The Foundrymans Arms, Northampton

Putting aside for a minute the unique and special attributes we're all looking for in our 'local', it seems that most pub goers prefer to stick with the thoroughly 'safe and predictable' when out and about. Often it's the pubs you and your friends always go to, or maybe the ones recommended in the guide books. High street chain bars rely for much of their success on this safe familiarity, where you know exactly what you're going to get wherever in the country you might find yourself. No surprises, pleasant or otherwise, and perhaps entirely understandable given that people are visiting pubs less often now anyway.

Of course going off the beaten track and exploring the backstreet nooks and alleys of a town will inevitably lead to some disappointments, and for some it can be a scary business crossing the threshold of a strange pub. But how else are we going to find the hidden gems which don't make it into the guide books. The truly different, and the genuine diversity of independently run pubs which often come with a customer base slightly different to what we're used to. One of the great strengths of pubs is their individuality, but with every closure and bland refurbishment this cultural diversity is being lost at a rate of knots. So it's good to explore a little, step out of our comfort zone, and be surprised, sometimes even delighted with what we find.

The Foundrymans Arms is a little off the beaten track, though not so if you're a Northampton Saints Rugby fan as the pub is almost opposite the mighty Franklins Gardens stadium. It's also a very short walk across the railway and river bridge at St James, making it handy for the rail station, but this is not strictly speaking a town centre pub.

When I visited, the interior was in the final stages of a high quality redecoration ahead of the busy rugby season. It's still quite easy to see from the general layout and numerous doorways, some now blocked up, how the pub would have been made up of several separate rooms originally. The now open-plan drinking area wraps around a central island servery, though each side of the bar still retains an element of its original distinct character. It's a terrific locals pub, beautifully maintained with comfortable leather upsholstered bench seating. Needless to say it's a very busy pub on home rugby match days, but well worth the short walk from town for a pint and natter at other times, or maybe to throw a few cheeses on the fine old Northamptonshire Skittles Table upstairs.

The Games Room at the Foundrymans is located on an upstairs Mezzanine off the bar area. The Skittles Table has an orange Pepper's label, and is sensibly positioned in the corner farthest away from the windows. The pub fields teams in the towns most active league, the Northampton Ladies Skittles League, but in common with most of Northampton towns pubs which still have a table, there doesn't appear to be a men's team in action at this time.

The small group of gentlemen drinking at the bar had all played the game competitively at one time, indeed there are numerous trophies dotted around the pub from these glory days. Talk to anyone of a certain age in Northamptonshire, and the chances are they played for a team, but why so few still play now is hard to say given that age is no bar to the throwing of boxwood cheeses.
 

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The Three Cocks, Kettering, Northamptonshire

When a pub changes hands the new licensees will inevitably want to stamp their own personalities and ideas on the business, often in the form of a makeover. At best a good refurbishment can revitalise a previously moribund business, maybe even turn around a pub on the verge of closure and eventual loss. At worst the makeover can go too far, removing all vestiges of 'pubiness', and effectively turning the place into little more than a licenced coffee house.

This latter style of pub has become much more common in recent years, particularly in rural areas and villages. Bland, inoffensive, and often stripped of character and heritage by designers who seem to get all their ideas from glossy magazines, often in partnership with licensees who neither understand or even seem to like pubs and pub culture. None of which would be so bad if these pubs were ultimately successful, but more often than not it seems that one heavy handed refurbishment simply leads to another as the locals fail to warm to the latest interior decor fad.

The Three Cocks in Kettering is an excellent example of the sensitive refurbishment of a previously neglected town centre pub. Rather than imposing an off-the-peg style straight out of an IKEA catalogue, the pub has simply been given a bright, clean and welcoming makeover which comfortably strikes the balance between modernity and the age-old traditions of social drinking.

Owners Rob Seymour and Andrea Barham are an experienced, and CAMRA award winning team, and have naturally brought their enthusiasm for beer and cider to the pub from their previous venture in Essex. It's proving to be a welcome addition to the local beer scene, and the pub has already achieved a place in CAMRA's Good Beer Guide for the quality of the ale on offer.

The revitalisation of the Three Cocks doesn't stop at the decor and beer range though, and it's particularly pleasing to see the return of Northamptonshire's most traditional game to the pub in the form of a fine old Skittles Table.

The removal of the ubiquitous Pool Table from the games area, and the return of Northamptonshire Table Skittles alongside the Darts is a good indicator of the direction Rob and Andrea see the pub moving in. The Three Cocks now field teams in both the Kettering & District Skittles League and Kettering Darts League, and are on the lookout for more players to make up a 'B' team in the skittles. The return of traditional gaming to the pub has also been marked by the return of several old trophies to the pub, kept for safe keeping by a local and now on display in the games area.

Rob & Andrea have also brought a good Shove Ha'penny with them to the pub, available from the bar and currently awaiting the rediscovery of the half pennies so you may have to take your own.

We took our own coins for a game during the recent Autumn Blind Tasting Beer Festival, attracting a small crowd of spectators for the 'Live Sport'! The board plays pretty well, even if we didn't on the day!

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The Headland, Northampton

Modern single-story pubs like The Headland, located as they most usually are in the suburban hinterland between rural and urban living, are often well and truly off the radar for all but the most local drinkers. Lacking the genuine heritage of many urban pubs, and with little in their appearance that would sit well on the front of a chocolate box, we generally pass these pubs by, rarely considering what might lie within.

If I'm honest, the purple/blue brickwork and flat roof exterior of The Headland reminds me just a little too much of a 1970's comprehensive school, never a good thing for a person of my age! It's a classic example of the late 20th century trend for robust functionality over the unnecessary expense of the aesthetic. This is probably just the kind of pub the editorial team of the risible Good Pub Guide were referring to recently when they suggested that 4,000 more pubs should close post-haste to make way for more of 'their' kind of pubs.

I wasn't going to let the somewhat utilitarian exterior put me off though, because it's what's inside a pub that matters, and because all too often it's pubs like The Headland which alone continue to offer a truly 'social' drinking experience within their community. In fact it's pubs like The Headland that are the truly 'good' pubs in my opinion, rather than the gastro-exclusivity promoted in guides like the Good Pub Guide.

When I visited The Headland on a midweek lunchtime, the comfortable lounge bar was busy to bursting with local veterans enjoying a regular lunchtime function. This is exactly what I'd expect to find in a pub still firmly rooted at the heart of the community it serves. The lounge bar is the comfortable retreat for dining, drinks and chat, whereas the public bar is principally reserved for that other thing I'd expect to find in a community local like this, the wide range of games and sports which the pub supports.

In common with many Northampton town pubs, the local game of Table Skittles has sadly fallen out of favour with the locals. The table is a very fine one, and it would be a great shame if The Headland went the way of so many town centre pubs and finally consigned the game to a store room or eventually sold the table off. Go to The Headland, have a pint or two, throw a few cheeses while you're there.

 

One of the many pockets of Bar Billiards interest in the country can be found in pubs located in and around Northampton. Around ten teams compete on tables located in half a dozen venues locally, with a Summer league and various cup competitions played for in the Northants Bar Billiards League. Darts and Pool also feature at The Headland, but it's the very active Golf club which is perhaps the pubs main competitive focus.

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Bat & Wickets, Northampton

The current licensees of the Bat & Wickets have recently celebrated their first year at the helm of this traditional back-street local. I'd have to say that the last time I passed this way, the pub looked pretty uninviting from the outside, but a lot has changed since then. A fresh paint job, new bespoke frosted glass windows, and attractive new signage, all of which are thoroughly in keeping with the age and traditional character of the pub. The landlord has even sourced a couple of vintage Burtonwood Brewery pub lanterns for the frontage of the pub, conveniently liveried 'BW' to match the pub name.

Work is also progressing at a steady pace inside the pub, sensitively refurbishing and modernising the neglected interior without destroying any of the essential character of the place. The patio beer garden at the rear has also been given a freshen-up, and is now a delightful space for a Summer afternoon drink. Pub games still play an important role at the Bat & Wickets, and I'd highly recommend a visit to the pub if only to give the Skittles Table a work-out. This traditional Northamptonshire game has become very scarce in pubs this close to the town centre.

The games area is very well appointed, with Darts, Pool and a fine W T Blacks Skittles Table tucked into the corner. The locals are active in a number of leagues, including Ladies and Mens skittles, and a Thursday Pool league. The pub also supports local football, and hosts a very active Golfing crowd.

The pub's slightly unusual name apparently derives from its close proximity to the Racecourse Public Park, where Cricket and other team sports have been played since the post-war years. The main sporting interest at the Bat & Wickets now is the game of Golf. Several competitions and trophies are competed for at the pub, which includes the largest collection of Wooden Spoons I've ever seen in one place! One corner of the bar, shown below, is devoted to numerous golfing trophies and a series of wall plaques which record individual honours dating from the late 80's.

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Skittles - Not Just A Pub Game

The current trend for all things 'Pop-Up', including shops, restaurants, and even pubs, is like most new ideas, simply an old idea renamed for a new generation. The fact is, Pop-Up pubs have been appearing at Village Fetes and other community events for generations, named simply, and in the parlance of the time, the Beer Tent. The traditional credentials of this age-old Pop-Up Pub phenomena are often enhanced by a range of traditional Pop-Up Pub Games, with Skittles in all its myriad forms being a particular Fete-day favourite.

There's a fair bit of gaming crossover between pub and Fete, with all manner of games making the transition to the village green on the day. It's perhaps surprising that traditional Fete games like Splat The Rat, Roll A Penny, and the Coconut Shy haven't made the transition from Fete to pub game in the same way. Though maybe not! Having said that, the pub game of Aunt Sally has much in common with the Coconut Shy, and originated itself as a fairground game.

Of course skittles play at Fetes is much less competitive than pub play, often with a more random element due to the terrain, and primarily for the purposes of fun and local fund raising. It can also be a great introduction to the game for youngsters who may never have encountered skittles in a pub environment before.

The table shown above is a small handmade version of a Northants/Leics Skittles Table which makes a regular appearance at Caldecott Fete. This is probably the only similar table in active use in the county of Rutland, where skittles has all-but disappeared from its increasingly upmarket and food-led pubs.

The game shown here is a lovely old 'Country Skittles' set, raising money and giving pleasure at Braybrooke Fete in Leicestershire. The 'cheeses' are similar to those used in the Leicestershire Long Alley tradition, making this an ideal trainer game for the local pub game! Setting pins like these, which are often top-heavy, can be difficult on an uneven grassy surface, but this set is purpose made for the job and come complete with a set of spiked metal discs which can be inserted into the turf for the pins to sit on.

For every Northamptonshire or Leicestershire Skittles Table still residing in a pub, and there are hundreds, it's likely that just as many are now in private hands, sometimes located in parts of the country which are very far from the games Midlands home. This W T Blacks table is in the ownership of a local resident of Little Bowden near Market Harborough in Leicestershire, and has featured at every one of the village Fetes in recent years. A similar pub table is still in active use at the Cherry Tree in the village.

Skittles at Barrowden Fete in Leicestershire is a mix-and-match of Ten Pin Bowling Alley pins and a set of old Lignum Vitae Bowls. The bias on these Bowls presumably makes for a more challenging game. The Fete takes place on the village green, and in the shadow of the Exeter Arms which is home to a brewery and the local league game of Pétanque.

The table shown here proved a popular draw with the youngsters at the annual Feast Day in Stoke Albany, Northamptonshire. I've no idea where this table originally came from. Certainly the Fox Inn at the adjacent village of Wilbarston still has a well used table, so maybe this example came from Stoke Albany's pub, the White Horse which underwent an extensive refurbishment some years ago.

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The Horseshoe, Wilby, Northamptonshire

If ever there were an example of how pub skittles play can be a true force for good (bear with me, it's not as far fetched as it sounds), the hardy skittle players of The Horseshoe in Wilby might well be it. Of course team games like skittles come with inbuilt social benefits, and often play a crucial role in the success (or even survival) of many community pubs, but players and customers can also be involved through pub games in numerous charitable events, a point not lost on pub and beer campaigners CAMRA and Pub Aid in this recent press release.

When I visited The Horseshoe in April this year, a 24 Hour Charity Skittles Marathon had just taken place involving 25 players chucking through the night in a bid to raise funds for Prostaid. The eventual total raised from the overall event was a magnificent £5,000, and was such a success that it's hoped this could become an annual event. Not surprisingly, the pub itself is a real cracker, and I was made to feel very welcome by licensee Eve Jackson and the regulars at the bar.

The Northamptonshire Skittles Table is located in a separate games room adjacent to the front bar, an entirely necessary precaution given the noise generated during a lively game. I believe the black board on the left can be removed during a game creating an additional bar counter, particularly handy for those working up a thirst setting pins up in the 'Woodyard'. The skittles are set up and ready to play whenever you are and were being used for a casual game by a group of visitors to the pub when I was there.

The 'Oche' for the skittles can be seen leaning on the left-hand side of the table, an essential part of the Leicester skittles game where it is known as the Mott and usually made from steel, but an optional extra in Northamptonshire it seems.

Many venues for Northamptonshire Skittles indicate the position where the thrower needs to stand with a simple line on the floor, sometimes a brass or other metal strip. Where an Oche like this is used, it's usually the case that both feet must be within the area defined by its three wooden sides. This restricts how far to the left or right a player can stand, which is important in Northamptonshire Skittles because it's often necessary to bounce a cheese off the padded side panels in order to down a tricky pattern of pins.

The Horseshoe play their skittles in the Wellingborough & District League, with two teams currently throwing in the 1st and 3rd divisions of the Summer League.

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The Romany, Northampton

The 80's vogue for knocking through multi-room pubs into a single, large, easy to manage space, signalled the death-knell for many separate Bars, Snugs, and Games Rooms. It's certainly not just nostalgia which leads me to mourn the loss of this traditional multi-room layout. Different spaces serve different needs in a pub, and losing the separate bar/lounge/snug/games room layout can often remove at a stroke the pubs ability to appeal to a truly diverse customer base. It's true that fewer rooms mean less staff are required to run a pub, but I can't help feeling that the loss of flexibility and 'inclusiveness' which can result from this 'knocking-through' is just one more reason why some people have fallen out of love with the pub, let alone the loss of 'character' that almost inevitably comes with it.

Of course dull and unimaginative refurbishments of traditional pubs continue apace, but thankfully the wholesale removal of interior walls seems to be much less prevalent now. Sadly the damage has already been done in far too many traditional pubs, and there seems to be little or no desire on the part of brewers and pub owning companies to reinstate what has been lost.

The Romany in Northampton has certainly seen a number of changes to its internal layout over the years, but crucially two large separate bars have been maintained. This has undoubtedly helped in the success of the pub, where the games room concept has been taken to its logical conclusion by devoting almost half of the pubs trading area to the numerous gaming activities which take place. Gaming can be a noisy business, and a dedicated games room like the one at the Romany often makes sense, particularly with games such as Northants Skittles which can be both noisy, and occasionally hazardous in play.

So, if it's a quiet pint you're after (or perhaps a band in the evening), simply turn left at the main entrance, but if it's games you're looking for, the right-hand door will lead you to the Romany's excellent and well appointed Games Bar.

As you can see in the image above, gaming truly is the lifeblood of the Romany. League play includes everything from Darts and Pool, to the local speciality of Northamptonshire Table Skittles.

This table is one of only a handful which can now be found in what is the home town of the game. As far as I'm aware, Northamptons town centre pubs are now entirely devoid of skittles tables, though there may be a few clubs where the game can still be found. It's in traditional community pubs like the Romany, located on the edge of town and further out into the suburbs, that the game can still be found. Perhaps unusually for one of the more physical pub games, it's a Ladies League which still hold the torch for skittles play in the Northampton. It's hard to say why this might have come about, but perhaps the ladies make more of a social event of skittling than the men.

Darts and Pool are the main events at the Romany, with much of the silverware on display in the trophy cabinet coming from the Darts and Pool leagues.

There's also a very good quality open-top Football Table. The game of Table Football (or Foosball as it's now known) has dipped in popularity somewhat since the days when many pubs, and every student union bar had a table, but there are still a few about, with even league play in certain parts of the country. The British Foosball Association has a good interactive map which shows venues throughout the UK, with some limited coverage of Europe where the game is still very popular.

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A Compendium of Skittles Images

This Image has kindly been made available by Leo Reynolds under a Creative Commons Licence.

The grandly titled Skittle Saloon at the Black Horse in Norwich is now long gone, as indeed is the pub which closed for good over 40 years ago, the building now an opticians. What kind of skittles would have been played at the pub I wonder! Devoting a whole room to the game would suggest something a little more substantial than a Devil Amongst the Tailors, so perhaps it housed an alley of some kind. A Table Skittles tradition has been noted for Norfolk, played on a table similar in size to the Kent game of Daddlums which is somewhat smaller than a Northamptonshire Skittles Table. But would a game of this size warrant a whole Saloon? There are currently no known examples of the Norfolk game in existence.

This Skittle Alley is at the Bell Inn, St Johns, Worcester (right). Despite being very busy, the assembled competitors and spectators were happy for me to take a few photographs during a hotly contested Sunday afternoon cup match.

This is a popular and very well used skittle alley, located in an extension at the rear of this unusually laid-out 17th Century locals pub. Well worth a visit when in Worcester.

The pins are of the 'Bristol' type (see below), the white painted ends and stripe on the leading pin is purely to help give players something to aim for. The dark wood of the balls suggests that they are made from Lignum Vitae, preferred by many skittlers over more modern alternatives as they have the correct weight for their size and are very durable. The disadvantage of Lignum balls is that they can reduce the life of both the pins and alley surface.

I've included a picture of the all important 'Sticker-Uppers'. Usually a pair of local lads or family members, employed for the day to put the pins back up and return the balls during a game. You won't find too many Sticker-Uppers in East Midlands skittling, that job is done on a rota basis by the players, but this system is the norm throughout the West Country and West Midlands.

The Skittle Pins shown here are the classic 'Bristol' shape, 10 inches tall and around 4.5 inches across. Bristol pins come in different sizes, and there use is not confined to the Bristol area. These pins originally saw service in a Worcester pub, but they are not the very best quality, which may explain why they've been retired to my ownership whilst still in reasonably good condition. The better quality pins are made from a solid piece of well seasoned Beech or Sycamore, often treated with Linseed oil. The pins shown here are fabricated from several pieces of Beech wood bonded together before being turned and varnished. Whilst they are perfectly adequate for general play, I'm not sure they'd be durable enough for a well used alley like the one at the Bell Inn, particularly if the harder Lignum Vitae or composite balls are preferred. Rubber balls are available which are more suitable for this quality of skittle.

The Dukes Arms in Burton Latimer, Northamptonshire is a sparse, drinkers pub, just the kind of establishment you're likely to find a well used skittles table in the county of Northamptonshire. A brass plate on the front leg indicates that this table has been refurbished by John Tonks in 1998. Note the large sheet of ply wood at the rear of the table, used to protect the glazed doors on the right during play.

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