Greenwich Visitor THE


May 2011 Page 14


PINING for a friendly pub where you can hear great live music, sup real ale, eat well, play bar billiards, darts or poker, join in a quiz, be a DJ – and knit a jumper? The Pelton Arms is a stone’s throw


from the Thames and a 10-minute walk east of the Old Royal Naval College.


Regulars travel from as far as Bournemouth to catch bands includ- ing The Repertoire Dogs, two-tone septet Toot ‘N’ Skamen, Los Daw- sons and The Duplicates, whose pianist Seamus Beaghen has played with everyone from Tom Jones to Madness. And there are quieter acoustic sessions. Meanwhile, there’s a darts team,


a quiz night, a knitting club (with around 60 members in all) and once a month there’s a music quiz and a have-a-go spot for wannabe DJs with resident deckmeister Si de Burns. Punters have an adventurous menu and a choice of 10 real ales. This amazing array of activities


TO SCALE: King George V Dock


Portraits of The Thames


THAMES artist Terry Scales’ fabulous paintings are on display for free all this month at Discover Greenwich. Rotherhithe-born Terry


produced his first riverscape when he was just 13 and studying at Camberwel l Colleg. More than 60 years later


his painting have become a unique record of its life. “My paintings are a fusion


and choices is the brainchild of li- cencee Geoff Keen and girlfriend Terry Lee. Geoff, who took over the pub two and a half years ago,was a chef at top London eaterie Rules in Covent Garden so food is a big part of the Pelton’s appeal. “Our


Socks and rugs and rock and Ol


chef Tony Dickison is terrific,” says Geoff, “and we have a great team . If you’re on your own at the bar some- one will talk to you. We get women on their own because it’s so friend- ly.” Geoff and Terry aren’t standing still. They’re planning a “pay what


got much money at the moment so we are just trying to give them something nice.” “It’s hard graft,” says Geoff. “We hardly ever have


pub that mixes rock and roll and knitting...


Music and the arts thrive here. Miles Hedley visits two venues you should check out too


GREENWICH town centre is awash with very obvious cultural gems. But it also has many hidden treasures – none more hidden or more to be treasured than Oliver’s. This fabulous jazz bar nestles in an complex of rooms beneath the Spread Eagle restaurant in Nevada Street, a few feet from Greenwich Theatre. And hav- ing spent decades lurking in jazz clubs around London, I can honestly say this is one of the best venues I have ever seen. It’s intimate, atmospheric, friendly, inexpensive – and the eclectic range of live music available is as good as any- thing you’ll find anywhere in London. The bar was founded eight years ago


by Frenchman Oliver Reveault, who came run the Spread Eagle after a stint as manager of the famous L’Escargot restaurant in London’s West End. A bar already existed in the cellar. But


took up the guitar and harmonica – “not very well,” he modestly insists – and occasionally sits in with a band. Last time I was there, Malcolm Earle-


Smith and Trinity students Simon Marsh, Chris Eldred, Loz Garratt (pictured left) and Emmanuel Adelabu were playing a fabulous set and the place was jumping. The bar is licensed for 150 and rou-


when it closed down jazz-lover Oliver saw a golden opportunity to mix busi- ness with pleasure. He says: “I already ran monthly jazz evenings in a pub so I jumped at the chance. We had two nights a week at first but now it’s every night – mainly jazz but also blues and country. “I would say 90 per cent of our cus-


tomers are regulars and it’s a very civi- lised atmosphere.” Oliver became smitten with jazz as a


child. He says: “It was huge in France and I grew up listening to the greats like Miles Davis and John Coltrane.” He


tinely draws a full house paying between £4 and £6 for most gigs. It’s also a popular draw for off-duty musicians – British and touring foreign professionals will often stop by. The bar is near Trinity College of Mu- sic and offers regular spots to students. “The standard of music they play is amazing,” says Oliver. This wealth of talent explains why he


shrugs when I ask if he still has heroes he’d still like to see on the bar’s stage. He says: “There is no fantasy list be-


cause many of the musicians here are al- ready unsung heroes. I just want people to come and have a really good time. “I think two and a half hours of great


music for a fiver is great value. Don’t you?” Sure do...


you think it’s worth” menu night – and organising charity events. As Terry says: “People haven’t


time for ourselves. But, we’re not complaining. We have a great crowd and I think we’ve made this into something a bit special.” Bet you can’t think of another


of past and present,” says Terry. “Ships I painted long ago now lay on the ocean sea bed. The old working wharfs, have been replaced with luxurious new flats. “For me it’s London’s


greatest asset, the mighty Thames.” The exhibition ends on


Saturday June 5 and includes a meet the artist and book signing session on May 7 and 21 from 11am-3pm. Some pictures are available to buy.


Find our advertisers on the


THE FAN MUSEUM


£76m Stockwell St Uni plan approved


GREENWICH University’s new £76million architecture wing in Stockwell Street has been given the go-ahead. The controversial scheme


has been criticised for its concrete design, but Uni chiefs say it will be used by thousands of people and help breathe new life into the town centre. Now campaigners in King


Supermap Centre pages


William Walk – which backs on to the site – are fighting to move a electricity sub-station they say could affect their families’ health.


Festival is back again for a laugh


LONDON’S biggest ever comedy festival returns to in September. Greenwich Comedy Festival


promises a week of big name comics and fun in the grounds of the Old Royal Naval College. Last year 20,000 people watched starts including Bill Bailey, Ed Byrne and Jenny Eclair. The line-up will be announced on June 1, when tickets go on sale. Sign up for updates at greenwichcomedy festival.co.uk


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