This was my nearest boozer when I lived round the corner above a picture framers, and it's very nice. A local's local. Good little cosy pub and decent enough ale as I remember, with a public bar at the front and a nice lounge bar at the back.
I'd not been back for 10 years or so since I was told off for not drinking fast enough! But as it looks like it may well be closing soon I thought I'd better poke my head to see what's changed.
Thankfully not much had. The front bar was full with the darts team practising - very thirsty work!
The lounge bar at the back was busy too with locals, and a real local crowd it was too. I was pretty sure I was the only one who didn't know everyone else! I did know one chap though, and soon got chatting to some others and a friendly bunch they were too.
A fine singer provided free entertainment and the land lady provided free sandwiches, and one of the punters provided me with 20p when I'd ran out of money for one more pint. Good lad!
Also of note was the London darts board, apparently not at all that common and I'd certainly not seen one before.
It is quite a hidden gem - I'd mentioned it earlier to another Camden pub
frequenter whom I'd bumped into in a pub on the way here, and he'd not
even heard of it. But that's not to say it's underused. It's much loved by the regulars, and there's much dismay at the news from the brewery especially as it's all happened so quickly. This fine article from Vice sums things up nicely.
Camden Council recently made the Old White Bear a community asset (rather laughably in my opinion but well done them none-the-less), and have gone to great lengths to protect the Golden Lion so one can only hope they do the same for the Admiral. You can't under-estimate the importance and value that a pub like this for the community.
You don't have to be Londoner to love the Admiral Mann, not even a local. But we'd all be sorry if it goes.
The pub's own website is here, and a petition to keep it open is here.
And the Mann himself is here - a London boy done well if ever there was one.
Fingers crossed.
My mam and dad ran this pub in the mid eighties.
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