Mass Observation was founded in 1937 with the aim of researching the everyday lives of ordinary people in Britain. One of its best-loved publications is The Pub and the People (1943), a unique study of one of Britain's best-loved pastimes, describing how people behaved in pubs, what and how much they drank, and the decor and layout of the average pre-war alehouse. Alongside sociological interest it offers amusing insights into an era when supping pints was only for the roughest customers, and beer was considered helpful not only to general health ('There is no bad ale, so Grandma said') but also (contra the porter in Macbeth) to the act of love. 'The authors of this book have unearthed much curious information.' George Orwell, Listener 'Anyone with an interest in the history of beer and pubs in Britain ought to read it.' Boak and Bailey's Beer Blog

WINNER OF THE DRINK BOOK AWARD AT THE FORTNUM & MASON FOOD AND DRINK AWARDS 2017. Pete Brown has visited hundreds of pubs across the UK and is uniquely placed to write about pubs that ooze atmosphere, whatever the reason, be it food, people, architecture, location or decor. The best pubs are those that always have a steady trade at any time on any day of the week, and where chat flows back and forth across the bar. They're the places where you want to drink weak beer so you can have several pints and stay longer. Some are grand Victorian palaces, others ancient inns with stunning views across the hills. Some are ale shrines, others gastropubs (though they probably don’t call themselves that any more). A precious few are uniquely eccentric, the kinds of places that are just as likely to have terrible reviews on Trip Advisor as great ones, because some people don't realize that the outside toilets, limp sandwiches on the bar and really disturbing full-size mannequin glaring at you from the corner are all part of the charm. This charming collection of 300 pubs explores what makes each one ooze atmosphere, be it food, people, architecture, location or décor, and looks at the quirks of local history as well as different trends and types of pub. Full of pen portraits of punters or publicans, legends, yarns and myths, this entertaining book is the perfect gift for regulars of that well-loved British institution, the pub.

"First published in Great Britain under the title Shakespeare's local by Macmillan"--T.p. verso.

Carlene Rivers is many things. Dutiful, reliable, kind. Lucky? Not so much. At thirty, she’s living a stifling existence in Cleveland, Ohio. Then one day, Carlene buys a raffle ticket. The prize: a pub on the west coast of Ireland. Carlene is stunned when she wins. Everyone else is stunned when she actually goes. As soon as she arrives in Ballybeog, Carlene is smitten not just by the town’s beguiling mix of ancient and modern, but by the welcome she receives. In this small town near Galway Bay, strife is no stranger, strangers are family, and no one is ever too busy for a cup of tea or a pint. And though her new job presents challenges—from a meddling neighbor to the pub’s colorful regulars—there are compensations galore. Like the freedom to sing, joke, and tell stories, and in doing so, find her own voice. And in her flirtation with Ronan McBride, the pub’s charming, reckless former owner, she just may find the freedom to follow where impulse leads and trust her heart—and her luck—for the very first time . . . “Guaranteed to become one of the books on your shelf that you’ll want to read again.” —The Free Lance-Star “A fun, quirky read.” –Publishers Weekly

It's an extraordinary tale of yeast-obsessed monks and teetotal prime ministers; of how pale ale fuelled an Empire and weak bitter won a world war; of exploding breweries, a bear in a yellow nylon jacket and a Canadian bloke who changed the dringking habits of a nation. It's also the story of the rise of the pub from humble origins through an epic, thousand-year struggle to survive misunderstanding, bad government and misguided commerce. The history of beer in Britain is a social history of the nation itself, full of catastrophe, heroism and an awful lot of hangovers. 'a pleasant antidote to more po-faced histories of beer' Guardian 'Like a good drinking companion, Brown tells a remarkable story: a stream of fascinating facts, etymologies and pub-related urban phenomena' TLS 'Packed with bar-room bet-winning facts and entertaining digressions, this is a book into which every pub-goer will want to dip.' Express

In this cheerful celebration, more than 250 photographs capture the essence of pubs from every part of Ireland. The volume's beautiful interiors and charming stories are an invaluable chronicle of traditional Irish life.Thames & Hudson