jake

i'm pretty old but last time i was in the yorskshiremans i felt positively young.. but it was full of people drinking.. so no doubt a business model somewhere for OAP rockers drinking loads of beer

Plenty of pubs doing well selling decent beer. The *trad* pubs with carling and john smiths are struggling as you can buy generic beer so much cheaper in the supermarket.

if all the people on this thread moaning about the show being pulled, had bought a ticket, i'm sure it would still be going ahead. It had hardly sold any tickets and the controversy was manufactured to cover that

Did the doors not open until 8? or were the act not on until 8? if it was the act that were on at 8 - doesnt seem unusual

Big shows tend to sell more earlier on, particularly over the last few decades with the growth of on line tickest - if i was the promoter and had only sold 300 tickets for a city hall show, i'd be worried, even if it wasnt until early next year. Of course it *could* just be coincidence that loads of lefty snowflakes campaigned for a show to be cancelled that wasnt selling well, and then got lots of publicity for Chubby Brown...

Turns out he'd sold 300 tickets for his show (in a 2000+ capacity venue) - maybe it just coincidence that this show got pulled. But given how many other times he's played at the City Hall without any problems, it looks likes his management orchestrated the fuss to cover the cancelling due to poor ticket sales.

Its a gamble,

I can recall going there maybe mid 90s? Random selection of folk upstairs including lots of international students and good atmosphere. Trippets was another late venue - no one cared when they just served wine and they stayed open until whenever. But when they started serving beer, it got busier and other bars dobbed them in. Think they got a proper late license after that. It seems strange now that busy city centre pubs would shut at 11pm on a weekend - but other than club or curry, your options were limited if you wanted a city centre drink after 11. (though obviously lots of local lock ins)

It'd be very unusual for an arena to do in house bookings. Generally when an act gets to arena level - they'll be using the same promoter for the whole tour. Regardless of size of venues - outside promotions are just a safer bet for the venue - you get the hire cash and concesssion cash without the hassle of worrying about tickets sales.

Fair point .. From recall - since the Arena has opened the MEN (though Gmex was open previously), Leeds Arena and Nottingham Arena have all opened reasonably near. For a whole host of reasons, Sheffield tends to be a secondary city for promoters. When the Arena opened - not every city had an arena which meant promoters would use Sheffield arena. Now every big city has an arena - so not that many gigs come through.

I used to go in lots in the 00s when a city centre pub with a good selection of beer was still quite a novelty. It was a good place to meet as it was central, big with lot of seats and had a mixed varied crowd. Main downside was how loud it was - due to there being nothing to soak up the sound. I havent been in much since the refurb, whcih always struck me as a bit odd - i'm not sure who they were aiming at. I suppose its rare i go into town these days - i wonder how much they lost their trade to kelham island or all the pubs a mile or two out of town with decent beer. Still sad to see it go - but dare say someone else will take it over

It must be the only chippie in Manchester that doenst sell (steak n kidney) puddings! Though it's a good rule of thumb - the shorter the menu the better the chip shop. Or even more so - the shorter the opening hours, the better the chip shop.

Thanks for all your thoughts.. I was thinking specifically of Xmas Eve rather than the decline of the pub in general. That's another story.. though there are plenty of pubs that are full throughout the year. It's definitely not for me, but West Street is rammed every weekend but closes at 6 tonight.. that was my main gist. True.. maybe Xmas Eve has just shifted to " mad Friday".. which never used to be a thing.. probably a good thing.. as for about ten years I was too hungover to enjoy my Xmas dinner!

When I were't lad and first starting going to the pub (mid 80s) Christmas Eve was the second biggest night of the year (NYE being the big one). Places were rammed and busy local pubs would lock their doors early when they were full. That doesnt really seem to happen so much any more. I usually meet a few friends after work (slacking off early) on Xmas eve and many of the city centre pubs close at 6pm. That suits me fine these days - but I was curious when/why things changed?

I enjoyed the guide - good work! Its been strange seeing Kelham change so much, but its good to see life in the area... though the last year has seen maybe too much life in the area.. I wouldnt say it was a trendy crowd - if anything seems to be a bit older folk who maybe went down West st 10 or 20 years ago. Also can be a bit of a culture clash - like in the Gardeners on Saturdays with groups of lads getting the lagers in much to the horror of the bar staff.. I've never seen the pub so full!

If you stand in the middle of the current Foundary venue and were transported back in time 40 years to the exact same spot you'd be stood in the middle of the Lower Refec (tory). Various extensions and refurbs have been done over the decades, and its now a lot bigger, but not tall - as the roof was lowered at the same time they got rid of the balcony. I recall the time the MIssion played in the lower refec in 86 ish and there were about 1300-1400 people squeezed in there thanks to some creative fire capacity calculations - not long after the council brought the capacity down to a more sensible 750.

A twist to the tale is the decline in gigs at the University (Or SU) can be attributed to one of their ex-students. I was a student there in the late 80s and it was quite common to have at least 5+ gigs in a week across the maze bar, lower refec and octagon. Promoters liked the venues, and Sheffield was still on the major touring circuit. Simon Moran, who was a year or two older than me at Shef Uni, started putting on gigs and was lucky enough to be in the right place at the right time when the Madchester thing kicked off, set up SJM concerts who have since grown to be one of, if not, the biggest promotion companies in the land. One of his many business ventures was being involved in the Academy chain - who bought up the old Roxy and turned it into the 02 Academy, and now the majority of gigs that would have gone through the student union are put on at the 02.

If people are buying, then yes. If not, then no. Most outrageous drinks price i heard was when Gatecrasher did a last minute event at the Plug recently and a can of Red Stripe was £7. I'd imagine Gatecrasher was running the bar, as they're the only ones to have the cheek to do that.

I'm surprised so many people think rape is funny.

Its changed managment already - but I think they're looking to have a proper launch in early November

Anyone else see the start of what seems to be the Xmas decorations up in town? There's quite a few large gift boxes now hanging from lamp posts and in the Peace Gardens- and its still 3 weeks until Bonfire night... its just wrong!

There's a lot of building work being done to the old Victorian toilet at commonside.. anyone know what it's going to be?

Donald Trump did not come to Sheffield - but certainly showed himself to be a wasteman - so I think the Lord Mayor called it correctly. .

I'd imagine he'll move onto bigger and better things. I'm curious why you think he's on the road to z list celebrity status - and not on a national political platform? Presumably the sombrero was visual shorthand - he understands what works in the modern age, when - for right or wrong - people have very short attention spans when flicking through social media. I think its top Trump trolling.

You're doing better than me in recalling other Lord Mayors