BV London Pub of the Year - part six

And so, the BV London Pub of the Year 2011-12 competition hurtles towards the finishing line like an inebriated Mo Farah.

For this, the final batch of shortlistees, we're heading to the deep South... of London.

Before I come on to the pubs, I'd just like to say that I completely and utterly regret the decision to put 16 pubs on what is supposed to be a 'short' list, which has made for bloody hard work. I'm a fucking idiot, especially given that some of the 16 haven't even been that good.

It has, however, clarified my thinking as far as next year's competition goes.

Next Summer, the 2012-13 BV Pub of the Year shortlist will be limited to 10 pubs - this years top five, plus five new entries, nominated by readers over the next few months, or CAMRA award winners or whatever. Maybe even just pubs I happen to like a lot.

Hopefully then the competition can continue in this format for years and years and years until, well, either I die or I get bored of blogging.

It does mean that there will be 11 pubs who are guaranteed not to be in the hat next year though, so the pressure is on...

Possibly the greatest idea of all time

About 20 years ago, my Father was organising a Barn Dance. 

Tickets were to cost £5 or something and would include food, with beer available for £1 a pint (if memory serves, he was going to be ordering firkins of Ringwood Best). 

But there would also be a £10 ticket available which included, wait for it, unlimited beer. What a brilliant idea.

I can't remember if the Barn Dance ever took place or if I went to it, but the concept of 'pay once and drink all you can' so aroused my teenage pysche that I began to think the unthinkable... what if there were a beer festival where I could have unlimited beer?!?