Sir Shannon Alberry welcomes you!
The Morning Advertiser introduces our new blogger...Sir Shannon Alberry of the Bloated Toad.
To say that pubs run through my veins might be an understatement. I was born in a pub in 1946.
My old dad was born in 1916 — in a pub. He was born, worked, lived, worked, went to war, worked, had kids (lots of them), worked and worked and then died in a pub in 1985.
When he was demobbed in 1946 after a "quiet" war with the Sussex 1st Fusiliers he went straight to the now defunct family brewers Hoskins & Sons and spent his savings on getting a tenancy on a little pub in Brighton, just off Bedford Square.
In no time at all he met, courted and wed my mum leaving just enough time in 1946 to produce me, his first of a family of 6 roistering boys.
From my earliest days I followed him everywhere, up and down the cellar stairs, around the yard…watching and listening and being so proud of my dad….always the guvnor. By the time I could walk I knew the smells of different ales and knew the prices of them all. By the time I could read and write I did my dad's stock counts and could tell the difference between the customers he liked and those he endured.
I could tell when business was good and when it was tough. I understood the good district managers from the nasty district managers. And I knew that what the brewery said mattered. Life as we knew it was good — we knew no other.
Mum and Dad worked 7 days a week. I can't remember them ever taking any holiday…ever. Until in 1966 he won a trip for them both to London to see The World Cup Final — and he left me in charge — for one night.
He was an unusual man because, although he never ventured far from his domain, his interests were wide ranging and he was always happy to talk about what at that time were quite esoteric subjects like food, beers from around the world and even wine. No-one in 1950s England talked much about any of that stuff and I had no idea from where he got his interest. We did not even sell wine in the early days — a port and lemon was as close to the grape as we got. I have no idea from where he acquired his knowledge as I have no memory of him reading anything at all.
Following in the footsteps
My dad grew up in the depression — and those times when he was a teenager — shaped him. He understood self reliance, hard work and how to get the most from your customers.
In recent years I have spent more and more time thinking of him and his values — and how these have shaped me too. For I followed him into the pub game and have spent all my life, too, in and around pubs.
I have had some great times and I have some wonderful tales, which I tell my gang on a far too regular basis. The thing about pubs is that they change but they don't change. And I have begun to make a note of some of these enduring characteristics of pubs.
What I have in common with lots of people who work in pubs is that I love them and I love the life I've led — no matter how hard it has been at times.
One thing is sure — it has never been tougher than now — but what is also true is that it can still be as good as it was when I was a nipper in the 1950s. I have been asked to share some of these thoughts and experiences with you.
Next time I will tell you about how I became Sir Shannon Allberry.
Sir Shannon Alberry is the owner, chef, head barman and principal pot wash at The Bloated Toad — a freehouse in a leafy English suburban town.
