Some (too rare) good news on two North London pubs
It is tough times indeed for pubs. Post the Covid lockdowns we now have a cost of living crisis and soaring energy bills.
This week however brought good news for two North London pubs.
The Compton Arms, just off Islington Upper St, is an historic mews pub and one of the models for Orwell’s Moon Under Water. Some local residents had complained about noise and unruly behaviour. It was thought they might have been Nimbys, moving in to a property near a pub and then complaining. However they appeared to be longer term residents, who, one presumes, had got used to silence during the long lockdown closures.
Islington licensing committee on 12th October imposed some minor restrictions on the pub but nothing that will stop it from flourishing. A victory for the large numbers who campaigned to keep it open
https://www.islingtongazette.co.uk/news/compton-arms-decision-9327122
Also this week the Winchester, Archway Rd, Highgate reopened. It had been shut since 2014 and I for one never expected to see it as a pub again. It is named in Shaun of the Dead although the pub in the film is the Boogaloo further up Archway Rd near Highgate tube.
Both events reflect a continuing London trend of closed or under threat pubs to be saved. How long this trend will continue in times like these is another matter.
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