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The lost Telegraph pub, Brixton Hill, SW2

ska invita

ska invita

back on the other side
I went there last weekend for an old skool night - they hadnt finished the refurb and only the bar was open - first chance I had to take in the new grey all over decor - definitely worse than it was before, but never mind - what makes The Telegraph for me was its fine back room with what was IMO the best inhouse soundsystem in Brixton.

So last night headed down to a DnB night (adam F + Fabio) that was meant to be the official launch of the back room, sort of.

The back room didnt open till 1am cos they were still building the DJ booth out of MDF.

Finally it opened - they've redone the layout for the worse, but that is not my main gripe. The problem is that the sound system is now 4x12" cabs - and its sounds shit.

Basically, the Telegraph has gone from being somewhere I would need no encouragement to go, to somewhere I wont go again ever. It drab in colour and sounds horrible.

Its still not too late to save it - maybe the refurb is not complete - but I get the feeling that the sound is there to stay.

All hopes rests on the refurb of the George IV (Southside bar)...

Anyone else been down there? - post back next time you check it out - I wont be going back so am curious if it improves...

Why do refurbs tend to always fuck up?
Are the owners of the Telegraph new?
Also - Anyone know whats happening/happened to the 414 - haven't been in there in years...is it still running?
 
That sounds like bad news about the telegraph and its back room. I would have gone along last night too, if i hadn't still been recovering from damage inflicted by ending up in the 414 the previous night. So i can confirm that the 414 is still alive, at least. Will be interesting to see what the george iv is going to reopen-as. The last reincarnation certainly didn't last very long.
 
niksativa said:
I

All hopes rests on the refurb of the George IV (Southside bar)...

Anyone else been down there? - post back next time you check it out - I wont be going back so am curious if it improves...
Click to expand...



Grand Re-opening on 15 May
 
Minnie_the_Minx said:
Grand Re-opening on 15 May
Click to expand...

It had better be a bit grander than the previous "re-opening" a few months ago. They didn't exactly advertise it, and then managed to have a skip parked in front of the place for the first couple of weeks. And renamed it "Southside Bar" - kind of a crap name. Went along with some friends on a saturday night and we were the only ones there save for the staff and a couple of their mates. We didn't stay long.

Does anyone know what the situation is with their license? I know there was some trouble before the "old" George IV closed down (ie. they had the license taken away). Will they be able to do the all-night things again? I miss walking into Brixton on a Sunday morning and seeing the blotchy-faced wreckage hanging around at the picnic tables outside ....
 
Supposedly the Telegraph is under new management - the lease has been sold on.

I got to speak to a contact involved with the old Telegraph who says that the new owners have been taking the piss from day one - refusing to answer phone calls and opening up before ready, leaving promoters to fend off pissed off punters.

*Glad to hear 414 is still running...long may it reign. Not really that into that whole hard techno sound, but its a real deal place so good on em.
 
Orang Utan said:
I never really liked that place in any of its incarnations
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I'm sure my reasons are different from yours ;) but I agree ...

I've had a good time there at several Urban parties but the place itself wasn't up to much IMO ...
 
Last time I was at the Tele....

it was full of people who looked like they aspired to living in Dartford.
They seemed to be fond of large jawed dogs in the "patio/garden" area out front.
No loss.
twas shit then, tis shit now, bothered?
 
I held that oldschool night at the Telegraph and I was lucky to find the venue at such short notice after the management at the Southside bar messed me around.

It was nowhere near finished when I held that night as the as the draught beer wasn’t working, the toilets weren’t finished and the whole place could have generally down with a decent clean up. But, it was what it was though, oldschool music in a pub and free to get in so I thought it went ok.

The place is indeed under new management with a completely new team of staff working there, I was there last Thursday and the place still isn’t finished. I think it can be a great venue once again. If the sound system in the back room isn’t up to standard for most promoters then I’m sure this issue will be addressed, I know that the venue has been soundproofed properly now so maybe there’s opportunity for bringing in extra sound. I for one am quite curious as to how this venue will turn out, the owner has a vast amount of experience in the business and I’m quite sure he knows exactly what he’s doing. So, be patient and see what it's like when the refurb has been completed properly.

As for the Southside, who knows what’s happening there. I know they’re going for the trendy funky/electro house crowd, didn’t seem to work before as every time I went down there it was half empty, is there really the market for a venue dedicated to such music in Brixton? I think it would work better if it held a more diverse range of nights there, live music in the back room – something like it was before George IV started holding all those awful ‘hard dance’ nights.
 
I read in last week's SLP that both The Telegraph and Iroko Bar next door have had loads of complaints from neighbours about the noise.
 
It was nowhere near finished when I held that night as the as the draught beer wasn’t working, the toilets weren’t finished and the whole place could have generally down with a decent clean up. But, it was what it was though, oldschool music in a pub and free to get in so I thought it went ok.
Click to expand...

Sounds like the Telegraph on an average night at any time over the last 5 years.

Went to Southside last year sometime, August maybe? Full of uber-trendy types (would've got the 'I'm more Brixton that you' crowd apoplectic that these people were from Brixton and yet well dressed and enjoying 'R&B' ;))...
 
Found this on Steve Reed website

There’s been an explosion in noise nuisance and anti-social behaviour at the top end of Brixton Hill. Local people put the blame squarely on two late-night venues – the Telegraph Pub and Iroko Bar and Restaurant. Residents in the area, including those living in Courtenay House overlooking the Telegraph, are fed up with music blaring out until the early hours night after night, as well as people fighting, shouting, urinating, having sex and taking drugs right outside their windows. This behaviour shouldn’t be tolerated anywhere, let alone in a quiet residential area away from the busier town centre.

Labour councillors have joined forces with angry residents to put an end to this blight on people’s lives. We are campaigning together to ban the two premises from operating late at night. There are allegations against both that they fail to follow the terms of their existing licences, and residents are recording every instance of this so the evidence can be used to bring the two venues to heel.

Iroko’s new licence is under consideration now and they have been told they cannot hold any further special events that go on into the early hours of the morning until after the new year. The Telegraph is also the subject of close resident monitoring, with evidence being compiled to oppose their application to open their doors even later in future.

Residents joined Cllr Steve Reed and Cllr Florence Nosegbe at a recent meeting of the local police team. The meeting backed Steve’s call to make anti-social behaviour associated with licensed premises a priority for local police, and that has now been agreed. There’s hope that will mean more police intervention, and police support for efforts to curb the venues’ licensing hours and stop them from holding frequent late-night events that disturb so many local people
Click to expand...
 
The Telegraph stardate 16/07/06 was nearly late to press because I got pissed at lunchtime. I will forever be proud of that :cool:
 
You can always tell when there's an event on there, because there's nowhere to park along New Park Road (despite the venue being on a very well served bus route) and the traffic wardens have a very productive morning the next day.
 
I didn't even realise the Telegraph was still open for business? Everytime I go past it looks closed and empty...mind you so does the Southside Bar but apparently that's still open for business? :eek:

I'd love to know what sort of questions they ask in their interviews for bar jobs at the Southside...that's if they bother employing bar staff anymore, they don't need to. :D
 
ajdown said:
You can always tell when there's an event on there, because there's nowhere to park along New Park Road (despite the venue being on a very well served bus route) and the traffic wardens have a very productive morning the next day.
Click to expand...

It's usually BlingMWs, Audis and 4x4s parked outside there. Those people don't do buses.
 
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