Stop Press! Benefit for UK Uncut at The Duke with Skint Video - today!

Comedy musical duo Skint Video will be reuniting this afternoon at 2pm to perform a tuneful and topical satirical set (in aid of UK Uncut Fortnum 145) at their old stomping ground The Duke.

Older residents will have fond memories of Steve Gribbin and Brian Mulligan playing The Duke and The Albany and other venues in the comedy boom of the eighties. This afternoon is billed to go on till 5pm and children are welcome...apologies for the late notice...

Live music at The Duke - Sunday 9th January

Some of the folk attending the wake at The Duke of the pub's ex-landlord Erich Höfer in November 2010 were keen to impress on the new landlord what a great music venue the refurbished pub would make, as they reminisced about the old days...(see previous post)

This has led directly to the pub's new owners giving the idea a spin. Their website now has a page devoted to the pub's musical history, and this Sunday sees the first live music gig. The evening has been arranged by friends of Ron Chisholm in celebration of his 76th birthday. Ron is of one of the oldest movers and shakers in the music business who is still working – managing bands, programming gigs at The Amersham Arms and the 100 Club among others, and ferrying musicians and equipment to and from gigs. Crossfields Festival could not happen without Ron's invaluable contribution.

One of his favourite bands is Shedload of Love, which grew out of the original bands who played the Duke in the 1980s, so who better to get the Duke's foray into live music going at the start of the new year...and Happy Birthday, Ron!

Shedload of Love, Sunday 9th January, 8pm. Admission free. All welcome.
The Duke, 25 Creek Road SE8

Funeral for The Duke's legendary landlord

Older residents on the estate will remember Erich Höfer, landlord of The Duke pub, when it was a lively music venue some years ago – home to Squeeze, The Realists aka The Electric Bluebirds, The Repertoire Dogs among others...*

Erich is immortalised in a Crossfields mural painted in 1982 on the side of Cremer House by Claire Humm (now living in Hastings). That's him, behind the bar, of course. A small number of the pub's pictured clientele still live on the estate, or in the area.

Erich recently passed away, and his funeral will be held on Friday 19th November.
Anyone who knew him will also remember (and probably know) his son Karl. Karl has kindly written to inform us of the arrangements for the day, should you wish to pay your respects:
"It begins with 10am mass at Our Lady of the Assumption Church in Deptford, then on to Charlton cemetery for around 11.30am where he'll rejoin Anna and Aidan, and then on to The Duke from around 12.30 onwards. All are welcome. Flowers are fine or donations to cot death research (fsid.org.uk/), whichever people prefer."


*Violinist Bobby Valentino (then of The Bluebirds) recalls a time in the early 1980s...'A variety of guitarists would be there including - intermittently - local heroes Mark Knopfler and Tom McGuinness. The most “musicians” we ever had performing in the corner of this very small pub, was fourteen. The “divvy” of the £30 fee didn’t cover the refreshment expenses...The audience often included other famous locals like Glen Tilbrook (who was later to produce a couple of tracks for the band), Albert Lee, and the above mentioned guitarers. The place became so packed (it just could have been the number of muso's) it was pointless having a break since we couldn’t get to the bar, and the beers had to be passed forward. The South East London Mercury when reviewing an evening likened it to “...sharing a train compartment with the cast of the Muppets” '.  (Extract from Bobby's website here).

Truly memorable days for some of us, with Erich (and his wife Anna) at the heart of it.

"Erich Hofer, The Duke of Deptford, will be sadly missed, a true gentleman and the best pub landlord in my life, RIP" Colin Bodiam