TOP TEN: A nostalgic Top 10 countdown

“To All The Pubs I've Loved And Lost”

by Craig Gray

With the COVID 19 crisis in full swing and the country's bars, pubs, and clubs facing an incredibly uncertain future, I thought it would be fun to revisit 10 of the Bournemouth and Poole area's best watering holes that for whatever reason didn't make it this far. This is an unashamedly nostalgic list, and although the rankings are correct at the time of writing, I reserve the right to change them without notice.

10. Empire Club – Holdenhurst Road This iconic venue is most fondly remembered by my generation for hosting the legendary Dubnium: a three-floor extravaganza of live reggae, top drum n' bass DJs, and, nestled downstairs in the basement, subs stacked floor-to-ceiling blasting out weird, low frequency noises that turned out to be the emerging dubstep scene of the late 00's. Empire Club's triple-decker layout caused promoters to plan their nights a little differently, and when it worked, it was glorious.

9. iBar – Holdenhurst Road Criminally ahead of its time way back in 2007, iBar was the brainchild of local games developer Andy Davidson (of Worms fame), and looked as though Steve Jobs himself had done the decorating. Large glass windows, a pure white interior, iMacs fixed to the walls, and Asahi on tap, some felt the place 'pretentious' and 'clinical'. Those people had obviously never turned up on a busy weekend night, where downstairs you could find the loudest, craziest, bands playing to 100 sweaty, sweaty kids. Its four-year run was short but sweet, and its loss was felt across the local live scene until Anvil occupied the same space some years later.

8. The Gander On The Green – Holdenhurst Road A local institution in its own right, The Gander was already on its way out as I came of drinking age in the mid 00s, and I never really got to experience its heyday as a live venue. Fabled home to the more 'alternative' cliques, and with a long history of putting on local bands, by the time my group got a chance to play there the main pub had been turned into trendy-winebar The Metropole, with the Gander and its live music heritage relegated to the upstairs sports bar. Still, we got a year or so more out of the place before Wetherspoons bought it in 2009, renamed it the Christopher Creeke, and have been bringing down the quality of an evening in the Lansdowne ever since.

7. Dusk Till Dawn - Old Christchurch Road There has never really been anywhere particularly interesting to spend an evening along Old Christchurch Road, but, in between the horrendous chain pubs and poncey nightclubs, there was Dusk Till Dawn, an oasis of pure hedonism in a desert of mundanity. Yes, the place was shut down by police in 2012 for many reasons, including non-existent fire precautions, freely available drugs, and alleged gang involvement, but the vibe was always a good one (funnily enough). Nights such as Big In Japan and Jelly's Last Jam gave the place a real underground feel, and the music they played simply could not be found anywhere else in town.

6. On The Rocks – West Cliff A couple of local punks opened this supremely DIY bar and music venue underneath an old hotel on the clifftop back in 2010, and like the best punk bands, it burned brightly, if only for a short time. It fast became a staple of the local live music scene in spite of being a little out-of-the-way, with a good mix of reasonably priced drinks, decent bands, and a real community spirit creating a wonderful atmosphere. Three years passed, the hotel's owners got planning permission, and just like that, On The Rocks, not to mention the rest of the building, was a mere memory. A personal favourite was local anti-folk band Sh**’s alternative Queen's Jubilee party in 2012.

5. Portman Hotel Green Room – Boscombe This small, dingy, dirty, and allegedly green, room off the side of the old Portman Hotel will always hold a special place in my heart. As 16/17 year olds starting up our first bands it was one of the only REAL venues that let us play and promote our own gigs, and was surely the starting point for many a local group.

It was a proper pub venue, and the thrill of playing on a real stage, with a real sound engineer (thanks Percy), real multicoloured swivelly lights, and a decent crowd of all your mates from school, is something you never, ever forget. They've now turned the pub into some very fancy looking flats, and I walked past one day as they were demolishing the Green Room itself. That was a sad day.

4. Mr Smith's – Poole Hill In the mid-00s you could walk up Poole Hill, past the gay bars, way beyond where the adults and their stag and hen do's ventured, and, behind a load of under-age punks, goths, and proto-emos drinking in the bus stop, there was a sign above a narrow staircase. 'Mr Smith's Piano Bar' it proclaimed, and every weekend it was THE place to see local and out-of-town bands, in the most intimate, sweaty, and downright cool venue in town.

The room was small, the stage was high, the bar was run by beautiful girls with coloured hair and facial piercings, and I feel privileged to have played there several times with my band The Whiskey Chasers before it got closed down sometime around 2009. There were rumours that the opening of a fancy cocktail bar opposite killed the place by complaining about the kids drinking on the street, and this could be true. Maybe it was just that a place like Mr Smith's could never last.

3. Mr Kyp's Live Music Venue – Ashley Cross What can I say about the legendary Mr Kyps? For almost 20 years this 300 capacity venue in the heart of Ashley Cross played host to up-and-coming acts on their way up, the UK's top tribute bands, legendary acts on their way back down again, and some shows that you wouldn't believe took place in a grade two listed ex-schoolhouse in the suburbs of Poole.

The eponymous Mr Kyp and his staff somehow created a place that could punch above its weight, and it was not unusual to see bands such as Buzzcocks, Pete Doherty, Toots And The Maytals, and The Levellers grace that well worn stage. As always with small venues, finances are tight, and in 2018 Mr Kyps closed its doors for the final time as the building was sold off to developers. The name lives on however, and Mr Kyps still puts on shows at a variety of venues across Dorset.

2. Buffalo Bar – Winton Those who know me may say I'm biased (I was manager of Buffalo Bar for six wonderful years). Those who knew the bar will say this is fair. In its 10-year existence tucked behind Lidl just off Winton high street, Buffalo was the de facto place to go for anyone in the area who wanted to avoid the mainstream.

From its humble beginnings as a trendy Spanish restaurant called Locos Tapas, through its completely organic transformation to the area's alternative hub, the pub became a safe haven for students, drifters, exiled graffiti artists, staff from other bars, and anyone else who wanted cheap drinks, a fantastic jukebox, and a laid-back, anything-goes attitude. An inexplicable 1am licence, the envy of all other bars in Winton, allowed the party to go on all week long, and most weekends would find the tiny bar packed to the rafters, with people literally sitting and standing on top of each other, all concept of personal space abandoned for the duration of the evening.

Lidl finally ended the dream in 2018 when they bought out the owner in order to expand their car park, and even though a new Buffalo Bar opened just up the road soon after, Winton hasn't yet regained that small part of its soul that was lost when the bulldozers came a'calling.

1. The Winchester – Poole Hill I think we were still mourning the loss of Mr Smiths when The Winchester popped up on Poole Hill sometime in the late 00s. However, it soon became apparent that this was the new place to be.

The space, a large ex-bank with a decent stage at one end, a good sized bar at the other, with plenty of room for dancing in-between, not to mention the old bank vault, complete with original foot-thick steel door, serving as room two at the back. The high ceilings made it the perfect blank canvas for any group of students wanting to put on their own night, and boss Mark was always more than happy to allow whatever craziness people wanted to do in his club. In fact he actively encouraged it.

From the early days of artist Martin Butler's infamous Dollyrocker nights, to Ivan Dela's smooth Latin-themed Toma Sundays, the dirty garage rock nights of Transmission, Delete's minimal techno mash-ups, Secret Walls' live graffiti nights... The list is endless. The Winchester was the true home of artistic expression in Bournemouth for the duration of its existence.

A bar, pub, club, whatever, is only a building. Only a space, full of potential, but empty, until someone, or a group of people, decide to realise that potential. The Winchester had the people, from the management, to the bar staff, to the promoters, to the customers, all loyal to the end, and that end was to create somewhere special. Somewhere the normal rules didn't apply. Somewhere everyone could have a good time.

The usual suspects of noise complaints, alleged drug use, licensing issues, and a dilapidated and crumbling building, all contributed to the owner selling the place to a developer with bags of cash and ideas of creating a fancy, high-end restaurant in our space. That restaurant didn't last long, and The Winchester is still sorely missed by a community crying out for somewhere to call home.