Brummies Here, Brummies There #2

Brummies here, Brummies there, Brummies every *******where la la la la la la la la la la went the terrace chant back in the eighties (that is the correct amount of la’s!)

Of course, anyone reading this who has stuck with me for about 18 months will know this is the same intro as the post on The Smisby Arms way back when I visited the tiny Leicestershire hamlet.

The basic premise is that I stumble across an exiled Birmingham City fan in the pub trade running a boozer that isn’t in Brum.

It’s genius really but the fact that after 434 pubs I only have one entry shows you the limited appeal of this particular series.

Until today of course; I was out with my lad and having come to the conclusion that Stafford Paul would be mending either his tap, mowing his lawn, or in The Vaults in Uttoxeter at 1pm on a Thursday afternoon we decided to go to 435 -The Bagot Arms WS15 3DB.

This boozer is in Abbots Bromley, which is a well to do village in Staffordshire and, until two weeks ago, had a very prominent Independent girl’s school in the village.

Bearing in mind the Sunday Times voted this the best place to live in the Midlands in both 2013 and 2016 (Coalville pipped them in 2014 and Whitwick in 2015) then you can imagine it is full of affluent farmers and people with shares in Jack Wills.

This is the sort of place that screams gastro pub but, in the midst of it all, was a dyed in the wool Blues fan running a local boozer.

Meet Dave.

He’s got good Blues credentials as he’s from Castle Bromwich, which as Martin will testify, is a real ale desert in East Birmingham, full of housing estates and close to the NEC.

Bearing in mind, apart from Lian, no one else is remotely interested in Birmingham City on this blog I don’t want to tear the backside out of it, but the gaffer was wearing a Blues football shirt on a Thursday afternoon, so he was definitely up for a chat.

Once he’d complemented me on my Jam t-shirt the conversation just flowed and he confirmed he was in a minority amongst Villa fans in the local area.

Anyway, his better half was chatty and there was a big crowd in the lounge eating and drinking who Dave confirmed were a group of walkers, as he gets lots stopping off as they walk the Staffordshire Way (that’s a route, not a style Russ), which I can imagine The Mappiman has covered extensively on his travels.

A very decent pint of Boondoggle (Ringwood) and two bowls of chips along with tables that were reconditioned Singer sewing machines underneath.

Apparently his first game was a goalless draw against Hull in the early seventies which set him up for over 40 years of purgatory!  Conversation drifted to cricket and football as most lads from that part of town follow cricket and football not rugby and it soon became clear this is the locals boozer as there were pictures of Abbots Bromley FC and CC adorning the walls and this is the place they will come for a drink post match.

It’s got Sky Sports too although Dave did say the free to air cricket final last week had the place packed.  He reckoned everyone in the pub, cricket fan or not, was glued to the game…ECB take note!

It’s a nice little traditional three roomer that dates back to the 1800s and is the sort of pub not built nowadays as you’re more likely to get a vacant hairdressers as your new local.

I suspect it won’t get into the GBG any time but I’m pretty sure Dave won’t care as long as he’s having the craic with his punters and occasionally visiting St Andrew’s for his regular fix of purgatory.