On 17 April 2015 a new micropub opened in Blackfen, The Broken Drum. One year on, and 16,000 pints later, the Broken Drum celebrates its first anniversary. The landlord has praised the sense of community from the regulars and hosted a weekend of celebrations.
Andy Wheeler told the Bexley Times, “We’ve offered 200 different ales, I don’t have one constant beer, I’m always changing, looking for local and national beers.”
Mr Wheeler explained the appeal for micropub regulars. He said: “It’s a breakaway from the noise of pubs or the restaurant-type pubs that just have a bar to drink at. We don’t sell lager, we don’t sell spirits and we don’t play loud music. People come in, enjoy a chat with each other and talk to people they don’t know. People can come in, chat and make friends, we have run three quiz nights and raised around £1,000 for the British Heart Foundation. We also donate to the Alzheimer’s Society, as the pub is named after a pub in Terry Pratchet’s Discworld book series. The author died from the disease last year.
Blackfen Past and Present 