Reelin' in the years: the 80s

In a decade that celebrated Harry Enfield’s 1988 hit “Loadsamoney”, it’s not surprising that Stella Artois’ strapline — “reassuringly expensive” — was also ubiquitous. Its aspirational message featured on billboards, newspaper colour supplement spreads and in the brand’s art-house style TV commercials. 

Large brewers chased rising disposable incomes by launching stronger, pricier lager brands that had more authenticity, using European noble hops and longer conditioning times. Brewed under licence in the UK by Whitbread, Stella came to be seen as a premium brand with the help of a hefty advertising budget, a reputation that has not endured. Genuine European beer was increasingly available in pubs, especially the brown imported bottles of Holsten Pils. 

Brewers still owned virtually all UK pubs and sank profits into upgrading their tied estates. Internal walls were routinely knocked-through to create larger, open drinking spaces where customers might be more easily spotted drinking their premium brands.

A typical jukebox anthem to be heard echoing through these open drinking spaces was Cyndi Lauper’s hedonistic earworm, ‘Girls Just Want to Have Fun’, reflecting how pubs increasingly marketed themselves as good-time venues for women drinkers. 

In the early 1980s, a now-iconic pub in Parsons Green, the White Horse, acquired a nickname from its local well-heeled, female clientele that still persists — the Sloaney Pony. Throughout the decade the pub also led the rise of 'destination pubs' that widened beer horizons. Supervising the cellar, Mark Dorber consistently served a wide range of superbly conditioned cask ales, many from small breweries, and an extensive range of bottled Belgian classics. The annual old ale festival drew an international clientele, including many beer enthusiasts from the US.

Bar snacks of the decade reflected this additional choice. Smiths launched their pillow-shaped, lemon and seafood-flavoured Scampi fries at the start of the decade — a more sophisticated complement to those premium lagers than basic crisps and nuts!