89 Mechanics Arms- Audenshaw

Not  visited

This  one  was  further  up  Guide  Lane. It  closed  and  was  converted  to  housing  around  2012.

88 Stamford Arms-Audenshaw

Not  visited

I've  recorded  The  Stamford  Arms  as  being  in  Denton  but  it  was  actually  just  in  Audenshaw. Again  we  seem  to  have  missed  an  intervening  pub, The  White  House  Inn.

It  seems  to  have  closed   down  around  2010  and  is  now  a  funeral  parlour.

87 Silver Springs-Denton

First  visited : 30  November  2014

This  is  our  first  still  open  pub  in  Tameside. I  always  know  when  I've  crossed  this  municipal  boundary  because , having  spent  some  time  in  Tameside  MBC's   Rates  office  at  the  start  of  my  working  life, all  the  street  names  are  vaguely  familiar. Of  the  nine  "towns"  that  make  up Tameside , Denton is  geographically  closest  to  Manchester  and  seems  most  like  a  suburb.

The  Silver  Springs  is  fairly  central , on  the  road  out  to  Ashton.  My  expectations  were  not  high  as  the  adjacent  building  is  derelict  and  the  entrance  is  festooned   with  notices  about  drugs, CCTV  and  low  beer  prices. The  pub  was  also  peripherally  involved  in  the  Dale  Cregan  case  as  one  of  his  co-defendants  was  alleged  to  have  pulled  a  gun  on  the  landlord  in  2004.

Inside  however  it's  actually  quite  nice  with  what  looks  like  a  genuine  Victorian  bar  with  glass  panels   at  its  centre. It's  clean  and  tidy  throughout. It  was  practically  empty  this  afternoon  with  just  a couple  of  locals  who  looked  quite  rough  but  then  one  of  them  invited  Simon  to  play  pool  with  his  son  which  was  quite  nice. I  noted  in  the  games  room  that  they  were  hedging  their  bets  by  having  both  City  and  United  pictures  on  the  walls.

With  no  food  and  actually  a  fairly  restricted  range  of  drinks,  I  can't  see  myself  going  back  there  but  there  was  nothing  unpleasant  about  it.