Ship, Plumstead  

There's an old lyric about pubs round here: 'The Five Idlers of Plumstead Common - The Star which doesn't shine in the sky, The Woodman who doesn't cut down trees, The Ship that cannot sail the seas, The Mill which doesn't grind corn And Who'd a Thought it!' Following a few years of dereliction, the Ship has reopened in new guise after much debate and the Idlers (some might suggest that there are far more than five in the area) can all be visited once again. The recent reopening of the nearby Woodman may have been underwhelming but the Ship is something else. Once past the bouncer on the door, you enter a bare, bright smoky space, with just four tables in a large area from the bar to the front window. Anonymous dance music (loud enough to make conversation an effort) pounds away, leaving you to gaze listlessly at the teenagers circling the pool table. A novel and bizarre element of the pub's atmosphere, on our visit, was a simultaneous (silent) screening of Hollyoaks with a documentary on lung surgery. This led us to wonder whether the Ship might actually be some kind of art installation. There are no real ales on tap.

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