The Old Bell

There’s no denying that in recent years the amount of easily accessible places to go for a friendly drink at a local pub has been on a steady decline for those of an alternative nature.  In North East London especially, a place of much renovation and change due to the forthcoming Olympic Games and the current economic situation, many places have changed for the worse or been knocked down completely.

Not being one for the hustle and bustle of clubs, or for travelling too far just to have a drink and a chat with friends, more often than not my Friday nights have been filled with a few beers indoors and a variety of games with the boyfriend and a few mates. Not all bad I grant you, in fact it’s probably my ideal evening, but everyone likes a night out every once in a while!

So during one of my nightly Xbox Live chats with my other half, he tells me of rumours of a not so shabby local tavern, that now offers dedicated rock and metal Friday nights every few weeks and that everyone would be popping down to check it out. He wasn’t kidding. The place was packed!

Being part of the Enfield Metal scene he knows a lot of people from various bands and venues, and in every corner there seemed to be someone I knew or at least recognised from the different gigs he has played.

But me being me, I decided to perch myself in the corner with a pint and a few close friends while he mingled with everyone he knew. In between converstations of games, our upcoming (and might I add well deserved!) holiday, in the corner of my eye behind the flashing face of Noel Edmonds on a Deal or No Deal fruit machine I saw what can only be described as a glowing treasure in Aladdin’s cave – an arcade machine.

The room fell silent, the sound of yet another Metallica song muffled in my ears as the cabinet sang to me… calling me like a deadly siren across the sea of people. Wading my way through the bodies I finally caught a glimpse of what beauty it could be.

House of the Dead III

I could have cried, I almost felt compelled to hug the thing. I was home. Beer, good music and enough zombie killing action to keep the heartiest of undead lovers entertained for hours with pals while the beau did his rounds. Could anyone ask for more?

Needless to say I think I ended up spending more on the game that I did on drinks, but I had a smile on my face and a zombie song in my heart. There’s not much more in the world that can make me happier than shotgunning the undead into next week, but by then I will be on a hot beach in the Canary Islands. Which reminds me, I need to dig out my old Gameboy games for some retro action plane travel… but more of that next time.

Adiós!