The Witchball, Helston

Having visited the westernmost real ale pub in Great Britain last month, it was a strange coincidence that I should find myself in the southernmost British pub on my latest visit to Cornwall. I'd never visited The Lizard before and it wasn't quite what I was expected. The village itself is a rather commercialised place, similar to a kiss-me-quick English seaside resort, with chip shops, cafes, fish stalls and restaurants. I'd somehow expected some kind of final outpost overlooking a rocky outcrop. The Witchball doesn't seem to make much of its claim to fame. In fact, it seemed to be a fairly down-to-earth pub popular with both locals and visitors alike. There is a small beamed bar area with little decoration and a games room containing a pool table off to one corner. Most people were sat in the outdoor area to the front of which a strange feature was the gents urinals in the corner, which was basically a place to pee surrounding by corrugated iron. With no running water, at least hand sanitiser was provided. At the bar, the cask ales are Tribute & Sea Fury. A guest beer may occasionally appear, but the third handpull was vacant for our visit. Ciders appeared to amount to Thatcher's Gold & Healey's Rattler until we spotted a sign above the bar promoting flat ciders for £4 a pint. Behind us, there were 4 local bag-in-the-box ciders probably remaining from a cider festival the pub had held. You are given glasses to help yourselves. On offer were Bearded Moustache Mango & Storm Damage & Gweal Mellin Cornish Farmhouse & Festival Strength. The Festival Strength (8.2%) was the only new one for me. So, it seemed rude not to avail myself of a swift half. After all, it was only £2! With quite a lively, but friendly atmosphere, this was another pub I enjoyed visiting. The cask ale selection was a bit on the boring side and the decor is nothing to write home about, but it was a fitting end (or so I thought it was the end) to a day's drinking in Cornwall, with the unexpected bonus of another real cider. By the way, looking at Ian's review below, they may well have stopped selling food. There was certainly no sign of any menus or anything being served this time.

Lots of press coverage of this places sad closure in Feb 2023. Less about its reopening in June 2023. Completely unchanged from what I can remember from visiting 12 years ago.... although saying that, there was no Betty Stoggs on this time. Three cask from Sharps and the lesser spotted Sea Fury in fine condition. Single roomed, very low ceilings, large front patio area. More of a drinkers pub than the Top House Inn. The menu looked very interesting - a Caribbean influence. We may well go back for an evening meal.

A great little pub and eatery, in the GBG, with a front beer garden. The pub, a former farmhouse, looks like two cottages thrust together with a large front extension (the dormer window spoils the look a little). It is in white rendered rough stone. The interior is an L-shaped room. One end (the front extension) is the food area and is in white and white rendered stone, with food tables and mixed art. The other end is the bar, in white and beam look, with red perimeter seats, a brick fireplace and a witch's broom on the wall. It has a patterned carpet throughout. It is a small place. There is no TV and there was no music. The food here was really nice. The service was great and the place rammed with a mixed clientele (not hard, as it is so small). Beer; usual tap stuff with Skinner's Betty Stoggs, St Austell Tribute and two from the Chough Brewery; Kynance Blonde (fine) and Fire Raven (class) on handpull. A great pub with great food - one to try if this far south.

This is a friendly pub situated just off the main green. After a 6.5 mile walk round the Lizard penninsular, I was ready for a pint, and they were ever so good and agreed to let us have food even though we were in just after the 3pm finish for food. It is in the 2012 Good Beer Guide and deserves it's place as the beer we had was in good condition. They still runs a beer festival in August, but sadly we will have left by then.