Last Orders at Montague Arms?

Very sad to have to confirm reports that the legendary Montague Arms (289 Queens Road SE15) has closed - at least in its current incarnation. The pub hasn't been open since the New Year, and its future has been in doubt since the deaths of Stan and Bet Pownall (both in their 80s) who had been running the pub with owner Peter Hoyle since 1967. I'd heard that the family had decided to close it, but was waiting for an official announcement and hoping that there would be some change of plan. But last week the pub's famous stuffed animals were put up for auction at Toovey's.

Pete Hoyle (left), the late Stan (centre) and Bet (right)

The pub managed to combine being one of the last old style South London boozers with being the home for succesive waves of people looking for somewhere welcoming and quirky to put on interesting events.

In the past ten years the pub has hosted various great music and club nights including Throbb, Fear of Music , Greenwich Pirate, Wolfgang Bopp, Coronary Crumpage (where Anna Calvi played an early gig in 2008), Frog Morris, White Noise and The Ticket that Exploded. Paul McCartney popped in for a drink once in the 1980s,  and in 1989 the NME intervewiewed Nick Cave, Shane MacGowan and Mark E Smith in the pub.

Its decor was unique, combinining maritime memorabilia (diving helmet, ship model) with Victorian stuffed animals (zebra, oryx). Not to mention that scary Santa they used to bring out at Christmas with the plastic bags over its hands. The pub's fame travelled far and wide - it was selected as the best pub in the country in the Rough Pub Guide book (2008) and highlighted as 'one of our strangest, and best, boozers' in an unusually good article in The Sun only last November.

People used to sometimes joke about the 'coach parties welcome' sign outside, but for many years they did a deal with coach drivers from the continent driving up the A2 into London who would stop off (no doubt for free food and drink) at the pub with their passengers. I was in there one night when a coach load of Dutch tourists came in - they loved the place, what a great introduction to London.

Here's some of my top Montague Arms memories:

- Sunday lunch with the family being entertained by The Two Petes - the legendary house band consisted of drummer (and pub owner) Pete Hoyle and Pete London on keyboards and vocalists. They actually put out three limited release 'Live at the Montague Arms' albums in 1971/72, featuring their inimitable cover versions of songs, and were still going forty years later. In their early days comedian Jimmy Jones also joined the act. I particularly remember their version of Wonderwall - and my son getting up on stage when they were performing and singing Twinke Twinkle Little Star.

- Gang of Four (2005) - one of my favourite ever bands played their first gig for twenty years in the pub. I was there, standing next to Phil Jupitus I recall.

- Bloomsday (2008) - one of those random nights when you end up watching some Eastern European avant garde jazz band (Tudósok)  and loving it. 

- Brockley Ukulele Group - my first time on the stage was giving a short talk on New Cross history at a My Eyes, My Eyes film night, but then in 2008 I performed there a few times with the Brockley Ukulele Group, including once on the same bill as my old faves RDF (or rather their later incarnation The Faction).

- Band of Holy Joy last December - so glad I went to that, my last visit to the pub. Fitting that it should have been one of the finest bands ever to emerge from the local area playing at one of  last gigs at the Montague Arms, if not the final one.

I guess it's still possible that the pub may be resurrected in some form rather than be converted into flats. Any recent lottery winners who want to do the world a favour get in touch with the family quick.

See also: report at SE London CAMRA; Hollow Legs bids goodbye to New Cross and The Monty (like Lizzie I always think of the pub being in New Cross, some would argue it's technically Peckham on account of its SE15 postcode)

Post your Montague Arms memories and stories in the comments (if you've got any evocative photos email me).

Here's a little tribute video I have put together quickly with images found online plus a recording of the The Two Petes performing MacArthur Park:

Update: by a strange coincidence, Greg Hoyle (son of Pete) also posted a video on youtube a couple of weeks ago made up of pictures of the pub set to a Two Petes soundtrack (in this case America). I swear I didn't see this until after I'd posted my film!