Save Our Swan
Community bids to save pub from bastards
I don’t need to tell Deserter readers how tragic it is to lose your local pub. London has lost nearly 1000 pubs since 2004 and, as we have previously reported, every time a pub closes, God kills a kitten.
The closure of the White Swan in 2020 hit Charlton Village particularly hard. It was the epitome of a pub as a community hub. And it’s become the victim of rapacious property developers, Mendoza, who are based in the Isle of Man and have been linked to 29 pub closures in the capital. They might be an overseas entity, but if the price is right, they love to come to the mainland and ruin fun.
Mendoza appears to be linked to Criterion Capital, the billionaire businessman Asif Aziz’s company – the man dubbed Britain’s meanest landlord, a one-man plague on the capital who is currently threatening the iconic Prince Charles Cinema as well.
But the good burghers of Charlton aren’t taking the closure of the Swan lying down. They’ve banded together and formed the White Swan Music and Arts charity to crowdsource enough money to buy it from the current owners and open it as a pub and music and arts venue.
They’re kicking off their crowdfunder today (Dec 3rd) with a brilliant music video – and I’m saying that despite me being in it, not because I’m in it – directed by Tim King and filmed by Sidney Andrelino. They have a hugely capable campaign team who are putting in the hard yards to resist the tide of greed that is putting profit before people throughout the land. And they have a committed community behind them
They aim to raise £360,000 to put a deposit down on the property before looking to other means – loans, grants, etc – to buy the property outright and restore it from its currently run down state.
They’re done their homework, and consequently are looking to buy it rather than rent it. Mendoza own several pubs in London that they have allowed to remain open, like The Glad in Borough, but who will always struggle because they have a landlord who wants them to fail, so they can be turned into flats. The Duke of Greenwich recently closed because of unreasonable rent demands, despite their putting their heart and soul into making it a great pub. Mendoza don’t care about pubs, which might seem odd when they keep buying them. But they buy them to close them and cash in. They charge too much rent then claim they cannot be profitable and should therefore become flats. Some councils are gullible enough to let them convert.
Fortunately they have been refused permission to turn the Swan into a supermarket with flats above. So now locals have an opportunity to persuade them to sell it to people who care.
At a pre-launch event residents spoke of what’s been lost. An 18-year-old woman movingly told us of the likelihood that she would never be able to afford a place with a living room and a garden. The Swan was her living room and garden. She had her third birthday party there. It was where she had Sunday lunches with her parents.
Glenn Tilbrook, of Squeeze, spoke of how music venues like the Swan launch music careers like his own: ‘The first gig that myself and Jools Holland got was playing in the Morden Arms in Greenwich. We soon had a residency there and started getting gigs in other pubs, gradually. It helped us to find ourselves. Places like this are vital for young musicians to learn their craft, playing to friends and neighbours. I hope that The White Swan will be able to host another generation of musicians soon.’
One plan is to use the first floor for studio space, for musicians, artists, podcasters, whatever. Hopefully bands will move downstairs to entertain an audience.
Chair of the campaign, Suzanne Hunt said: ‘The White Swan has been closed now for five years. To me, it’s more than just a pub; it’s where my family celebrated landmark anniversaries or simply where we could gather for Sunday lunch. Our plan is to restore the pub and live music venue, but also do more by investing any profits to enable young people access to the arts and provide a space for our wider community. The White Swan should be where you walk up to the bar as a stranger but walk out as a friend.’
My own relationship with the Swan dates back to the ’90s when I lived in Charlton. It was my scruffy old local where I made friends with a cast of oddballs who were not so much regulars as ever presents. But it also was the preferred pre-match pub for many friends and family going to The Valley. 30 years ago I’d take my daughter there for crisps and coke before games, meeting my brother and his three kids there. Years later, I’d take my son to tear around the beer garden and play table football before visiting the sweet and reptile shops. (Those are two separate entities, by the way). The Swan before and after matches was a family ritual.
When Geoff Keen (Pelton Arms) took over the pub, he turned it from a somewhat shabby local into the heart of Charlton. Good food, great ale, nice staff and fab events, including beer festivals and being among the venues of the Charlton and Woolwich Free Film Festival. Me and Raider appeared twice there, screening Withnail and I and Life of Brian. It might have been three times, but who can really know for sure?
I wrote about it in 2016 when we thought it had been saved. The ‘Brian’ in the story was actually me. I got the call that my Mum had died (not unexpectedly). I went to the Swan to have a pint to take in the news. Geoff popped in. He asked me how I was doing, like he normally would. I had to tell him what had happened. You can’t just say: ‘I’m good, mate. You?’ when you’ve just lost a parent, even if it’s not very British to respond with sincerity. He told me he was sorry and immediately got me a pint on the house. No other business is going to try and give you comfort like that. That is what only pubs do. That is what is lost when pubs close. Where else do people meet up? Where else do people ask how you are? Pubs are the cement to our bricks. Without them, communities are just buildings; people just economic units. A billionaire wouldn’t understand. Their talents are in making money. I almost feel sorry for them.
To donate, please visit the charity’s crowdfunder.
