Cherry Tree, Leicester

The Cherry Tree is a pub I hadn't been in for around 30 years! It was never on our circuit of drinking pubs, even though we used nearby boozers such as The Salmon, and the Highcross Street duo of the Hat & Beaver and Red Lion quite regularly in those days. I think the only reason I went there at all was that it hosted the Merry Cherry Folk Club in a poky room upstairs. It may have been the M&B Brewery logo which put us off at the time, though I'm pleased to say that these days I'm much less fussy about my beer choice where good pubs are concerned.

The position of the pub today is remarkable in that it stands in the shadow of the mighty Highcross Shopping Centre. The city council's pride and joy, and Leicesters very own contribution to the relentless homogenisation of our once distinctive towns and cities. For many people it seems, the Highcross Centre represents a kind of ideal in shopping, eating, and drinking. All the usual chain stores, cheek-by-jowl with the safest, most familiar food and drink brands, all together in one bland, temperature controlled 'space'.  There's absolutely nothing to distinguish it from any other shopping centre in the country, and certainly little there to indicate you're in Leicester!

Which makes the position of the Cherry Tree, and some of the other non-chain pubs in the area, so very important (as indeed is Leicesters excellent, and nearby, outdoor Market). The Cherry Tree is 'very' Leicester indeed. Friendly, traditional, full of character, and characters, and unlike the multitude of bland chain bars and pseudo-pubs clustered around this part of the city, there's a Pool Table where league matches are played, and a Darts Board which judging by the numerous league fixtures lists pinned up in the bar, gets quite a hammering throughout the week. Sadly, many of the proper 'locals' pubs in this part of town have gone for good now, most notably from the perspective of this blog the Hat & Beaver, which had Table Skittles as I recall. All the more reason to visit pubs like the Cherry Tree whilst they're still there to enjoy.

A Wooden Spoon for Dominoes dated 1975 hangs above the entrance to the bar.

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Snowshill Arms, Snowshill, Gloucestershire

Here's another fine old Donnington Brewery pub. Attractive and very typical Cotswold stone on the outside, cosy, welcoming, and unpretentious within.

There's a Darts Board in the bar, and a light, airy Skittle Alley at the rear of the pub which is available for functions. No league appears to operate in this area of Gloucestershire, which is a shame as the alleys are very good and beautifully well maintained.

 

An opening six at the Snowshill Arms.

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White Hart, Newbold-on-Stour, Warwickshire

The licensee of the White Hart at Newbold-on-Stour has made every effort to incorporate a range of traditional games into the pubs offering. The Aunt Sally 'Throw' to the side of the pub was originally laid as a Pétanque piste, but the game didn't find favour with the locals. When the nearby Bird in Hand pub was put up for sale, its future uncertain, the bright yellow Hook Norton backcloth of the 'local' game was moved across the road, where it is now stands facing the main road through the village.

The padded metal 'Iron' shown here is topped with a freely rotating 'Swivel', on which is located the wooden 'Doll'. The black circle on the sheet helps to highlight the white Doll during play.

The various Aunt Sally leagues all have well presented websites where a better understanding of the game can be found than I can give here. The White Hart team play in Division 3 of the Chipping Norton Invitation Aunt Sally League, and the game can be seen played on alternate Thursday evenings throughout the Summer.

Winter gaming is catered for in the cosy bar area of the White Hart with one of the oldest pub games still in play. A really splendid carved wooden Ring The Bull is mounted on a beam above the open fire, and is unusual in that it would originally have had five scoring hooks rather than the usual single hook game. The brass number plates for hooks 1, 2, and 5 still exist, and would presumably have been used for a scoring game of some description, or perhaps to go 'round the board' in a similar way to the game of Rings. The existing single hook may well be a later addition for a simplified game. Ringing the bull is more difficult than it looks, so it's perhaps surprising to learn that the record for consecutive 'rings' at the pub stands at well over a hundred! A Shut The Box, this one numbering to12 and using three dice, is also available for play in the bar.

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The Locomotive, Wellingborough, Northamptonshire

The market town of Wellingborough is located at the very heart of the Northamptonshire Skittles area, giving its name to a local league as well as being the former base for G.J Pepper, fabricator of many of the skittles tables still to be found in the area (including the one shown here at The Locomotive).

In common with many similarly sized towns in Northamptonshire, the local game has now retreated to just a couple of pubs and perhaps just a single club. Most of the existing venues which play in the Wellingborough & District Skittles League can now be found in the surrounding small towns and villages, particularly those centred around nearby Rushden which itself hosts a Thursday Four-A-Side league.

Of the venues where skittles is still played in the town, The Locomotive is interesting in that it also fields a team in the Wellingborough & District Bar Billiards League, much shrunk in recent years but still with eight teams playing in the 2012/13 season.

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The Black Horse, Aylestone, Leicester

The Black Horse was my own local for many years, back in the days of Formica table tops, harsh strip lighting, and outside toilets. It was also a time when it was still perfectly normal to visit your local most days of the week, Friday nights and Sunday lunchtimes being particularly busy.

The pub has changed quite a bit since then, though still has a very traditional feel and retains the separate Bar, Lounge, and Snug layout of old. Only the tiny Off-sales room at the front entrance has been lost, my first introduction to pub culture when sent on regular errands for 'Ten No.6 and a bar of Milk Tray' as a youngster.

The Black Horse has always been a locals pub, tucked away on what is now a no-through road in the old part of the village. The nearby Union Inn, also very much a local, had the distinction of housing a Leicestershire Skittles Table as I recall, but the Black Horse was home to Darts, a Pool Table upstairs, and a good Long Alley for Skittles out the back. The Darts board has moved from its original location adjacent to the bar, but the Skittle Alley is still where it's always been in a separate outbuilding at the rear of the pub. The alley is not currently in use for league games as far as I'm aware, though it certainly was back in the 80's. Nowadays it's a popular venue for functions, and has hosted the annual Everards Brewery/Leicester CAMRA Skittles Challenge on a few occasions.

*Update: I'm pleased to say that Thursday Winter League Skittles is still being played at the Black Horse.

 

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A Shove Ha'penny With Brass Lifters

The Brass Lifters on this old Shove Ha'penny Board are located snugly in the grooves which separate the nine beds of the playing surface. Hinged on the left-hand side, and protruding a little on the right so they can be easily lifted during play. Lifters like these are not actually necessary for the game, so what are they there for?

The rules of Shove Ha'penny are simplicity itself. The only possibility for uncertainty and disagreement is in the lay of the coins, which must lie squarely and clearly between the lines to score. The general rule during a game is that if there is any uncertainty about the coins position between the lines, then it isn't a scorer, but on some boards this can be easier to judge than on others, and therein lies the potential for disagreement.

The lifters are used to help determine whether a coin is a scorer or not. If when lifted a little way clear of the playing surface, the Brass strip can be seen to move a potentially scoring coin, it is clearly and irrefutably deemed to be a non-scorer.

Brass Lifters, of the type seen on this board are quite common on Shove Ha'penny Boards, even some modern examples come equipped with a set. It's perhaps safe to say that they are most usually found on more expensive models, and since the system is hard to replicate on a home-made board they are generally considered to be an optional extra.

This solid wood board appears to be quite an old one, with a beautifully smooth surface, a Copper surround to stop over hit coins, and a dark patina on the leading edge from many years of use by beer and tobacco stained hands. Unusually, two separate wooden rails have been firmly fixed to the edges of the board to chalk the scores during a game. The main picture above shows the board in use at The George, Ashley, in Northamptonshire, a fine way to spend a cold Winter afternoon with friends.

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Smiths Arms, Kempston, Bedfordshire

This fine old Skittles Table resides in the dedicated games area of the Smiths Arms, one of several venues in Kempston which still field teams in one or other of the local skittles leagues. A Pool Table and a soon to return Darts Board are also available at this friendly and welcoming back-street corner local.

The licensee is new to the pub, and looking to spruce things up a little, but coming as he does from Wellingborough in Northamptonshire, he will be familiar with this version of Skittles, if possibly not the rules or terms used in the Bedfordshire game. A 'Leg' for example is known as a 'Horse' round here, something I've never come across in Northants or Leics.

This set of Cheeses bear the mark of the Smiths Arms, though the one on the right is an impostor which appears to be made from a different wood and is actually a slightly different shape to the others. I can't imagine this being acceptable in league play but these are not likely to be the match-day set.

The space on the wall to the right of the Skittles Table will soon have a Darts Board in place.

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