Pubs

Back in the 80s, most of the pubs in Leeds were real dives - probably still are in many cases. Around the university, most of the pubs catered for a specific crowd - the Union for the terminally broke, the Eldon for Engineers, the Original Oak for the Headingly crowd, and the Fav for the more financially well-off students living in the expensive Charles Morris Hall, university accommodation of choice for ex-public school types (yes, even in Leeds). The Faversham Hotel, to give it its full title, had delusions of grandeur, all polished brass and wood with prices to match, even though it was just round the corner from the legendary Terry's All-Time Café, the only establishment in a city of over half a million people which remained open all night, and a de rigueur stop for us on the way back up t'hill from t'Warehouse. The Fav certainly drew a disparate crowd on any given evening, but was definitely more gown than town. Whereas other hostelries, the vast Hyde Park or the off the beaten track Chemic (which we virtually lived above, pun intended), drew a healthy mix of locals and students (and any pretension from the latter would be greeted with a well-deserved chasing by the former), the Fav was definitely for the more well-heeled student crowd, which makes it ironic that it was the only pub where (on a rare visit) I ever bumped (almost literally) Eldritch and crew, given his oft-repeated claim that the band were definitely not aligned with the student crowd. Even in '83 their presence caused much pointing, nudging and outright fawning, and I can only imagine that things got worse before the move to Hamburg. Still, not the best choice of pub for a quiet night ...