The Hole In One, Ansdell, Lytham St. Annes

Fylde Council’s development management committee passed proposals to demolish the Hole In One pub in Forest Drive, Lytham and replace the building with five properties

This Thwaites pub is a 15-20 minute walk through a non-descript housing estate, from Lytham town centre. It’s got a typical community local’s pub feel to it, made even more apparent when I walked in to find what appeared to be a wake in progress in the main bar. You enter into a bare brick entrance porch with doors to a public bar straight ahead and a lounge bar (called the Ryder Suite) to the right. The public bar is a typical, basic affair with a short corner servery, limited seating options and the ubiquitous pool table dominating the centre of the room. A TV was showing a Six Nations rugby match with the commentary on, but there were no punters in this side of the pub, so it was all a bit pointless. The Ryder Suite, presumably named after the golf tournament which has been played at the nearby Royal Lytham St Annes course on two occasions, opens into a spacious square, carpeted seating area with banquettes running around all four sides, breaking only for the entrance door, fireplace (lit on this visit) and access to the rear of the room. There’s a nice red frieze running around this part of the room, some carved slate images of flowers and a couple of enamel images of VW Beetles. Moving further back, you pass into a bare boarded area with cabinets full of books and golf trophies before reaching two archways which take you through to the main bar. The servery runs down the left hand wall with a TV on the bar back show the rugby and a limited selection of seating options arranged opposite. Some sparsely filled shelves partition the rear section of the room from the bar area, and it was back here that the wake seemed to have congregated, so I didn’t intrude, although the area looked like a dining room with what appeared to be a food servery. Music played quietly throughout my stay and there was quite a relaxed feel to the place, despite evidence of recent turmoil caused by a party of children who had left part of the pub in a complete state, with food scattered everywhere. The hand pumps were dispensing Thwaites Original and Lancaster Bomber and I ordered a pint of the latter from a disinterested barmaid. The pint was in reasonable condition and as I supped it, a few more customers started to arrive which created a bit more of an atmosphere. This is a solid enough pub that clearly serves its community well and would be the sort of place you’d be happy enough to have as your local, but I’m not sure it entirely merits the walk out of town if you are a casual visitor.