Bear Incident File No. 001
| Location | 35 Old High Street, Folkestone |
|---|---|
| Approx. incident date | Late October 1998, a wet Thursday |
| Barred status | BARRED, FORGIVEN, BARRED AGAIN |
ARCHIVE PHOTOGRAPHS
The Earl Grey stood at 35 Old High Street. Dover-Kent records the name from 1836, while Warren Press gives a working span of 1837 to 2009. It was remembered as a Shepherd Neame house near the top of the narrow street and had a single room narrowing towards the rear. The building later passed to other use.
Record note: Dover-Kent Folkestone list; Warren Press, Folkestone Pubs; address corroborated by Pubs Galore. The one-year opening discrepancy is retained.
At approximately 9.14 p.m. the Bear entered carrying a folded music stand and announced that he was “the Earl’s booked entertainment.” No Earl, booking or sheet music was produced. He commenced Widecombe Fair before the landlord had completed the sentence “Who are you?”
The first performance lasted nine verses, three of which appeared to concern a bus replacement service. When asked to stop, the Bear bowed, thanked the room for “insisting,” and began an encore. He was removed without force, looking wounded but remaining available for applause.
Barred that evening; forgiven at Christmas after sending a card addressed to “Management & Admirers”; barred again on Boxing Day for bringing his own interval bell.
A VHS cassette marked EG — BAR — DO NOT TAPE OVER was reportedly kept beneath the till. It was later found to contain the final eleven minutes of Bergerac and a blurred sleeve. Its evidential value is negligible.