The Lounge, Chislehurst, Kent

Since I'm out and about on Sunday I thought I'd post my weekly "pubs of Chislehurst" series tonight instead. This is a pub which is currently a place people say good stuff about but its not always been the case.

The Lounge pub is situated on White Horse Hill right on Chislehurst's border with Mottingham and is renowned for having live entrainment and events - several famous acts have performed here including The Drifters, Alexander O'Neil and Ella Henderson (X-Factor) after she signed her record deal at the end of last year.

In 2007 a 25 year old guy died after cracking his head on the pavement outside the pub; 3 men accused of manslaughter and violent disorder were found not guilty in 2008 at the Old Bailey

Its actually a pub which has turned good having had a chequered past (2 people to die outside is about as chequered as you'll get in Chislehurst) and several name changes, in reverse order:-

The Atrium - closed in 2005, it was only called this for a few years.

The Penny Farthing - was an appalling pub, full of dodgy people, grubby inside and outside with paint peeling off the walls. Not that I drink beer but apparently the selection was pretty rubbish. In 2003 a man was killed outside I remember this well because I had a second job in another pub so obviously it was behind the bar topic of conversation for weeks. I think not long after this it closed and became The Atrium.

The original name for the pub was White Horse Inn from the 19th Century - not sure when it changed to become teh Penny Fathing though but I know from reading teh history of Chislehurst that it was called this as far back as 1850 :)

I was asked twice what I was doing - first of all by the door security who then said he only asked thought I might be from the council checking up on them - very nice and polite and when I showed him the photos (not that I had too and he didn't ask) and also a guy walking past asked if there was someone famour playing tonight.