LETTER: Pub memories

I would like to mention some of my memories of the St Leonard’s Arms pub in Brighton Road, Horsham, after reading the recent article in the County Times.

My earliest recollection of the pub was going into the public bar where there used to be a pool room to the left, and if you went through the pool room you could go out into the pub garden, which was heavily paved if my memory serves me right and this was a small garden.

Which is why my dad turned us all around and walked out and went up to the Foresters pub up the road -I think there was probably 11 of us!

few years later, roughly 1977/78, I used to go there reguarly with my mate Steve and play pool and listen to the jukebox.

I remember the songs playing on the jukebox - Duane Eddy, Rebel Rowser, Gerry Rafferty and Baker Street and Stevie Wonder, The Duke.

This used to be a regular place to go and play pool and have a drink, albeit a soft one, until we thought we would get away with asking for our very first pint of bitter, or brown and mild, can’t remember which

A long time ago, the barman served us with our requests and after giving him the money he told us to never come in here again!

On some of the visits to the pub I would see a very interesting young good looking girl, who later became my wife!

We have been married for 29 years, but have known each other for 36 years.

A few years on and I had two memorable works parties there, one was a leaving do for my manager and the other was just a party for my leaving do.

A few more years passed and I had the pleasure of being the best man at my brother’s wedding, the bar was big enough to hold a lot of people.

So it seems a shame to see it go this way. Pubs are a proper social link to the community and life won’t be the same with out pubs.

Whatever happened to the British Legion Club behind the old ABC cinema?