British Lion 1950s

Folkestone Herald 28-7-1956

Obituary

For many years the licensee of the British Lion, The Bayle, Mr. Harry Pankhurst, of 9, Segrave Road, Folkestone, died recently at the age of 87. The last surviving member of an old Folkestone family, he took over the licence of the British Lion from his father, on the latter`s retirement. His wife died in February. Since his retirement about 25 years ago illness prevented him from leading an active life, but he was very popular.

Interment was at Hawkinge Cemetery.

Folkestone Gazette 27-3-1957

Local News

Folkestone will soon be losing one of its best known personalities, for Mr. Charles John Uden, licensee for the past 18 years of the British Lion, The Bayle, is retiring. Aged 65, Mr. Uden and his wife are to live with relations at Dartmouth in Devon, where, as Mr. Uden explains, “I am going to potter about and take it easy”.

Because he is by now un­doubtedly an integral part of Folkestone it is difficult to believe that Charles Uden was not born in the town; however, he can qualify as a Man of Kent, being a native of Petham. He left the village school at the ade of 12 and obtained his first real job as a bus driver of the early motor public transport with Walcher and Company, Herne Bay, who were one of five companies, operating services throughout East Kent. When the companies were merged into the East Kent Road Car Company, Ltd., in September, 1916, the Herne Bay branch was closed and Mr. Uden was transferred to the busy Canterbury depot. Three years later he was back in charge of the Herne Bay Depot of the Company, where he remained for a further 10 years before retiring from driving public transport due to health reasons. During his period at Herne Bay he achieved the distinction of holding the No. 1 Driver`s Badge of the Herne Bay Urban District Council; he also drove the fire engines of the local Voluntary Fire Brigade for 10 years. “I had to pay 10/- to join”, he recalls. In 1924 Mr. Uden was a mem­ber of the Herne Bay Fire Brigade team which competed at the Wembley Exhibition.

In 1929, he became licensee of his first public house, The Bull’s Head, Adishamam, which was owned firstly by Jude Hanbury, then by Mackesons Ltd., who were, in turn, absorbed by the Whitbread group. He stayed at Adisham for eight happy years, afterwards

moving to the Mill Inn, Deal, for a further 18 months, before coming to Folkestone in 1939. Helped in a very great and loyal measure by his wife who capably continued the business when her husband suffered bouts of bad health, Mr. Uden kept his house open through­out the whole of the last war. Soon after he moved to Folkestone, he joined the Royal Observer Corps and was on duty at the Martello Tower post at the top of the Leas during some of the most eventful days of the war. On retiring from the Corps last November, he received a presentation from his col­leagues.

Mr. Uden well remembers many humorous instances and experiences throughout the war years, including a series of competitions between a male team, drawn from the customers of The British Lion and a team from the women’s Home Guard, who used a room at the public house for their headquarters. Contests were arranged in sports such as table tennis, darts and shove ha’penny, and also included was a hilarious slow bicycle race round The Bayle, “pints down-in-one”, culminating in a cricket match on the Harvey Grammar School Ground in Cherry Garden Avenue. After all the contests, the teams gathered at the British Lion and the one who had gained the least points was called upon to supply the refreshment.

Mr. and Mrs. Uden were mar­ried at Herne Bay in 1925. They have one son, Anthony, who is an engineer in Canada. Cricket is the favourite sport of Mr. Uden, for he was Secretary and Treasurer of the local cricket club at Adisham for several years, and was a member of Kent Cricket Club and Folkestone Cricket Club. He has also been associated with the Association of Men of Kent and Kentish Men, and the Folkestone, Hythe and District Licensed Victuallers` Association.

The new tenant of the British Lion will be Mr. P.G. Hourahane, who is at present licensee of the Clarendon Inn, Brewer`s Hill, Sandgate.

Mr. Uden is deeply sorry to leave the town, where he has made many good friends, who in turn will greatly regret his departure. He says he will take with him in his retirement pleasant memories of many happy years in the town.

Photo from Folkestone Gazette

 

Folkestone Gazette 4-11-1959

Townsman`s Diary

Three local inn signs will be displayed in Brussels shortly. Perhaps you may have noticed that the colourful sign of your favourite hostelry has disappeared recently and been replaced with a notice such as is pictured on this page. What`s behind their disappearance? Well, the enterprising House of Whitbread are taking part in an exhibition one of the big stores in the Belgian capital is staging from November 19<sup>th</sup> to January 1<sup>st</sup>. The accent will be on the British way of life and many British goods will be on sale. Included in the exhibition are signs from Kent inns. Whitbreads are displaying the signs at their prefabricated public house. From Folkestone the brewers have taken the signs of the British Lion on Folkestone`s old Bayle, the Lifeboat Inn, North Street, and The Star, Newington. The signs were on their way to Brussels yesterday.