cheers guys :-)
*never say never
6 comments:
I was given little choice in the matter. It was fun to get behind the bar and help people get drunk by lining up shots of strangely coloured mystery booze for them.
It's always sad to see a good old friend go.....for as long as I've known Adam, I remember him talking about "The Duke".....
I've probably walked past it myself when in Shoreham-by-sea...
Nice photo. Beware the Judder Man!
I been down the duke. It's not bad. Lots of ale, and an incredibly attractive serving-wench.
They seem to have imported a new 'crowd' somehow. A bit older, with a few CAMRA types.
Ha! Tempting, but I think I'm having a quiet night in with the computer tonight. Should be meeting Rob for a drink in Brighton tomorrow though.
A beautiful time.
Shame I never got to be there on the final night.. but at least I was a pirate!
Oh hello! Sarah's got a blog. And she likes Earthsea (the books, not that Sci-Fi Channel... 'thing'), thought that was just me.
Nice layout. Very Mondrian :-)
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