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Newsletter established 050307 for "This is where we belong" Save the Clissold Arms Campaign |
 Local Newspaper Muswell Hill Journal
brings you news on Clissold Arms:120407 050407 040407 280307 210307 140307 140307 070307 070307 010307 080207 160107 (we have collected them for you, look here) |
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Clissold Arms “reopened”:
NO SOUL, KINKS BY THE LOO.
The doors of the Clissold Arms building are open again. Yes, the building is still there, if you have wondered, but that’s just about all. If this was my first trip to Fortis Green, and I was not a Kinks fanatic, not knowing the story of the Kinks and the Clissold Arms, this would have been a quite ok dining place for me and my family on a sunday afternoon - if we had been to church first... Yes, the church. Everything reminds me of a good old fashioned norwegian church cafeteria.
Well, restaurant, to be fair, because they serve you at the table here. And the soup is not that bad, except for the pasta thing. But is it a pub? I don't think so. Not in my vocabulary. Everything that reminds me of an english pub is absent, but first of all: The Kinks memorabilia is gone! Don't fool me with formalities, all that's left is four rather uninteresting pictures of our band - a State of Confusion picture, some picture of the band from the 80's, one of Dave from Amsterdam -93 and Ray some time in the 80's (?). All placed by the loo entrance. Gone are the vinyl, the guitar, the history - all that made this place special for us and for those who appreciated it so much that they named it one of the famous historical pubs i England last year.
I order the soup. It's heavy rain outside, but I can see
no.6. The windows are covered with paper. Work going on in there, obviously. Is it being sold again? Don't mind, the Front Room is still visible, and Rock History is still there! But where am I sitting? Clean light green and brownish walls - minimalistic, so that my soul shall not be distracted..? The chairs with crosses and salmbook wallets suddenly make sense...The restaurant menues are in black with golden letters, placed perfectly in line. The door handles are in brass. Is Mr.Black here, I wonder, when I taste the soup. The bar downstairs is gone, a sofa corner has taken its place. Perhaps is this moneymaking, catching the family?
At one of the tables the chief is working on her accounts. She looks at me when I take pictures, as if she remembers some story at WhyKinks and an internet campaign. She sends one of her employees over to me with a magazine to read. There are articles about how the modern gastropubs save the country. Interesting, but they don't save me. I just keep my eyes on no.6, and pretend I'm in a pub called The Clissold Arms.
   
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11.03.09:
"completely misinterpreted and untrue"
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2 April 2007.
The new tenant of the Clissold Arms, Caroline Jones of Jobo Developments, has made the following statement;
'We are thrilled to have secured the site of The Clissold Arms for our next venture. It will reopen as a gastropub this summer, following a major refurbishment.
In respect to the Kinks Memorabilia & subsequent historical connection to the Clissold Arms, I would like to confirm the following:
We have no intention of removing it from the building; at no point did I use the word 'auction'- or state that the Kinks historical connection to the Clissold was not in keeping with the way we wish to run the Pub.
Our only aim is to enhance both the natural features & atmosphere of the Clissold Arms & to provide a quality food offering.
Our recent comments in the Muswell Hill Journal on this matter were completely misinterpreted and untrue.'
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"Our only aim is to enhance both the natural features & atmosphere of the Clissold Arms" |
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| "ROCK icon and Muswell Hill legend Ray Davies played a huge homecoming gig at Camden's Roundhouse at the weekend - joined by the Crouch End Festival Chorus and a surprise appearance by fellow Muswell Hill rocker and Razorlight frontman Johnny Borrell." kaa 1/11-07 LINK |
Have anyone been contacted by Caroline Jones?
As we remember are Jobo Developments thrilled to have secured the site of The Clissold Arms. And they stated: " In respect to the Kinks Memorabilia & subsequent historical connection to the Clissold Arms, I would like to confirm the following:
We have no intention of removing it from the building; at no point did I use the word 'auction'- or state that the Kinks historical connection to the Clissold was not in keeping with the way we wish to run the Pub.
Our only aim is to enhance both the natural features & atmosphere of the Clissold Arms & to provide a quality food offering."
Who have they consulted to live up to these aims, how will they secure " the Kinks historical connection to the Clissold"?
If they told us, it would lead to a lot of good-will and enthusiasm. Will it be a singsong / sing-along on the 24.th of november? - what a great reopening of the Clissold Arms!
1/11-07 kaa |
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www.muswellhilljournal24.co.uk/:
Owners of 'Kinks pub' deny nightclub claim
"According to Malcolm Matthews, who lives next to the car park in Orchard Court, off Annington Road, 11 shipping containers and several more skips have arrived and left full."
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"Architect Ian Archer, whose home overlooks the car park from the other side of Fortis Green, added: "Malcolm told me that large numbers of skips had been filled up with material and the only suggestion that I could come up with was that they were excavating the cellar."
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But a spokeswoman for Caroline Jones, director of pub owners Jobo Developments, said: "They are not doing anything at all to the basement. There isn't going to be a club downstairs or anything.
"There have been no layout changes other than an addition of a galley kitchen - which is probably why the neighbours saw skips.
"There were apparently some structural problems so the back area had to be repaired. The Clissold Arms will just reopen as a local pub with good food."
kaa 1/11-07 |
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This is the new front of Clissold Arms!
photo: Muswell Hill Journal |
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What about the inside?
photo: WhyKink.net |
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Ones to watch
Clissold Arms, Muswell Hill, north London
Jobo Developments, the five-strong pubco set up by Hugh O'Boyle and Caroline Jones, is due to open another site in July. The Clissold Arms will re-open as a 200-cover gastropub and delicatessen, following a £50,000 refurbishment. Plans for the pub include serving a mixture of organic and locally-sourced Continental food for an average spend of £6.50 per head. |
A few weeks ago there was a bit of a kerfuffle when new owners took over The Clissold Arms in Fortis Green and rumours started that they wanted to dispose of The Kinks memorabilia collection. Local Councillor Matt Davies put us in touch with life long Kinks fan Olga Ruocco, who told tHM the full story.
The Clissold Arms in Fortis Green, East Finchley stands directly opposite number six Denmark Terrace, the family home of Fred and Annie Davies who had six daughters and two sons. The sons were Ray and Dave Davies who later formed The Kinks, a group that in the heyday of the 60s were mentioned in the same breath as The Beatles and The Rolling Stones.
A ban from playing in America in 1965 changed the course of The Kinks’ history and made them more a quintessentially English group. They are actually one of the few groups from that era whose original members are still living, and they were briefly reunited when The Kinks were installed into the UK Hall of Fame at Alexandra Palace in 2005. (They apparently celebrated afterwards with a curry in Muswell Hill). The band went through many incarnations before playing their last gig in 1996. They have never officially disbanded, although Ray and Dave have now pursued solo careers, and it is every Kinks fan’s dream to have the band reform once more.
When Ray set out on his solo career in 1995, he would frequently tell stories of his Dad’s favourite watering hole, The Clissold Arms. It was in this pub in December 1960 that Dave and Ray Davies made their first public appearance, a fact which was commemorated by a plaque given by CAMRA to John, the manager of the Clissold Arms, in March 2006.
An American, the late Professor Michael Kraus, a lifelong Kinks fan, decided that something ought to be put up in the pub to commemorate the Kinks link, and contacted Ray Davies’s production company, Konk, to see what could be done. This initiative resulted in a guitar (supposedly belonging to Dave Davies), a plaque, several publicity photos and vinyl singles being donated and hung on the walls.
Kinks fans from all over the world would visit the pub, take pictures of the memorabilia, and have a meal and a pint. I remember taking a South American fan along there and by chance meeting a Japanese girl. None of us could speak the others’ language, but we communicated by saying song titles and smiling!
The big event would be the drink there on the Saturday before the official fan club meeting on the last Sunday in November. Over the years this gradually evolved into a Kinksian jam session, which would last until the pub shut (and various strains could be heard down Fortis Green afterwards as people made their way to the tube). It was a peculiar sensation to be sitting singing Kinks songs in the pub opposite the famous Front Room, where Ray composed the early hits like You Really Got Me and All Day and All of the Night.
Unfortunately the pub closed last year, despite being one of the first pubs to receive a CAMRA Award for its links with pop music history. The previous landlords had always been sympathetic to the Kinks links (one even had Kinks song titles for some pub grub items), and we had hoped that this would continue. However in March this year the local newspaper reported that the new owner of the Clissold Arms wanted to change the whole ambience and turn it into a gastropub, and do away with the Kinks memorabilia, possibly selling it at auction.
When this news leaked out there was outrage in Kinkdom. The fury was spread world-wide. Arve and Kai, two Norwegian fans, set up a petition on their WhyKinks website and correspondence was flowing in fast and furious to the Muswell Hill Journal. Then two of us decided to set up a UK based petition, suggesting that the memorabilia either be donated to the Alexandra pub opposite (where Ray and Dave used to drink, leaving The Clissold Arms for their Dad), returned to Konk (from where it had originated at the suggestion of Michael Kraus), or given to the Official Kinks Fan Club to be auctioned for charity. The paper kept up the momentum with editorial as well as printing letters and emails, and then The Independent ran an article. The best help of all came when Ray and Dave themselves contacted the local paper expressing their sorrow and dismay that the Kinks memorabilia was going to be disposed of. Many Davies family parties had been held in The Clissold Arms, and the pub also featured in the song, Fortis Green, written by Dave Davies, so it was rather a kick in the butt for local heritage for the memorabilia to be treated in this manner.
The petition took off, and not only did members of The Kinks sign, but also their backing singers from the ‘70s, Julien Temple (who directed many of the Kinks videos) and other famous people including Ringo Starr and Peter Tork (using their real names), Marianne Faithfull, Tim Brooke-Taylor and Graeme Garden. The petition is still open having received 1180 signatures. Several papers mentioned the fight to save the Kinks Korner and we were contacting radio stations to get more coverage when we were told that the new landlords had no intention of getting rid of the memorabilia.
What the new landlords intend to do with it remains to be seen, but you can be sure that the fans will be keeping an eye on the pub when it re-opens later this summer. We are also hoping that we might be able to have our Kinksize session there in November. We have used two other pubs in North London, and although grateful for the help we have been given, we would rather celebrate in our “home”, the Clissold Arms, where we feel close to the close to the songs that have changed our lives.
If you would like more about all things Kinks related, visit http://kinks.it.rit.edu |
| The Clissold Arms poll
The Clissold Arms will soon open again. (?)
How will Jobo Developments Ltd. and Caroline Jones keep the Kinks historical connection to the Clissold Arms?
04/07-07 go to the poll! |
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NEW YORK (Billboard) (2007-04-13) By Little Steven Van Zandt
"The assault on rock's most historic sites continues as London prepares to demolish the Clissold Arms Pub where the Kinks played their first show in 1963 and has served as their mini-museum ever since. "Why on earth can't they have their posh gastro grub and still keep a part of it for tourists, Kinks fans and the curious?" Kinks lead guitarist Dave Davies asked." Link |
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12 April 2007 MUSWELL HILL JOURNAL:
Dedicated followers of The Kinks have something to celebrate
DEDICATED followers of the Kinks will be able to pay homage to their heroes after a Fortis Green pub bowed to public pressure. Link |
 MUSWELL HILL JOURNAL:
"Kinks shrine to be saved
THE shrine to legendary rock band The Kinks is to stay in the pub that hosted their first performances, the pub's new owners have pledged.
The world-famous collection of photos, plaques and records hanging on the walls of The Clissold Arms in Fortis Green, Muswell Hill, will not be auctioned off, Caroline Jones, director of new tenants Jobo Developments, has promised."
LINK |
STATEMENT from the new tenant
2 April 2007.
The new tenant of the Clissold Arms, Caroline Jones of Jobo Developments, has made the following statement;
'We are thrilled to have secured the site of The Clissold Arms for our next venture. It will reopen as a gastropub this summer, following a major refurbishment.
In respect to the Kinks Memorabilia & subsequent historical connection to the Clissold Arms, I would like to confirm the following:
We have no intention of removing it from the building; at no point did I use the word 'auction'- or state that the Kinks historical connection to the Clissold was not in keeping with the way we wish to run the Pub.
Our only aim is to enhance both the natural features & atmosphere of the Clissold Arms & to provide a quality food offering.
Our recent comments in the Muswell Hill Journal on this matter were completely misinterpreted and untrue.' |
1 April 2007.  A Cllr Matt Davies interview from www.whykinks.net:
"A nicer, better pub but with the Kinks staying."
1. Is the local politicians surprised by the enthusiasm of The Kinks fan from different parts of the world for The Clissold Arms, Fortis Green and Muswell Hill?
"I think a lot of people locally who aren't Kinks were probably not aware of the Clissold Arms/Fortis Green connection. But the big reaction of Kinks fans across the world was no surprise - everyone recognises how big they are and what an influence they've had on music since the 60s."
2. Do you think the new owners could have misunderstand the Kinks Fans needs for good food and a quiet corner afterwards for contemplation and reflections over the universal humanism in The Kinks Music and Lyrics?
"It seems as if the new owners wanted to refurbish the pub and make it a nicer place to eat and drink - and perhaps had not really given much thought to the Kinks link. Hopefully now they have seen the huge reaction by Kinks fans - and others who are just keen to preserve our local heritage - they will be able to incorporate the Kinks into their plans. A nicer, better pub but with the Kinks staying."
3. Is there any plans for some kind of community honours of The Kinks and/or the Davies brothers? (This is where I belong-prize to young talents?)
"I know from another fan, in New Zealand, who has contacted me that Ray was given a CBE few years ago. Locally I don't think there are any suitable awards, but it's an interesting idea and I will look into it."
Cllr Matt Davies, Lib Dem, Fortis Green Ward, https://mattdaviesharingey.blogspot.com |
RollingStone:
"Gastropubs are eating establishment manifestations of social trend, rock history is forever". -- Elizabeth Goodman (with some help from Ray?)
LINK |
 "Ray says, "I would urge whoever has bought the pub (bar) to retain some reference to The Kinks so fans all over the world can retain it as a sense of 'place'"
LINK |
 The Kinks Urge Pub Landlord To Keep Memorabilia
LINK |
 THE KINKS SLAM PUB LANDLORD OVER MEMORABILIA REMOVAL
Movie & Entertainment News provided by World Entertainment News Network (www.wenn.com)2007-03-23
LINK |
 23.Mar.07 2:06pm
Kinks outrage at memorabilia removal
Davies brothers upset at plans to strip pub shrine
The Kinks have expressed their anger that the London venue they first performed in is set to rid itself of a shrine to the band when it becomes a gastropub. LINK |
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 Dave Davies:
Have they lost their dignity, sense of local history and English heritage?
"I am sure if this had been The Cavern and The Beatles' history being disturbed/got rid of, it would have been brought to the attention of the House of Commons, the Lords and the Queen herself. "Just wanted add my fuel, and disdain, to the argument. What's the matter with these people? Have they lost their dignity, sense of local history and English heritage? Photo:A.Tunstad
read more in the local paper MUSWELL HILL JOURNAL LINK
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 Ray Davies:
Kinks fans are a family
"My family used the pub, and in many respects Kinks fans are a family and would hopefully continue to patronise the pub in its new form.
"The memorabilia itself deserves to be seen. It celebrates not just the Kinks but serves as a reminder of the community we came from.
Photo:K Armann read more in the local paper MUSWELL HILL JOURNAL LINK |
Dave Davies:
Yes, it is upsetting.
"Yes, it is upsetting. Why on Earth can't they have their posh gastro grub and still keep a part of it for tourists, Kinks fans and the curious?
read more in the local paper MUSWELL HILL JOURNAL LINK |
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Ray Davies:
Fortis Green area in particular
"Whatever the outcome, one thing is certain; the Kinks and their music will always be inextricably linked with north London and the Fortis Green area in particular. Long after gastronomic styles have come and gone."
read more in the local paper MUSWELL HILL JOURNAL LINK |
 Ray and Dave Davies have joined campaigners fighting to preserve the typical British pub as they mourn the loss of a north London local that has housed a fans' "shrine" to the Sixties band for more than 20 years.
Kinks mourn the loss of their 'shrine' as another British boozer bites the sawdust
The Clissold Arms in Muswell Hill, opposite the brothers' childhood home in Denmark Terrace and the site of The Kinks' first public performance in 1963, changed hands and closed last year and is due to be converted into an upmarket gastropub. Its "Kinks Corner" is covered with memorabilia including signed photographs and tickets from the band's concerts. Fans are outraged that its contents could be auctioned off to make way for more sophisticated décor."
LINK |
Haringey
Council
informes:
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Save the Clissold Arms:
A online petition is out, sign in!
There is a new online petition to try to persuade the new owners of the Clissold Arms to keep the plaque commemorating.
Now you can sign the online petition click here
And you still have the blogg for writing your own story here |
MUSWELL HILL JOURNAL:
Ray and Dave have spoken out!
"THE founding brothers of British guitar legends The Kinks have both spoken out against any move to strip the pub they first performed in of its shrine to the band.
In a world exclusive, Ray Davies told the Journal he was "genuinely disappointed" to read the so-called "Kinks Corner" in The Clissold Arms pub could be auctioned off when it gets turned into an upmarket gastro-pub.
Brother Dave Davies asked: "Have they [the tenants] lost their dignity, sense of local history and English heritage?"" |
| 220307 kaa |
LINK | |
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Dominic Baci, UK:
The character of pubs like the Clissold Arms should be preserved, and any establishment lucky enough to have a link with one of the world’s greatest and most influential rock bands should preserve and celebrate that link. Intelligent people will always seek out such establishments for their historical significance.
Read the whole statement here |
Wes Gottlock New York, USA:
Not only do I request that the new owners maintain the current memorabilia, I challenge them to enlarge it! I'm sure Kinks fans all over the world would love to contribute their cherished possessins to be displayed on the hallowed walls.
Read the whole statement here |
Greg DiMercurio Antioch CA
"I came all the way from San Francisco to make my pilgrimmage to this historic pub in October 2005"........
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"just to set foot in the place where the Davies brothers, obviously the most underappreciated rock singer/songwriters in history, started their early performance"
Read the whole statement here |
Michael Precin Palatine, Illinois USA:
"The next time I am in town I promise I will not stop in at a gastropub stripped of any reference to the historical significance of the Davies' brothers first public gig"
Read the whole statement here |
 Have your say
Muswell Hill Journal" the local newsaper in the area around Clissold Arms is doing a great job. Send them an e-mail when you are on their website and tell them that!
kaa 080307 link to Muswell Hill Journal |
Muswell Hill Journal:
an internet campaign is started
In response to the news, the co-editor of Norwegian fan website WhyKinks, Kai Armann, who makes a pilgrimage to the pub every year, this week started an internet campaign dubbed Save The Clissold Arms to try to get the display preserved in its current home." |
New article in Muswell Hill Journal: 070307
"shockwaves across world"
"NEWS that the shrine to legendary rock band The Kinks in their local pub could be sold off to the highest bidder has caused shockwaves among fans around the world.
The Journal revealed last week that the new tenants of The Clissold Arms, Fortis Green, Muswell Hill, the site of the first performance by brothers Ray and Dave Davies of The Kinks, are planning to turn it into a fashionable gastropub and distance themselves from the pub's historic links."
More here |
Muswell Hill Journal with statments from many fans.
Here is a link to the whole article. LINK 070307 |
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42 bits from Ray and Daves lyrics brings you:
From Clissold Arms to This is where I belong
New page in the " Save The Clissold Arms Section".
Link to the Lyrics page--> LINK |
Councilier Matt Davies:
"maintain the Kinks link and history"
Bill Harrow has contacted member of Haringey Council for Fortis Green Matt Davies: "What I will do though, is write a letter to the pub urging them to maintain the Kinks link and history. Personally, I think even from a business point of view they would be foolish not to take advantage of it."
Link to the statements page --> LINK |
This is where we belong!
Don't destroy The Clissold Arms
When CAMRA (Campain for Real Ale) last year honoured two London pubs for historical or cultural significance Clissold Arms was one of them. We hoped that the importance of THE CLISSOLD ARMS in the worlds history of rock and popular music would be accepted. We don't understand why it is impossible to make good food in todays surrondings. The new landlords are not interested in keeping the heritage of the pub alive, but why can they decide that? There has to be a UK Department for Culture, what are they saying. What is the opinion of the local government? Will they listen to the Kinks-fans. If the plan is to remove all the Kinks memorabilia and possibly auction it off in the future the editors of the WhyKinks website are shocked, this can't be true. Somebody has to stop them!
We make our yearly trip from Norway to Clissold Arms with a deep respect for British Culture, British Customs and British Traditions, most of it is inspired and learned from the two guys that have their first public performance on Clissold Arms in 1960. Why can't the authorities and local business join the Kinks fans in making Clissold Arms remain the visible milestone of one of Brittans great gifts to humanity.
Tell the new licensee Caroline Jones
Tell The local Government
Tell UK Department for Culture
Send us a comment and we will bring it to them and our readers. click here
Arve and Kai
co-eds www.Why
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"Tell me now if you want me to stay.
It don't matter, 'cause I'd stay here anyway.
For this is where I belong,
This is where I belong"
Written by: Ray Davies | |
Muswell Hill Journal:
Somebody has to stop them!
Kai Armann, co-editor of Norwegian fan website  , who travels to the pub every year, said: "We don't understand why it is impossible to make good food in the current surroundings.
"We are shocked. This can't be true. Somebody has to stop them!"
kaa 010307 link |
Muswell Hill Journal:
people will still go in and soak up the vibe
Bill Orton, secretary of The Official Kinks Fan Club, said: "There will be a tinge of sadness to lose that link, and obviously there will be some interest in getting the memorabilia.
"Over the years the Davies brothers have still held family parties and birthday parties there, and they both think fondly of that place from their youth. The fact is that it is The Clissold Arms, and people will still go in and soak up the vibe."
kaa 010307 link |
Muswell Hill Journal:
one of Britain's historic Pubs In Time
Last year the Clissold Arms was named one of Britain's historic Pubs In Time, and even features in the lyrics of The Kinks' song Fortis Green.
kaa 010307 link |
Muswell Hill Journal:
it won't be the kind of place
you would expect to see it
New licensee Caroline Jones, who outlined plans for "a quality, food-led establishment" to Haringey councillors at a licensing sub-committee meeting, said: "We haven't made a decision yet, to be perfectly honest. We have inherited it. It [the new pub] will be quite different, and it won't be the kind of place you would expect to see it. If it [getting rid of the memorabilia] is the case then an auction is the kind of thing we would do."
kaa 010307 link |
Muswell Hill Journal:
Clissold Arms a fashionable gastropub
The new tenants of the Clissold Arms, in Fortis Green, Muswell Hill want to turn it into a fashionable gastropub when it re-opens in the summer.
kaa 010307 link |
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Muswell Hill Journal:
Kinks 'shrine' set to be dumped
THE pub that hosted the first performance by Ray and Dave Davies – founders of legendary rock band The Kinks – could be stripped of its shrine to the band.... »
kaa 010307 |
15.02.07 Enterprise Inns:
The Clissold Arms, in London is closed - but will open soon!
"Just last February, The Clissold Arms was named one of Britain's Pubs In Time - commemorating drinking holes with historical significance - and awarded a second plaque.
But a spokeswoman for owners Enterprise Inns said the pub was due to reopen later this month with none of the musical heritage removed. She said: "The pub is currently undergoing some repairs and we hope to reopen it towards the end of January."
www.tottenhamjournal.co.uk/ 16 January 2007
While we are waiting for the reopning, here are some links on The Clissold Arms.
kaa 010307 link | |
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