99 The Woodman Inn - Ashton-under-Lyne

First  visited : 31 May  2015

The  Woodman  is  about  half  a  mile  outside  of  the  town  centre  where  Wilshaw  Lane  joins  Oldham  Road.

As  it's  in  or  near  to  the  nicer  end  of  Ashton   I  had  some  hopes  this  one  would  be  a  nice  call  but  was  rather  disappointed. The  pub  lives  up  to  its  name  by  having  a  lot  of  wood  panelling  but  it  looks  odd  rather  than  attractive. In  particular  it's  created  a  very  strange  little  lounge  with  just  one  table  in  the  centre  and  any  olde  worlde  charm  cancelled  out  by  a  giant  TV  screen  on  the  wall. Elsewhere  the  seating  looks  a  little  shabby  and  the  walls  are  overdecorated  with  football  and  film  star  posters  without  rhyme  or  reason.

Although  there's  a  handwritten  notice  on  the  wall  warning  that  local  residents  have  got  diary  sheets  ready  to  record  any  disturbance  at  closing  time, the  few  patrons  when  we  called  were  a  handful  of  old  men  checking  out  the  racing. One,  not  noticeably  Scottish,  guy  was  waiting  for  the  Scottish  Cup  Final   on  Sky  which  seemed  particularly  sad. It  was  friendly  enough  but  there  was  no  reason  to  call  again.

98 The Burlington - Ashton-under-Lyne

Not  visited

This  one  was  on  Oldham  Road. It  closed  in  2009  and  remains  boarded  up  and  empty.

97 The Ashton Hotel- Ashton-under- Lyne

Not  visited

This  one  has  me  stumped. I've  got  this  down  in  the  book  as  "Ashton  Hotel- where  do  you  think ?"  but  I've  got  no  idea  where  exactly it  was. It  must  have  been  somewhere  near  to  the  bus  station  but  I  can't  find  any  reference  to  it  anywhere. Any  Astonians  reading  this  please  help  me out  here.

96 Beau Geste - Ashton-under-Lyne

First  visited  :  1987 or  1988

I  used  to  wait  for  my  bus  home  just  the  other  side  of  a  road  into   the  bus  station  from  this  pub  and  occasionally  went   in  it  to  kill  time  if  I'd  just  missed  one  or  had  an  evening  meeting  to  attend. The  bus  station  has  since  been  re-located  and  now  the  shopping  centre  almost  abuts  onto  the  pub  as  seen  above.

I  recall  it  being  quite  pleasant  for  a  town  centre  pub  despite  an  unprepossessing  appearance  from  outside   and  it's  good  to  see  it  holding  out  against  redevelopment.

95 The Queen Inn - Ashton-under-Lyne

First  visited  : 17  May  2015

We  walked  past  this  one  on  the  way  to  the  Theatre  Tavern   a  few  weeks  back  and  I  was  rather  hoping  I'd  missed  it  out  of  the  book.  It  did  actually  close  for  a  period  around  2010  but  has  re-opened.

Actually  though,  our  visit  today  was  quite  enjoyable. The  pub  is  small, cheap  and  cheerful  with  minimal  decor  but  the  barmaid  or  perhaps  landlady  was  very  friendly,  particularly  towards  Simon. The  sandwich  I  purchased  was  quite  nice.

There  were  a  handful  of  other  punters  showing  not  much  interest  in  Swansea  v  Man  City  and  I'm  not  quite  sure  how  they  make  the  Sky  pay  given  the  limited  capacity.

I'm  not  sure  I'll  be  visiting  again  but  it  was  much  better  than  expected.

94 The Robin Hood - Ashton-under-Lyne

First  visited : 19  April  2015

At  some  point  the  Robin  Hood  changed  its  name  to  The  Theatre  Tavern, reflecting  its  position  next  to  the  town's  Hippodrome  Theatre. The  theatre  actually  closed in  2008  and  was at  one  point  threatened  with  demolition  before  being  granted  listed  building  status. A  charitable  trust  has  plans  to  reopen  it  in  the  near  future.  It  was  under   Tameside  MBC's  management  when  I  worked  for  them  and  many  of  my  colleagues  quietly  regarded  it  as  a  white  elephant. I  remember  one  guy  saying  the  only  people  who  made  it  any  money  were  "Chubby  ( ultra-blue  comic  Roy  Chubby  Brown ) and  Big  Daddy" ( i.e. professional  wrestling ). I don't  know  what  that  says  about  Ashton's  cultural  capital - not  much  I  guess.

Outwardly  this  is  Ashton's  most  distinctive  pub   with  its  magnificent  green  tiling  and  impressive  frontage. What  a  contrast  to  the  inside  which  looks  like  it's  been  gutted  and  is  bare  and  tatty. Don't  believe  the  promise  of  a  lounge  etched  on  the  windows, it's  just  one  large  room  with  a  mini-stage  at  the  far  end. The  seats  were  threadbare  and  dirty  which  may  be  why  the  other  half  dozen  customers  were  propping  up  the  bar.

What  makes  it  sadder  are  the  momentos   of  the  theatre  dotted  around  the  walls  and  autographed  posters  for  the  famous  and  not-so-famous  lined  up  on  the  beams. You  have  Billy  Connolly  and  Val  Doonican  rubbing  against  Susanne  Day  ( ? ), Johnny  Rich  (? ) and  Paul  Deane  Junior  ( apparently  a  Gene  Pitney  tribute  act ).  What's  perhaps  most  interesting  is  a  mounted  display  of  signed  publicity  shots  from  the  stars  of  Coronation  Street  including  the  long-deceased  Bernard  Youens.

I  won't  be  calling  again  but  should  add  that  Simon  enjoyed  it  because  they  were  showing  Mr  Bean  on  the  TV  screen.

93 The Oxford - Ashton-under-Lyne

First  visited : 10  April  2015

I  wasn't  too  excited  about  going  to  this  one  which  is  on  the  left  hand  side  of  the  A635  just  before  the  first  big  roundabout  at  St  Peter's  Church. It's  unpreposssing  on  the  outside  with  minimal  parking  and  warnings  about  drugs  as  you  go  inside.

It  actually  seemed  quite  a  friendly  place  inside  with  two  separate  lounges,  either  side  of  a  small-ish  bar. It's  quite  plain  with  some  incongruous   1930s  style   adverts  for  sophisticated  cocktails  comprising  most  of  the  wall  decorations.   The  furnishings  were  a  bit  eclectic  ;one  of  the  tables  in  the  lounge  we  sat  in  looked  like  it  had  been  converted  from  a  pool  table  with  the  baize  still  in  place. The  young  barmaid  was  friendly  and  quite  presentable.

It  didn't  advertise  any  food  but  there  was  a  tureen  and  hot  plate  on  the  bar  suggesting  it  provides  something  for  the  football  crowd  when  there's  a  match  on. It's  not  the  sort  of  place  you'd  go  out  of  your  way  for  but  it  rounded  off  our  day  out  pleasantly  enough.