Anecdotes (in chronological order):

1. In 1957 I was lodging in East Ham with 3 other students. We were about halfway between Manor Park & Ilford stations and used both. On some Fridays, we used Ilford and by walking round a small loop in the town before the main road, we could pass eight pubs tied to eight different breweries.

Except that we didn't (pass them, that is). We stopped in each for a pint and still arrived at our lodgings for dinner at 7:30.

2. That year, I was chairman of the carnival committee and one of my duties was to select the college beer-drinking team to compete against the other London colleges. Rules were simple - a relay team of 4 in front of the table loaded with 2 pints each. Each drinker downed a pint and the next could lift his glass when the previous one hit the table - up the line and back. Of course, the problem position was the anchor leg - drinking 4th and 5th.

We were conducting trials in the bar and the anchor leg candidates weren't doing very well. The procedure was being watched by Mary, a first year convent-educated girl, who'd popped in for a cheese roll - she had never drunk alcohol.

"Why don't you just pour it down?" she asked. To the scornful: "Think you can do better?" she said "I can do it with milk - I've never drunk beer."

So she had a go - 3.5 secs for the first pint, 4.5 secs for the second. She was in the team, and won us the contest that year.

It's remarkable to see (with anyone doing it). She tipped her head back, opened her throat and poured the pint down without swallowing.

That's all, folks.

Phil