Golden Eagle Pub

As mentioned in my earlier “Chester Pubs – My Favourites” post a couple of weeks ago (if you didn’t see the original post, you can read it HERE) I decided to make the Golden Eagle post a two part post. That was because they were part of two significant eras in my social lifetime. The first era up to 1982 was covered in the previous post. This Golden Eagle pub post will cover from 1982 and beyond.

Well actually, predominantly up to 1986. Why only up until 1986? That would be because that period between 1982 to 1986 was a very special social period for myself and so many other regular patrons of the Golden Eagle pub.

Cue introduction to John Morgan and his family.

Golden Eagle Pub

Although John Morgan and his family ran the Golden Eagle pub for just those four years, I consider myself lucky enough to still be in touch with the “Morgies” on a regular basis to this day and also lucky enough to consider them as good friends of mine.

As mentioned in my previous post, the Golden Eagle pub was already a very, very popular pub under the stewardship of Mike and Anne Simms. Morgy however managed to take its popularity to an even higher level somehow. It’s popularity back then is still talked about today.

Only last week for instance I was in The Cottage when I bumped into an ex-Eagle regular, Dave, from back then. Very quickly the conversation turned to the Golden Eagle “Morgy Era”

Fond memories were swapped with some good laughs thrown in for good measure.

Sunday League Footie

While talking to Dave we also touched on the number of local Sunday League football teams who used to drink in there on a regular basis. A discussion about the standard and the quality of Sunday League football ‘back in the day’ is a topic worth its own thread in due course.

But as Dave and myself reminisced, we recalled how the Golden Eagle, Chester Gas (the team Dave played for), Brew XI, Transport, Lache BA, Chester Police, Dee Rangers….have I missed anyone?….all used to drink in the Eagle on a Sunday after their respective games. Believe me when I say there were some really good players congregated in there at the time. Make no mistake about that. There were of course those that couldn’t trap a bag of cement (you know who you are!!!!), but that’s not the point. The point is, it was such an integral focal point of our social weekend. Great catch ups every Sunday afternoon.

Just for a bit of nostalgia, here’s our Golden Eagle team at the end of season awards ceremony in Rendezvous nightclub (Rendezvous……now there’s some more great stories!!!). What a season that was and what a team. Some great lads there, many of which I still see knocking about and keep in touch with. Note the dodgy ‘taches!!!

As It’s Sunday-More Tea Vicar?

Remember as well though that we are talking about an era when the pubs closed at 2pm on a Sunday….cough…..cough….splutter….splutter!!

For all the in-depth ‘footie speak’ debriefings on a Sunday, a few choice comments stick in the mind. I already mentioned that there were some really good players who frequented the Golden Eagle pub….and some not so good.

One phrase by one of the lesser known players was a gem (well he wasn’t a player at all really – more of a Brew XI fan). Several of us were in the Boys Pen and analysing certain moments in certain games. All good stuff and plenty of nodding of heads going on, when all of a sudden one of the fellas sat around our table came out with a pearler……I’m not going to mention any names. It would be unfair to do so.

Lovely Little One-Two-Three

As the conversation fast flowed around the table, the unmentioned and unidentified (nice checked shirt by the way Nigel….oops!!) armchair footie pundit analysed a certain move during a Brew XI game with the comment, “Morgy, I liked that lovely little one-two-three you played with Colin”

As the conversation moved on at pace, we all stopped Del Boy esque after one of Trigger’s gems and did a rewind. Now looking at the unnamed ‘pundit’ we all said, “a lovely little what?”

To this day I’ve seen many, many quality ‘one-twos’ in football. But a ‘lovely little one-two-three’….no, not as yet. It’s strange how certain things stick in your mind.

And What Great Entertainment

The Golden Eagle pub was one of a few pubs in those days to offer some quality live entertainment. Originally from Liverpool, the Morgies knew a fair few good pub acts from back home. Acts like family member Davie Laws. He was good.

But the star turn in those days in not only the Golden Eagle pub but also in so many pubs in and around Merseyside, Chester and North Wales was an incredible act by the name of Billy May. Who said, “Superrrbbb” when they just read that name.

Billy May

Billy used to blurt out, “Superrrbbb” regularly at the end of some of his tracks. More in recognition of the support and appreciation he was getting from his huge following rather than his own performance. But what performances though Billy. They were indeed “Superrrbbb!”. Billy was one of those bubbly, enthusiastic, loveable entertainers who was just that…..an entertainer. He wasn’t ‘just’ a singer. He entertained. He would stand in front of his fans and ask what they wanted. And sure enough Billy delivered.

He had his own classics of course. Songs like “Far Canal”, “The Music Man”, “Grandma’s Feather Bed”, “In My Liverpool Home” to name a few. But he also played virtually every request from the floor. One such request was played at every one of his performances. “Purple Haze” by Jimi Hendrix. During this excellent version, Billy used to play his guitar around his back. “Superrrbbb” Billy.

Billy played in the Golden Eagle pub on a regular basis. It was beyond standing room only. People were sitting on knees and other places not normally sat on.

Now and then Billy used to bring his drummer pal with him – Rod. Who was better known as “Dyno Rod”

Quite often, Billy used to invite punters to join him on stage. Mike Powell for instance used to regularly perform the Beatles number, “I Saw Her Standing There”

Great nights indeed when Billy performed.

Too Many Stories

As you can well imagine the stories and the experiences were far and wide. The above snippets are only the tip of, the tip of, the tip of the iceberg.  As already mentioned, there are some stories that stick in the mind. For me there were loads.

For instance, one Sunday afternoon when John and Mary were due back from holiday later that evening we had a get together after 2pm. It must have been a heavy, formal footie committee meeting or something because why else would we be in there all afternoon on a Sunday?

(NB-For the life of me I didn’t realise we had so many committee members!! And ladies as well!!).

You can picture the scene though. Formal footie committee meeting in the Boys Pen with copious amounts of tea and biscuits being provided by John (Morgy) Junior, aka “JJ”.

As I also mentioned earlier, the pubs closed at 2pm in those days and so we weren’t allowed to drink alcohol after 2pm. So JJ kindly kept us topped up with tea, coffee and biscuits. Didn’t you JJ!!

What Chicken?

About mid afternoon JJ announced that he was to get a chicken out of the fridge and in due course cook the aforementioned fowl delicacy and prepare a meal for his returning Mum and Dad. It’s worth noting that JJ was a chef in the Navy and so his culinary skills went way beyond most of our “just throw something together” merchants. He wanted to cook something special.

The footie meeting must have got so intense because we’d all forgotten about any special meal that was to be prepared. It must have been about four hours or so later (yes, it was a long meeting wasn’t it!!) when we heard a lot of shouting and commotion coming from upstairs. Comments like, “WTF!!!” etc….etc.

JJ came down in a rage. “Alright, who did it?”

“Did what” we committee members enquired, now seriously well and truly topped up with the finest Earl Grey.

“Go upstairs and have a look”

So we did. There on the kitchen table when we got there was the remains of a sizeable chicken carcass. All meat stripped from the bone. Somebody had not only removed the chicken from it’s packaging but also stuffed it, put it in the oven, cooked it and two or three hours later returned to the scene of the crime and ate it!!

JJ had, of course, had the same amount of Earl Grey as we did, so he didn’t notice when all this was going on.

Who Was The Culprit?

“Who’s had the f****** chickennnn” he lamented for ages. To the extent that one of the committee members got quite peeved at the regular insinuations that it may have been him. This particular member (who also shall remain nameless), convinced JJ that he wasn’t the culprit because he was allergic to chicken. So that was Biffo…..oops…sorry, that slipped out!!….off the hook.

JJ obligingly backed off and a good thing as well because aforementioned, unmentionable committee member was not a shrinking violet (massive understatement!!). His nickname was in recognition of his size and add to that his martial arts prowess…..good move JJ!!

The End Of Chickennnnngate!!

As things calmed down by the end of the night, a few of the remaining committee members were feeling peckish so decided to go to one of the local Indian restaurants. “Chickengate” was now forgotten it seemed and all was fine again.

Until that was soon after everyone placed their order when JJ paused for a moment. Turning to the unnamed, earlier peeved committee member, JJ asked.

“Is that right, you’re allergic to chickennnn?”

Biffo replied (oops…..slipped out again!!) that he was. Quick as a flash JJ retorted, “so why have you just ordered Chickennnn Biryani?”

Busted!!!!

As I say though this is just one of so many stories, events and so very enjoyable moments in our “Morgies” inspired Eagle days. I could write all day and beyond of so many more.

What A Team

Yes, there were many good football teams who used the Golden Eagle pub as their base. And many of them were present on the night of our Golden Eagle reunion back in 2014 (a few of ‘the crowd’ above from that night). But I’m not talking about the footie teams, I’m talking about “Team Morgy”

The whole family were like a breath of fresh air when they arrived back in 1982. John (Senior), Mary (John’s wife) and three sons, John (Junior), Keith and David. Unfortunately I don’t have a full team photo of the Morgies, but back on the night of our reunion I managed to get three of them together for a few snaps (both Johns and Keith)……

Mary wasn’t there on the night (men only supposedly as it originally started out as a footie reunion) and David, John and Mary’s youngest, is currently living in Canada and was at the time of the reunion.

They Travelled Far And Wide

During their four years at the Golden Eagle pub, punters would travel far and wide. As Morgy had previously managed pubs in Ellesmere Port (The Woodlands) and Farndon (The Raven), punters from those pubs used to pop into the Eagle now and then.

And some local celebrities as well. They were to us footie lads anyway. Footballers from local teams Chester and Wrexham used to frequent. My younger brother, Simon Hunt (Wrexham), was a regular and he used to bring other players in now and then. Ian Arkwright and Jim Steele spring to mind. There were probably more.

A few Chester players came in as well. Two of them in fact signed forms for us to play on a Sunday. Well done Morgy, the Bass was potent in those days!! Obviously they never played for us…..they weren’t good enough!!

On the night of the reunion back in 2014, we had attendees from Newmarket, Cambridge and Finland. Great efforts by Paggo, Macca and Jose. Brilliant stuff!!

A little bit about the reunion in 2014.

Golden Eagle Pub Reunion 2014

Initially the idea was to get the footie lads together. And so the initial numbers quoted were in the region of 12 to 15. The ball (no pun intended) started rolling in November 2013. However, as time went by and I bumped into more and more ex-Eagle regulars it got to beyond just footie lads. The reunion night was specifically chosen for the first Saturday in January. The reason being, everyone a bit down after Christmas, pubs quiet everywhere, so why not a ‘pick me up’ in early January?

So from an initial 12 to 15, the numbers grew…and grew…and grew. To the extent of on the night itself there was probably 100+ there on the night. There would have been more, but as the initial idea was for a footie get together, the increase in numbers was confined to men only. No hard and fast rule, but as I only seemed to bump into the fellas and didn’t really have the time and the contacts to expand the get together to females as well, the numbers weren’t as large as they ultimately could have been.

Some of the ladies did turn up (as the photo of Morgy Snr shows) but they accompanied their spouses.

Another Reunion?

Now here’s an idea……..why not arrange another Golden Eagle pub reunion? I still have the Facebook fan page I set up for the first reunion. If it was to take off though there would need to be a female ex-Eagle regular volunteer to come forward to contact the ladies of the time.

Also, where would we have it? I know the obvious answer would be the Golden Eagle pub but in fairness, probably the only blight on the night (poetry in motion) was that the pub let us down a bit. As the numbers were growing I popped in to the Eagle to provide updates now and then. The 12 to 15 became about 40, then 70, then about 100(+).

By all accounts the perception was that because it was January and everywhere was supposed to be quiet there would only be “about 10 or 12 if that” turning up.

So, my reasonable requests were all dismissed. They were, to make sure the beer didn’t run out (the bitter ran out at about 7.30pm – we started at 5.30pm), there was enough bar staff (as ‘only 10 to 12’ would likely turn up, no extra bar staff were on). The final request was dismissed as well. And that was, for old times sake, could we have “Keep On Loving You” by REO Speedwagon on the jukebox. Again, one of those things that stick in your mind at the time.

If anyone does fancy the idea of another reunion then let me know. Maybe ‘like’ and ‘share’ this post if it’s a goer.

Wow, What A Long Post

Just noticed – this is a long post. A very long post. As far as pubs go, the Golden Eagle pub was up there with the best, if not actually the best in the 80’s. It still is a good pub. The beers are good, they still have a jukebox and there is footie on the box. Tick, tick and mega tick. I believe the food is excellent as well although I’ve not tried it myself. Apparently the Sunday lunches are mega.

Anyhow, I digress.

My thanks to all the regulars at the time who made every visit to the Golden Eagle pub such a pleasant experience. Huge thanks to all the great staff. Thanks to Billy May for entertaining us and a huge, special thanks to the special Morgy family. Those years between 1982 and 1986 will forever be imprinted in my memory and so many others as well I am sure.

I hope you’ve enjoyed my trip and ramble down Memory Lane. Another “Chester Pub” post to follow soon.

Chester Lifestyle

I hope you like my Chester Lifestyle website. I certainly enjoy writing it and most certainly enjoyed writing this post. If you would like more information about the website and Chester in general, have a look at this link HERE.

Things To Do In Chester

What is there to do in Chester? Plenty, that’s what!!! Not just visiting pubs either. Although, of course, you must include visiting some of the many pubs and restaurants we have in our city. Here’s a link for some ideas of things to do in Chester HERE.

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