The Poacher, Elsworth

I went for a quiet Christmas pint with my two cousins and my brother-in-law. We enjoyed the atmosphere, range of ales, and banter with friendly fellow-drinkers. At 9:00pm, we were approached by three aggressive, intoxicated locals, who told us that it was “a local pub” and that we “looked out of place among the regular drinkers”; we felt trapped in an episode of The League of Gentlemen. One of them, a man of 6 foot 5, interrogated my cousin, grabbed his arm and threatened him. Simultaneously, an irate Scotsman warned us that “there is a zero tolerance policy on drugs”, despite the fact that we were sober except for a couple of pints each. Intimidated by drunken locals, and considering calling the police, we looked to the landlord for support. However, he (showing sound business sense, I have to admit) opted not to eject the aggressors – as they are clearly the backbone of his business – and attempted to blame us. We left quickly, fearing for our safety. Avoid if not local!

28 Dec 2013 00:59