The Sun (JD Wetherspoon), Redhill

A large modern-build Spoons with a slightly old-style interior, reasonably well-kept but showing a few signs of wear. The large windows give a light and airy feel, helped by the high ceilings and it seems nicer than a lot of its type which end up more like basements. On the bar were Exmoor Beast, two from Twickenham and Hobgoblin Gold along with the usual suspects. Even for a Spoons, I was surprised by the number of old codgers round the place and this was mid-afternoon, not just after opening but it does seem to be something of an oasis in this under-pubbed area.

Town centre Wetherspoon's in a prominent corner location right in the middle of the shopping area. The open-plan interior is spacious and quite bright, helped by the windows wrapped around the building. It was quite busy on my weekday lunchtime visit, with some people just drinking, and others having lunch. Service was quick. The usual 'spoon's beers were available - Greene King Abbot, Ruddles Best & Sharp's Doom Bar. In addition, there were 4 guest beers - Oakham JHB, Purity Mad Goose, Otter Bright & Goff's White Knight. Ciders were Weston's Old Rosie & Gwynt y Ddraig Black Dragon served from boxes in the fridge. These happened to be the only real ciders I witnessed in 13 local pubs, which was a little disappointing, especially as I opted for the Otter Bright instead. This branch of the chain follows the traditional formula for Wetherspoon's. There's nothing particularly special about it.

Standard Wetherspoons with a slightly raised food area. Beer is good but its all very chainy

This centrally located Wetherspoons pub celebrates its 20th anniversary in August and it very much feels like one of the chain's older stock. The pub has a large open plan interior and has been carpeted throughout, with the servery sited on the rear wall and large windows providing lots of light at the front. The room has been decorated in a garish yellow and red colour scheme, which perhaps conveyed a sense of the warmth of the sun when the pub first opened, but it all looks a bit faded and tired now. The dark wood servery has a row of high tables directly opposite with similar options under the front windows. A couple of padded bench booths were appended to the right hand wall, but the rest of the room was filled with regular tables and chairs, including on a raised platform over to the far left hand end. Walls have been decorated with the usual information boards, as well as some very good local photos through the ages, a nice fitted cabinet full of beer bottles and a few blackboards with famous quotes written on them. A number of pillars dot the room and they have sun ornaments stuck to them, with some larger versions visible on the bar canopy. There was a decent lunchtime crowd in during my recent visit, many of whom had bagged a seat at one of the pavement tables in a small fenced off space either side of the entrance. The bar supports twelve handpulls, five of which had 'Spoons regular ales (some doubled up), with five guest beers, one real cider and an unused pump. One of the guests, Goldmark Ebony Mild, caught my eye given that it's a brewery I've never encountered before and a rare sighting of a mild. A chipper barman served me what turned out to be an excellent pint and I also had some food which was of the usual reliable, unfussy standard you'd associate with this chain. Many Wetherspoons pubs of this vintage are starting to look a bit dated and tired and this place is no exception. I found the place quite light and airy during daylight hours and enjoyed a pint worthy of their current Good Beer Guide listing, but beyond that it doesn't really distinguish itself from the bulk of the Wetherspoon's estate.

Hexagonal shaped open-plan Spoons in a fairly modern corner unit (a former Magnet kitchen store), opened in 1996. Unlovely red and whisked-egg yellow colour scheme along with the usual JDW fittings. Some black and white pics of old Redhill but otherwise little else of note. Two banks of six pumps with a fair selection of non-standards; Adnams Ghost Ship, Oakham JHB (decent nick) and Tillingbourne Midnight with W&E Zinzans 'coming soon'. Usual mid-morning spoons clientèle. Felt a bit drab, needs a re-fresh here. Get your £££ out, Timbo.

This is very much an old school Spoons dating back to Summer 1996. At least the large open plan room is light as there are doors or windows along the entire front of the room. Despite the 12 hand pumps the beer selection was disappointing with the two GK beers, Doom Bore and Adnam's Ghost Ship doubled up. This just left Oakham JHB, Hawkshead Cumbrian 5 Hop, Ascot On The Rails and King Lost Kingdom. I went for the 5 Hop, a beer which varied greatly last time it was on the guest list but I was pleased to find in excellent condition. It seems a shame that they need to have all the doubled up beers. If they didn't it might make it a lot better than just an average Spoons.

The Sun is a large open plan Wetherspoons that is indistinguishable from all the other large open plan Wetherspoons’ pubs that are found within most large town centres. The long bar on the rear wall is stocked with standard draught products and twelve hand pumps that were drawing a mix of Spoons’ stalwarts and guest ales. The usual cheap pub grub is available; as are the muted plasma screens that show rolling news. I found the service to be surprisingly polite and professional, but I would still only use this place as a meeting point before moving on to somewhere a little more interesting.