There's something wonderfully democratic about the British pub, in that most people use them (at least sometimes). A couple of weeks ago I had lunch in a 400 year old pub, in front of an open fire, quietly reading my book. Other customers included couples, small groups and other people on their own, across a wide range of ages. Staff took the time to have a brief chat with me but otherwise left me to my own devices. A perfect afternoon.

When I visited the US back in 2000 I was shocked to see that bars were so often racially segregated (in effect). Different races seemed to have separate bars. We ended up walking into a Korean bar and it went deathly quiet, but being British (and thirsty) we completely ignored this and strode to the bar, which seemed to surprise the locals. They discovered our accents and we spent the entire evening there having a whale of a time. In the UK, a good pub is a melting pot of heritages, and all the better for it. Its the centre of the community, and with us having more integrated communities I guess it follows that we have more integrated pubs. (I know I'm generalising, plus it was 21 years ago).

Closing at 11pm is generally understood as "door's close" at 11pm. What follows is a "lock-in", where everyone still left in the pub will continue drinking until 1 or 2 in the morning.

I can tell Laurence has been Americanised. We never say someone has been carded. We don't know what it means.

Not sure if the closing time thing is correct nowadays but we typically stay far later in a "lock-in" when the owner closes the doors, lets the locals stay, the beer flows free-ish, smoking is suddenly allowed inside, they're playing pool with you and shit gets crazy :)

The number of people offering to take you drinking when you come to Britain means either A) you're going to spend the whole trip so drunk you won't remember any of it. B) an enormous group on a pub crawl. I haven't seen a darts board in any pub round here for many years, it takes up too much room that could be filled with drinkers. Same with pool tables.

Not one mention of pub food? Food is a huge part of many British pubs these days, since the drinking culture is changing and most establishments have to entice people in by other means than alcohol alone.

As a barman in Luxembourg I dreaded the new influx of American university students. They would come in ready to get 'f*cked up!!!!" Three drinks later they would be at least one of them throwing up. We sold Belgian Beers of 8 and 9%, not Bud Lite.

Pubs closing times vary from 11pm - 2am (depending on the day of the week) in my experience

The best 'pub' experiences I have had in England have been sitting in the Beer Garden at the height of summer having Lunch and a couple of pints with some mates. I also have fond memories from my childhood of going with my parents to do this (although, of course I was only allowed to drink soda - children may be allowed in the beer garden but they are not allowed beer). Also dogs are sometimes allowed in pubs and beer gardens. I have heard of, but not personally observed, dogs being allowed a beer (unlike the children)

I live near Oxford, and there's a pub five minutes walk from my house which was a particular favourite of President Clinton when he was a student here. Years ago, I had the unforgettable sight of a presidential motorcade rolling past the end of my street (had no idea it was coming, just a coincidence that I happened to see it go by). It was Bill, here to visit Chelsea when she was an Oxford student, on his way for a swift pint there for old times' sake. :) I'll be happy to buy you a drink, if you ever come to Oxford and don't mind hanging out with a middle aged woman! It's a very nice pub. Do an image search for the Trout inn, Oxford.

aww jps thinking that he could handle a night out drinking in the UK, practice lad, practice, avoid sambucca its game over juice haha

As a Brit I can tell you right now I love Wetherspoons. No more congregating aroud the bar, instead you order from the app and they bring it to you. I can tell he hasn't been back in a while.

I'm sure everyone would be up for taking you to the pub and buying you a drink!! I would!!

Lawrence seems obsessed by trashy lagers. In the UK every brewery worth its salt brews a complete range of pale ales, IPAs, bitters, stouts (porters), light ales and even alcohol-free ales as well as lagers. They often have peculiar names like "Fuzzy Ferret", "Hobgoblin", "Doom Bar", "Spitfire" and "Old Hooky" and vary in strength immensely. The US also has small independent breweries that brew a comparatively restricted range of ales like "Alaskan Amber" and "Full Sail", to name but two, but these are often regional and very hard to find. Bitters and ales tend to be both stronger and more flavoursome than lager, and so are more often the beer of choice for an evening of good conversation and banter rather than lager which just allows for massive consumption and for getting rat-arsed. The comparison is akin to drinking a fine Chateauneuf du pape compared to drinking Hock or Blue Nun (probably over-selling that a bit, but you get the idea).

The best pubs these days are what are called Micro Pubs, we have a lot of them in Kent in particular, three in my home town alone. Small independent pubs that specialise in locally brews beers from small breweries with relatively low overheads. Friendly, great conversation and excellent beer.

I work in a pub! Love barwork. And trust me. You won’t be able to handle a night drinking in the uk!! We drink like there’s no tomorrow 😂 Also I pray you do a meet up with fans if u ever come to the uk 😂

I started going to pubs in England since I was about 14. All my mates did. We don't have compulsory ID in England, but never got asked anyway.

You should definitely do a fans meet up when you visit the UK. We'll teach you how it's done!

US TV shows aren't usually known for their accuracy, but to be honest one of the best representations of what an American-style 'pub' (not bar) is truly like is in the US sitcom 'Cheers'. As Laurence says, they're often called 'taverns'. Alcohol-heavy, no food except snacks, lots of wooden furniture.

When I was a uni student in the UK, we often went to the cinema. The problem was that in those days the pubs closed at 10 pm, so in a group one person had to volunteer (depending on the film) to rush to the pub before closing time and order the last round. As I wasn't very fond of beer or stronger alcohols and wine was not on the "menu", it was usually me. So I left with assurances that someone would tell me the end of the film - didn't happen very often as most of the group had already been drinking flashes in the cinema and were too pissed after the last glass in the pub to remember - those were the days !!!!

I'm quite happy for my local pub to shut at 11am, like a lot of UK pubs it is sat in the middle of a residential area. I can walk home from it in about a minute.

Here in the UK I've been going in pubs (to drink British Real Ale) for over 40 years and never once with the intention of getting pi$$ed. A waste of money and not much of a night out if (the next morning) I cant remember what happened! There are plenty of great pubs and beer over here so well worth a visit, you'll enjoy it!

I'm British and I started going into pubs at 15. By the age of 16 I was a seasoned veteran and never got challenged. But then, there was no ID in those days. Discretion was left to the landlord. If he or she believed you were under 18, you simply didn't get served. If you looked 18, you did. There was no problem. I can't help feeling that the obsession with ID which requires everyone to carry it well into their twenties is nanny-statish amounting almost to control mania.

The drinking culture is different in the US. My cousin lives in Florida and whenever he meets up with fellow Brits for an allday session, they think they're all alcoholics 😂😂

UK closing times vary enormously. When virtually all pubs closed at 11pm, the culture was, assuming you wanted to stay out, to go on to a late night bar, restaurant or club. Though even back then, there were plenty of pubs with late licences. They just had to provide space to dance, or proper food, in order to apply for such a licence. There were also pubs in, or near to, wholesale fresh produce markets, or docks, that had 24 hour licences. His view could be a little out of date too, as there are plenty of pubs with late licences nowadays. Especially in city centres. It's also possible to get up, first thing in the morning and go straight to a pub! Before WW1 there was no official closing time. Pubs could open whenever they wanted. War regulations changed this and 11am until 11pm became the standard opening times for most pubs, as the wartime regulations were not repealed until round about the Millennium.

Sorry J but he's waaaaaaaay off the mark! The UK he describes is nothing like the one I live in! In my area most pubs are open until at least 2am... the nightclub I own is open 'til 6am! He's obviously led a very sheltered, dart board dominated, back street pub inhabiting life! Come on over and see for yourself! :-)

I remember when I turned 18 last orders had to be called at 10:30 and you had ten minutes drinking up time. We’d then have around twenty minutes to get to the bus stop for the last bus home at 11. They still had the inspector blow his whistle to ensure the last buses didn’t leave early. The opening hours were quite restricted then with them opening around noon and closing at 2:00 or 2:30 before reopening at around 6:00 for the evening. I can’t remember the exact times now. As they’ve changed quite a few times since. Drinking age has always been 18 but with a few exceptions. I seem to remember at one time that the 18 limit applied to the bar but not an adjoining family room but those rules have changed over the years.

Pubs in Scotland generally open until 12 and have done as far back as I can remember. Some are open until 1 am now.

most uk day drinkers, dont get drunk, they know their limits

The 11pm pub closing time is in England. While in Scotland it is usual for pubs to open till midnight during the week and often 1pm or sometimes 2pm at the weekends. Then there are nightclubs which are even later. In many cities if you know where to go by moving from one establishment to the next you can often drink for near on 24hrs.

I'm new to your channel and I love it 🥰 I love that you react to a wide variety of videos and topics. If you're ever in England, I'll get the pints in 😆

Love it! Definitely worth doing a pub crawl around London when you visit! Try different beers and IPA!

In the UK every Wetherspoons has at least one TV and every town/city has at least one Wetherspoons. Where I live there’s a nearby monastery that brews the only Trappist ale in the UK. It originally had an abv of 11.5% but has now been reduced to 7.4%. Either way you don’t need many before you pass out.

The legal drinking age in the UK isn't actually 18 as stated in the video. The legal drinking age in the UK varies depending on the setting. If you are in a private family setting then the legal age someone can drink is actually 5 yrs old as long as the parents are around. But when it comes to pubs then again as long as the parents are there and depending on the time of day ie during the day then under 18s can enter the pub with parental supervision but are not allowed to go up to the bar until they are 15 then they can but only to buy crisps etc they're not allowed to buy alcohol. They can buy non alcoholic drinks or soft drinks though At 16 you are allowed to drink alcohol in a pub as long as you are away from the bar and your parents or an over 18 has bought the alcohol. But the minor isn't allowed to actually be drunk so the odd one alcoholic drink under supervision of an over 18 is permitted. This is during the day though. After a certain time usually 5 pm then the age limit comes into the law. Then only 18 yrs old and over are allowed into pubs and buy alcohol. But again the law is that they are not allowed to be drunk. This part of the law is often overlooked though and over 18s are deemed able to determine how much alcohol they can drink which usually ends up in them getting totally pissed. But in certain circumstances then the publican can end up losing his licence if the pub serves people who are too pissed and he keeps serving them! Of all the pubs I've been into in the UK I've never come across Fosters. We in the UK have real beers and real ales with the odd lager which is a teeny bopper drink real men drink real beers or real ales. If any Yanks come to the UK try our the local beers they usually have a different but fantastic taste and are brewed by micro breweries which are independent of big businesses or multinational breweries. They are local people who own small breweries which make beer to traditional recipes. Also if in the west country try the locally brewed Scrumpy. This is basically alcoholic apple juice or cider. The best type of Scrumpy has bits of apple floating in it and is cloudy. But be warned if your not used to it do not have more than a pint of it if you want to remain standing at the bar. The option here being if you do then you'll be falling over. 😂🤣

Pubs generally have last orders at 11pm/midnight Monday - Thursday and midnight/1am/2am Friday & Saturday. Then its on to a nightclub. Clubs can stay open late. 4am/5am/6am/7am or later. Especially in London. So, although our pubs may close earlier, it doesn't mean its time to head home, its simply time to move on to The Club.

Pub classes at 11 or 12 but you usually have a lock in when they close doors but let you stay later. But after the pub we will go to the clubs ect. These are open till about 5am.

While on holiday in the beautiful part of England that is the Yorkshire Dales, we were frequent (constant) users of the village pub...having determined no descernable opening or closing time, I asked the landlord when does it close - his reply was "October - to clean the carpets". We actually met him in half way up a snow covered hill the next day, he said that the pub was unlocked with a good fire going - go in, get warm and help your self! We didn't need telling twice!

Years ago people in England played darts. Dominos. Cards. Pool & all sorts whilst drinking their pints or half pints. It’s changed now. It’s now pool & gambling machines mainly. All pubs can ask the local authorities for different closing times. It depends on if there as been any troubles like fighting or drugs.

In the UK, City Centre and town centre pubs tend to stay open until 2am or 3am. It's mainly your local pubs or countryside pubs that close at 11pm (although many will have a 'lock-in' for regular customers to stay and drink late)

Local pubs in the UK stay open till midnight or half past midnight. But bars tend to be open till 3 or 5am

Welcome to the UK Joel. Hope you enjoy your stay and meet lots of friendly folk and enjoy our countryside , history and heritage

11.00pm is late enough for me! However when I go on holiday to Corfu, bars there stay open as long as your drinking! Often on the first few days holiday, people start buying drinks at nearly 11, thinking like at home they will close, but I let them know, its ok til whenever! lol

my local pubs have always had some sort of games night or quiz night with the usual darts, pool or shove-ha'penny and colourful locals propping up the bar. Many traditional pubs are older than many nations of course, many dating back to medieval times and many 'Inns' were coaching stops with food, drink and stables.

It's a long time since pubs closed at 11.00 pm here in Failsworth - most are open until 2.00 am .I'm surprised he only mentioned lagers - all pubs serve draught British beers and most serve food .Witherspoons for some reason seem to get a bad name - I can't see why I've never found one I didn't like !

One thing I noticed when I last went to America was that many of their bars - physical bar itself - were U-shaped. In the UK, you see this sometimes but generally it’s one long straight-line shaped. Joel, when you visit the UK, come to Reading (only 25 mins on train from London) and I will definitely get you some pints. Reading has tons of pubs to visit. You can also try out cider, something that’s common in the UK but I found hard to find in many US bars. Many didn’t know what I was talking about when I asked if they serve cider.

I love it that you didn't get the fly tipping joke LOL

Many pubs where I live are open until 2am, and a couple close at 5am at the weekend. My town is about 30 miles north of London (where everything seems to open late, including the shops). A few quiet ones close at 11pm in the week, but open until 1am on Fridays and Saturdays. In a quiet Norfolk town, where my friend lives, the pubs close early. I was shocked that a pub near where we stayed in Norwich closed at 10pm! But there was another livelier pub that opened until late, so it wasn't completely dead. So, it depends on how popular the local nightlife is, or whether there's a university nearby. University towns always have busy pubs! Cheers!

two pubs on my hometown in Derbyshire UK are open till 4am and one directly opposite open until 6am at weekends

Hey Joel! Looking forward to taking you to a good old traditional English pub where you can sample a full English breakfast with Black Pudding. I want to see the look on your face when you try it for the first time!🥺 Most pubs still close at 11pm because they’re located in the middle of neighbourhoods so probably wouldn’t get a licence for 24hr opening anyway. Most that open all day are usually in the larger town and city centres.

I've not seen a pub in the UK that shuts at 11pm they stay open longer than that

11pm is not early, especially during the week, and we would definitely go for a drink at 11am.

I once visted a pub in the lake district, to get to the gents toilets you had to walk through the flight path of the dartboard, as the evening wore on this became a more and more "interesting" experience. Also JP, when you get to the UK check out if there are any beer festivals on, they can be a great experience.

This dude clearly ain't been in a pub in UK for time 🤣😂😂🤣

The thing is ..we in The UK cater for all types of clientel... Our pubs can be oldy woldy cottage types With homely open lit fires with no tvs But a games room for pool darts etc, ..that generally open and close at by gone traditional hours..we have the sporting pubs...that often hold quiz nights karaoke etc..and many tvs! And we have bar/restaurant style pubs that have The dining sections seated away from the public drinking areas.. We have some with dance floors others with conference/ function rooms to hire for meetings and wedding venues.. A pub here is whatever takes your fancy... Me however..I'm all for the oldy woldy charm! So generally that's where I'll be propping up the bar...or by the open fire toasting marshmallows..ok maybe not! X Lol

The minimum age for drinking in a restaurant or beer garden is 5, it's only 18 in a bar or to purchase alcohol.

Theres individual pubs here in the UK. Pub chains such as Weatherspoons. A lot of pubs aim for showing footie,or rugby,and especially on match days,and ESPECIALLY those near stadiums or town centres can been packed solid and rowdy on match days. There are quaint Gastro Pubs than serve tasty full course meals. The riverside and village pubs are quite rustic,cosy and connected with history, Ian Mckellan owns The Bunch of Grapes,Narrow Street,Limehouse,London,If u want a small,quiet,sports less pub that is?

closing at 11pm is basically the pubs choice based on demand and not very likely on a Friday or Saturday.

In the U.K. we have ‘bars’ as well as ‘pubs’. Pubs you can go for meals and find a wider selection of beers and cider on tap instead of bottles (good pubs will have locally brewed stuff). Many pubs are family friendly and serve ‘pub grub’. We have bars in the U.K. but you need to be over 18. There tends to be louder music but places to sit and some food options. E.g. tapas style. There’s usually more options for cocktails to drink and less beers on tap, more in bottles. Sometimes bars can turn into a club after a certain time in the evening. So yeah pubs and bars both exist in the U.K. but are different things!

Many Pubs and clubs (private drinking establishment - with members) will have a skittle alley. Skittles is a version of 10 pin bowling but without the machinery. You bowl a wooden ball down a wooden alley about 33 feet long. Usually a team game, visiting team is from another club or pub. The club I go to has a dart board, skittle alley, pool table and a separate room with two full size snooker/billiard tables. They also have table games such as dominoes and cards, usual card games are solo or cribbage. Games are not allowed any wagering other than small pocket money amounts. The building also has a separate room for darts and a lounge area for quieter drinks. To the side of the lounge is a concert hall with a stage and sunken dance floor. In the grounds is a full sized well maintained bowling green.

Where I live in the U.K. it’s primarily housing with the odd small shop (newsagents, hairdresser, convenience store) dotted here or there. We also have a few pubs. The reason the pubs here haven’t been able to get a later than 11pm closing license is that people don’t want drunks people waking them up in the early hours so the local council refuses late licenses if people want to drink late they can find pubs and clubs in retail areas or the town centre that operate late licenses that won’t disturb residents. It makes sense to me. Our town is fairly walkable so it’s generally easy to stagger home, or the taxis are plentiful.

Manchester’s village pubs should be an eye opener for you.

Even before the changes in the Law it was possible to drink round the clock in London legally, by visiting late night clubs in the West End, followed by the main wholesale markets such as Billingsgate which were open for the special needs of hard working workers. Likewise there were pubs open at non standard hours near to Steel works and Coal mines, to service thirsty workers at the end of shifts. Even in the small market town where I lived the pubs were open from very early to late at night on Market Day.

I'm 66 years old and was born in the east end of London had my first beer in a pub when I was 14 years no problem it also came with a knowing wink from the old boy behind the bar, I started smoking when I was 13 you could buy a packet of five Park drive cigarettes for one shilling and threepence which is about 7new pence in today's money, biggest regret smoking just starting to have trouble with my lungs even though I stoped ten years ago. But I still take 3-4 pints of beer a day.. lovely jubbly 😋

Was a regular in my local pub by the age of 14, at 11pm they just stopped people coming in, mainly. With the jukebox going & everyone playing pool, the night just carried on. The beer selection was not that great until they got Kronie 64! Happy days!!

Lawrence bless him is out of Touch... English pubs also have loads of TV screens everywhere though the weatherspoons chain is a exception and everyone knows at least one place where you can get a drink even at 6am... Lawrence comes from a upper class family and most of his videos are his experiences so he isn't always that clued up on the working class culture and evident in this Video about Elephant and Castle... its not about having loads of castles it's actually a rough neighbourhood in South London called Elephant and Castle. If you ever want to come uk hit me up, you can stay at mine in the wonderful Peckham area of South London.

Pubs near me SE London, some stay open until 1-2.. I don’t think I’ve ever been to a pub that shuts at 11 xx

First time I went from U.K. to USA was when I was 19. Strolled down to the hotel bar and couldn’t get a drink. Back home my local served me from 15 (I looked older)

Very surprise you don’t have more subscribers. You have a thoughtful intelligence that belies your tender years. English isn’t my first language, so I’m sorry about the bad English - I’ve had to translate it in my head from the Gàidglig , or Scottish Gaelic.

Pub closing times now depend on where you are located and if you have a late license. The days of 11pm closing are long gone. Most pubs serve food now as they can’t survive just by selling alcohol. Real Ale is also just as popular as lager now too

I’ve been in Australia since 1983 but I seem to remember pubs opening hours were roughly 12pm to 3pm and 6pm to 11pm. They were never open all day. Plus Sunday was 10 or 10.30 pm closing. I believe it goes back to the war years (unsure if first or second WW) when they didn’t want workers drinking at lunchtime then returning to work, especially munitions workers I assume.

Come to Ireland! Late night bars stay open til about 3am. Then of course there's the infamous "lock ins" where when the pub officially closes its doors it'll still serve drink til the wee hours of the morning. Only some pubs tho not all

The beers that were classed as British typical beers were actually lagers and apart from Stella not particularly good ( in my opinion) . No mention of real ale, bitter porter ,stout ,cider etc Just saying

We say bar to distinquish between the bar and the lounge which are part of an establishment.

its not a good night of English drinking unless you wake up the next morning with a traffic cone

Very amusing 👍🏻🤣😎 Budweiser is available everywhere here too though.

Traditionally darts or bar billiards would be pub activities. These days its more likely to be pool (UK have smaller pockets, so we're usually better at it) or slot machines and quiz machines, quiz nights and karaoke nights Would love to take you to a pub if you come up to Manchester. Safe travels

I'd be careful about an open invitation to take to a pub! You'll have every weirdo coming out the woodwork 🤪

We in the UK go to a pub for the craic and enjoying friends company, then get drunk 🥴

What tends to happen is that you go to the pub first to socialise, then just as the pubs are closing the nightclubs are opening so you go there until 3am when they close. If dancing while you're wasted isn't your thing, or if you're still up for more, casinos are usually open until around 6 or 7am and you don't need to gamble to drink there. Come over to Edinburgh, we'll show you what's up xD

I will always buy a pint for any overseas visitor from anywhere because I want to hear their story.

Unfortunate, to my chagrin, children are now allowed in British pubs but cannot drink. I well remember as a child being left outside the pub and being supplied a couple of times by my dad or uncle with a bottle of pop and a packet of Smith's crisps. (there was no other make in those days but you did get salt wrapped in blue paper ). Now there is nowhere a man can go for a quiet pint without screaming children running all over the place.

In the UK going for a social pint, even at lunchtime, is the American equivalent of going for a coffe ! True !

I live in Walsall, England and we have a pub here that has been licenced and open since 1627. Come to England and I will buy you a pint (A full pint not your American short measures)

Pubs close at 1am and clubs close at 3am/5am in Scotland.

If you came over, London, i take out to the pub, it depends on the pub someplace do stay open till 2 am and want to keep drink you got to a nightclub you can get really drunk? lol

The pubs in my village are open until midnight. Laurence hasn't been home in a long time. !!

My 31 year old daughter was carded in Arizona last year, nice to look young

A lot of pubs are family run in the UK so they do close early, but the clubs are open till 4/5am!

It depends on the local bye-laws,but closing times vary from town to town or county,but 11 am is the bare statutory minimum! PS Did a fair,few pub-crawls before I reached the age of 18 and after,when I went to univ.,as in some quarters,its is still seen as a 'worthy rites-of-passage' to regularly be served in licenced alcohol premises before they reach the legal drinking age!

Even before Covid struck over 900 pubs were closing permenantly every year in the UK. They don't make a decent profit from beer. More is made from soft drinks - £3 for a pint of Coke. The most profit is from the sale of food. Those that can't compete go bust. With the price of alcohol a fraction of pub prices in supermarkets people tend to stay at home with the vast selection of cable and satalite entertainment available and the enormous selection of food available for home delivery.

If Laurence's video wasn't tempting enough, we have 47,200 pubs here in the UK

Pubs close at 11pm but bars and clubs are 24 hours or until the staff tell you to piss off.

Love this guy's very British droll delivery. Since Covid came along, there's no more going to the bar to order drinks, it all has to be brought to the table by bar staff now.

Our village pub had a lock in, at 3 am a police car pulled into the car park flashing its blue lights just to let us know it was time to go home.

I'll take ye out in Belfast. Our pubs shut at 130am generally lol. Usually ppl have a "carry out" (get drunk at home) first then go to pub the after that go dancing. At least in normal times

The guy presenting Lost in the Pond is really entertaining and the content is accurate but there are some generalisations there. For example, there are quite a few bars in the UK that do open beyond 11pm, especially at the weekends. UK also has two distinct types of venues..."pubs" and "clubs" with the latter often opening late but not closing until maybe 5am. There are clubs in the US too of course. Our bars and clubs can be just "local" or they can be themed such as being about a particular type of music, TV sports (mentioned in the video) or specifically appealing to gay clientèle. I think one big difference between US and UK pub-going habits is just down to how the day is organised. Prime time TV in the US, when the big talk shows are on, is much later than in the UK where prime time is about 8pm so it seems that people in the US tend to do everything much later but still manage to start their working day at the same time as the UK! On table service, I don't think that distinction is accurate. I have been to plenty of bars in Massachusetts, New York and California where you go to the actual counter to get served. I have also been to a few bars in the UK where it is at seat service. I think the distinction is more true of UK versus continental Europe where anything other than at seat service is very rare. The guy didn't talk about one important difference...the types of alcoholic drink. He mentioned Fosters being Australian but actually, Australians will tell you they've never seen it there. It's a marketing gimmick. A lot of UK drinkers consume this awful, fizzy and bland lager such as Fosters, Heineken and Carlsberg. We do have Budweiser in the UK but it is nothing like the US drink which is stronger and has a fuller flavour. There are some nice German lagers. Our beer is a little influenced by Germany just as our chocolate is influenced by Switzerland. One thing that unites more discerning drinkers in the US and UK is ale. Indian Pale Ale (IPA) in particular and the US is blessed with an increasing number of "micro - breweries" that produce quality beers. Boston, Mass. is particularly renowned for a range of quality ales and is of course, the home of the famous Samuel Adams. I think there has been alot of convergence of the"night time economies" of the US and UK. It is driven by people in their 20s and 30s and that is the age group where cultural differences between UK and US really break down and people are inclined to enjoy the same things, be they American or British. When I have been to the the US, going to a bar has never struck me as radically different from going to a bar in the UK. I'd love to take you for a pint...or "go on the piss" or "get pissed". But though I know you're keen not to just visit London, I really do live miles from anywhere in the city of Plymouth in the far south west of England. Some great places to go out drinking for an American wanting to really experience the UK would be places like Bath, Bristol, Cardiff (Wales), Manchester and Edinburgh (Scotland). In the UK, it's often the case that "lads go out to get pissed and go on the pull" (try to find a partner) so you might end up with a nice British girlfriend (or boyfriend...homophobia in bars is fast disappearing!) at the end of your drunken night out 😁

JPS, I can see Warwick Castle from my house. If you ever visit I’ll buy you a beer 🍻 You’ve mentioned the Castle a few times - it’s great 👍

The legal drinking age thing applies more to buying alcoholic drinks then consumption, which is a different thing entirely. If someone whose underage try to buy a drink in a pub they're not going to get served but if someone whose legally old enough buys a drink then hands it to a underage person they can drink it. Just be careful around little jimmy after he's had 5 or 6 pints as he can be a pretty mean drunk.

Weatherspoons has table service through the app 🥰 so good to walk into a pub and order shots etc and not have to get up