Ted Bruning

Why read two books on the topic when I may visit a half dozen pubs in London tops. I seem to have a deep obsession with the pub – it’s form, it’s history, the congeniality of a familiar local. And these books by Bruning bring that alive with a historic vignettes, opinionated discussion of interior design, and a thorough examination of what makes a pub a pub. If only I had an infinite lifetime to absorb the experience and the essence of each and every one. I wouldn’t even have to have a drink. Although I probably would.

One side of the street is Selwood Terrace, the other side of the street is Neville Terrace. “If there is another instance in London of a street having one name on one side and another on the other, I don’t know of it.” (p. 144)

Dr. Samuel Phene invents tree-lined streets. (p. 156)… (más)

As a lover of pubs and fine ales, I can dream of walking around London districts sipping pints, chatting up the locals, maybe even playing darts or bowling. Of course, I’d probably be dead drunk a third of the way into any of these walks, but one can dream of a vacation of nothing but pubs anyhow. Bruning is a fellow pub lover with a keen eye for details in architecture, history, beers served and the mood of the clientele. I wish I had his job – sigh…

“Decrepitude can be a great preserver. No-one wants to spend money where there’s no money to be made, and so often the survivors of change are the disregarded, the neglected, the overlooked. Think of the medieval hill towns of Tuscany – would any still exist if coal had been found in the region?” (p. 244)… (más)