The British Queen, Buckland, Portsmouth

A late Victorian town pub in a residential area, originally a Brickwoods pub and built in their typical mock-Tudor style. There is a single main corner bar and a smaller lounge area behind. Kate's observation below is a shrewd (no Shakespearean allusion intended) one; it does seem to belong in the lost world of the 1970s, but without the smoke. The main bar is formed from two conjoined rooms, an early conversion shown by the iron columns indicating where the original wall was. The one modern feature was the flat screen tvs behind the bar and over the door. There is a pool table to one side and a really annoying jukebox. There was no real ale on draft; the best they could manage was Fursty Ferret, Newcastle Brown and Doombar in bottles, which were over-chilled. I ordered a beer but the barmaid didn't know how much to charge. I had to ask for a glass and got a very surprised reaction. I then had to ask for a glass without ice in it and got a strange look. The locals were not particularly friendly and kept trying to eavesdrop. The absence of draft ale makes this a non-starter for me, plus the lack of a welcome means that it should be very much left to the locals, an approach I suspect they would appreciate.