My choice of venue for this landmark moment was The Shakespeare, the closest pub to the new entrance to New Street station and one that has remained relatively unchanged for many years. I was due to meet Shelley at 6.30 so there was just enough time to partake in a post work swifty.
I was flying solo (hence the selfie) on this particular mission mainly due to the fact that my usual Friday Club companion Matt was still enjoying his twelve month work sabbatical. I opted for a pint of Nicholson's Pale Ale and, whilst it was a bit on the cloudy side, that didn't really matter...it was beer and it tasted great !!!!!
UPDATE 24th October
We walked into The Shakespeare with the strains of Ravel's Bolero going round in our heads. Shelley and I had just been to see the CBSO perform popular pieces from TV and adverts at the Symphony Hall with my Dad and that particular piece of music, made famous by ice skaters Torvill and Dean, finished off proceedings.
A couple of beers at The Shakespeare was certainly a bit less cultured but it was still a good way to round off what had been a very enjoyable night.
Getting served in town on a Friday night is a frustrating pastime, I seem to stand at the bar like the invisible man though lack of staff was more the issue at The Shakespeare. There were only two serving one of whom was dealing with a woman who was an absolute pain, a huge round of assorted drinks, which she took an age to order, with the piece de resistence coming at the end, six baby Guinnesses which, for those of you who are unaware of this particular delicacy, is a shot glass filled firstly with Tia Maria and topped with Baileys so it looks like a miniature pint of the black stuff.
The baby Guinnesses were all well and good but they took an age to make. Naturally to top it off she wanted to pay for the round on a card !! Am I just miserable?!! Funnily enough Mardy Bum by The Artic Monkeys was playing whilst I was waiting getting more and more agitated, it summed me up perfectly as I waited in vain to get served.
In all honesty the wait was well worth it, an excellent pint of Purity UBU for me and a pint of her beloved Aspall cider for Shelley. I joined Shelley on the table she had chosen by the pub's window and made a conscious effort not to mention lack of staff, baby Guinnesses, card payments etc..
Shelley's choice of table was a great one, the pub is in full view of the new entrance to New St station so as the time was approaching eleven o'clock we were able to witness inebriated post work drinkers struggling to make their last train home and youngsters arriving in town on their way out. Their way out?!! I have difficulty staying up much past ten o'clock these days !!
I did promise Shelley that we'd go for 'something nice to eat' after the concert and she said 'I bet we end up at the chippie' so, after staying in The Shakespeare that long that our choices were restricted to curry houses and fast food restaurants, Mystic Shell showed that she possesses prophetic powers as we ended up, somewhat embarrassingly, in Skippers fish and chip shop on Bristol St !!
The night finished with me (armed with pie and chips) hailing down a cab, with a sign in its window stating 'phone bookings only', and making our way back to Shelley's Mums.
UPDATE 30th October
I was off to see Black Stone Cherry supported by Airbourne at the LG Arena with workmate Bill and, as he was running late, I had called in at a couple of venues on the way to our planned rendezvous point of The Shakespeare, an ideal choice given that it is the nearest pub to New Street station and the NEC is a short train ride away.
Although he wasn't there when I arrived there was no danger of me getting Bill's drink wrong, he sees little point in drinking lager with an ABV of less than 5% with Stella being his usual tipple, so I ordered him a pint of the infamous Belgium fire water remembering that he is far from impressed that a recent change to the recipe has seen its strength reduced from 5% to 4.8%.
My choice was a slightly more difficult one, I was talked out of my original selection of Purity UBU by the barmaid who asked me if I'd tried Sharp's Atlantic. I hadn't and it was a great recommendation. I stood by the bar and waited for Bill's arrival..
Thankfully it wasn't long before my tardy friend arrived which was just as well as Airbourne were due on at 7.50pm and I didn't want to miss their customary opening number of Stand Up For Rock and Roll.
Come on Bill, drink up, it's not as strong as it used to be !!
UPDATE 11th November
I had no idea how often I'd use The Shakespeare this year, but the renovation of New St station and the fact that it now stocks some very palatable beers means that it is now one of my more frequently visited Birmingham city centre pubs.
I had called in with my mate Gray after spending a very enjoyable evening watching Squeeze founder members Glen Tilbrook and Chris Difford at the Birmingham Town Hall.
Given the fact that we were part of a more mature audience we were permitted to take alcohol to our seats during the performance so we'd had more to drink than we'd probably anticipated, i.e. three pints of Red Stripe in Turtle Bay before the show, a pre concert pint in the bar at the Town Hall, and, noting that it was a show of two halves, meant for us that it was a show of two pints !!
Seven pints on a school night (the final total with the addition of my pint of Nicholsons Pale Ale in The Shakespeare) probably wasn't the most conscientious of alcoholic unit consumptions but, well, I just got carried away !!
Last bus/train issues meant that it was only a brief stop, it's just as well really as a gallon would have been foolhardy !!
I took a quick snap before catching the last train home..
I didn't dare miss it or I'd really be Up the Junction, probably a spaghetti one !!
UPDATE 28th November
This particular visit was an unmemorable one, this is no reflection on the quality of what is a great little pub more an admission that I have very little recollection of the visit. It came at the end of a very long afternoon visit to the Jewellery Quarter that spilled into the evening as these things invariably do.
We had been promising Shelley's brother Craig and sister in law Maria a visit to the Jewellery Quarter for some time and the route that day was as follows : we started off at The Railway then, after a beer at the German Market, we went to the OC's, The Lord Clifden, The Jewellers Arms, The Drop Forge Tavern, The Rose v*lla Tavern, Vertu Bar, The Queens Arms and finally The Shakespeare.
It is hardly surprising therefore that I can't remember much about the visit bar the fact that I drank Purity UBU and the surrounding area, particularly New Street station was absolutely packed due to the Christmas market. Bah humbug !!
Given the vast array of pubs that we visited, despite Craig's early request, we foolishly hadn't eaten all day. Look at Craig rubbing his empty tummy in the following snap...
...it was definitely time to go ho ho home !!
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