Oast House back

I've received an e-mail from Ben Henderson who is supervising the day-to-day running of the Oast House, Stanley Street, Southport, saying he wants to get the pub back up to standard. The Oast House was closed down for a while last year after tenants left stating they were being charged excessively by the pub company and couldn't make a living out of it. Whatever the rights and wrongs of that particular dispute, it's a complaint I've heard from a number of licensees.

The pub is currently serving a range of real ales all the time, including in recent weeks:

• Moorhouses Premier Bitter
• Moorhouses "Oast House Ale" (Pendle Witch)
• Timothy Taylor Landlord
• Brysons "Nice Jugs"

He hopes to provide more real ales in the future as business is picking up from day to day, and he comments that "at £1.80 a pint who can complain!!" Who indeed?

I remember playing a spontaneous gig there one evening, resulting in free beer all night and the hat being passed around too. A rare instance of going out for a drink and having more money at the end of the night than at the beginning. It's been years since I was in there; I think it's time I visited the Oast House again.