The Turks Head, St Margarets, Twickenham

Bit surprised that this pub hasn't had any postings yet, so here's my posting from an April 2010 visit that was previously posted on a certain pub review site that is now discredited and hardly needs naming here. The Turks Head is a large Edwardian Fullers pub situated in a residential back street behind St Margarets Road. For many years a splendid community orientated tenanted pub run by the much respected Brazier family, Fullers took this pub into their Managed House Division a good number of years ago ( late 2002), carrying out a refurbishment that took away the separate public bar, removed some of the splendid etched windows and created much local resentment which expressed itself in the letters pages of the local Richmond and Twickenham Times over 7 consecutive weeks. To their credit, Fullers did draw back from their original intention to go down the full gastro route, but it does unfortunately now have that rather typical Fullers managed pub ambience and look to it. It's a large pub with the old public bar area at the front, which leads into a larger food orientated area, which in turn gives access at the back into a largish garden. Notably, what was previously a boules pitch has now been taken over by some childrens equipment ( slide, swing etc ) - indicative of a move towards more of a family emphasis, especially at weekends. The pub featured in a scene in a Beatles film and there's a signed photo of the Fab Four on display. Rugby memorabilia - including some photos of teams in 1895 - reflects the proximity to Twickenham and, notably, enterprising supporters have left tickets as souvenirs on the high ceiling. There's a Comedy Club in the adjoining Winchester Hall. On my recent visit, the London Pride - £ 3.10p - was moderate. The pub has been in the CAMRA Good Beer Guide for the last couple of years, but I don't think beer quality is particularly reliable. In conclusion, it's certainly not the pub it was in the 1980's and I don't envisage an early return visit.

Randomness Guide to London - Turk's Head entry

Randomness Guide to London - Turk's Head entry