Oldham
Top pub: The Bank Top Tavern, King Square
Oldham perhaps has the dubious honour
of being the most under-pubbed town in the second division. It's something of an anomaly
for the North. The town seems dotted with ex-pubs. You emerge from Mumps station,
negotiate a hazardous double carriageway and find yourself on Union Street, a long and
dull stretch leading to the town's alleged centre.
The closest pub we've tried to Mumps station
is the Royal Oak, a Robinson's pub of some faded character. It's a real
unkempt locals' boozer for unkempt locals; so far, so good, and we like the beer too, but
you couldn't exactly call the welcome we had here on our last visit (April 99) warm. I had
a hell of a struggle with the (assumed) landlady to get my oversized glass topped up to
the pint line. Only when I suggested paying less than the price of a full pint did she
succumb. Friend Woody, meanwhile, had the temerity to ask for a bag of nuts. Or perhaps
crisps. He wasn't fussy. His request was rebuffed with the immortal rejoinder: "This
is a pub. Not a cafeteria. We don't sell food." We can only be thankful that we
didn't ask for anything really complicated, like a packet of pork scratchings. In my fuzzy
memory, this pub also has a very large dog, but I may have invented that, because if it
doesn't, it should.
Moving up Union Street we come to the former
Hogshead pub, which has changed its name. Not terribly helpful, this, but we were last in
there before the 3-3 draw under waddle (April 98), and it was okayish, decent beer,
somewhat lacking in atmosphere.
Further up the street and across the road to
the right we arrive at King Square, in which you'll find the Bank Top Tavern.
You can also get here by way of a steep uphill climb from Werneth station, as we did under
a blazing sun in August 99 (I wouldn't recommend it). Oldham has two stations, Mumps and
Werneth, and I am sure someone has a good reason why. Broadly speaking, Mumps is a better
bet for beer, Werneth is handier for the ground. Anyway, the Bank Top is a reasonable pub
where we've gathered once or twice, although I wouldn't go so far as to say they were
football friendly, as it's a fairly quiet place. There is an emphasis on food, with big
meals and bar snacks, so it's an obvious place to eat, and the beer is fair quality Lees.
Oldham Athletic are, of course, owned by J W
Lees' brewery, and all is less than sweetness and light here. In protest at Lees' history
of underinvestment in the club, Oldham fans have, over the last couple of years, taken to
boycotting Lees' beer, and urge other supporters to do likewise. The ethical drinker
therefore has a choice to make about whether they can be seen supporting such a
discredited football establishment. Personally, having given it some thought, I incline to
the Bill Hicks philosophy of taking a look around the planet and finding more serious
stuff to worry about, and drink the stuff with a clear conscience. Besides which, as Lees
enjoys a local near monopoly (you'll be hard pressed to find a pint of anything else) and
Oldham doesn't have enough pubs to go round anyway, you may find the prize you pay for
taking such a stance is to watch Burnley sober, and we all know that that would never do.
For more on this campaign, try the Oldham Athletic E-zine.
So, what of pubs nearer the ground? Forget it.
Boundary Park is well named. It's miles from anywhere, on top of a permanently wet and
windy hill, and, although Burnley Road is nearby, that's as exciting as the immediate
locale gets. A cab from the centre always looks a better bet.
There are other options. The towns of
Chadderton and Royton are quite close. Both have Lees pubs. We went to Royton (north of
Oldham) in April 99. It wasn't terribly easy to get into a pub, with door policies fairly
strict, but once inside it was friendly enough. If it seems I'm being a little vague, it's
because by that stage I was somewhat confused and the details passed me by. Not sure where
we were drinking, but it was (surprise surprise) definitely a Lees pub.
Chadderton is beyond the ground to the south
west of Oldham. We enjoyed a quick pre-match pint of (of course) Lees in the Horton
Arms here on Streetbridge in August 99. Impossible to give directions to this
quiet and bucolic pub. It's about a twenty minute walk uphill to the ground. If there's
someone in here wearing an Oldham shirt, leave when they do and follow them on the
picturesque cross country nature trail until the floodlights hove into view. At a
roundabout below the ground, you will pass one of those big new pubs, but you know you can
do better than that. Beware of the gents in the Horton Arms, by the way. You're liable to
end up in a cupboard.
Of course, some of our lot shot into a taxi,
blurted out the name and were immediately whisked to the Houghton Arms in Failsworth,
somewhere between Oldham and Manchester. An easy mistake to make, I suppose. And they
still got to the game before us.
By far the best bet, however, is to do the
bulk of your pre and post match drinking in nearby Manchester. There are some great pubs
around the Victoria drinking quarter, including the multi-choice drinking den the Beer
House (Angel Street, off Rochdale Road); the newly re-opened after bomb damage
classic boozer the Crown and Anchor (Cateaton Street, next to the
cathedral); the Crown and Cushion (around here somewhere); the Hare
and Hounds with its lovely interior (Shude Hill, near the Arndale Centre); a
decent Hogshead (High Street); the Marble Arch (Rochdale
Road), who brew their own beer but have a floor that slopes upward from the bar, making
leaving difficult; the Pot of Beer (New Mount Street); the Smithfield
(Swan Street). All of these are near Victoria station, from where you can catch a train to
Oldham.
After the match, Werneth is nearer, and if
you've moved sharply, you can snatch a quick single in the Unicorn, more
or less opposite the station. Then, once back in Manchester, London visitors can work
their way up to the train home from Piccadilly via the utterly wonderful Robinson's pub
the Castle (Oldham Street), the Grey Horse, Circus
and the Old Monkey (all Portland Street), the Ape and Apple
(John Dalton Street), the Waldorf (Gore Street) and the Bull's
Head (London Road, underneath Piccadilly station). All the Manchester central
pubs could, of course, be full of City, United or away fans when the Manchester clubs are
home, so that's always something to bear in mind. It's still better than Oldham, though.
Suggested route:
Stay in Manchester for as long as possible, and return immediately after the game!
Firmo
Last updated 5 September 1999
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