Review

The Oxford Arms is looking to earn the reputation as the place to watch the football in Camden. Not content with regular TV's it's upped the technological quality by installing a couple of plasma screens, so the display remains crystal clear even as the vision of the viewer deteriorates with the amount of alcohol consumed. Slightly over the top perhaps, but they're put to good use showing not only the games involving English teams but also Spanish and Italian football, for those who know their Tote from their totty. When there's more than one televised match on, the various screens show different games, making this an excellent venue on Champions League nights. But, before The Oxford Arms earns the reputation that is so evidently sought, someone is going to have to learn to turn the jukebox off and turn the sound on. And get rid of the old Budweiser poster advertising World Cup 2002; allow us to forget Ronaldinho, his attempted cross and that subsequent dry leaf bollocks.

Since this is Camden, things don't end there. Catering for all tastes and encouraging the seemingly incompatible to mix, the pub that wants to be a sports bar has a theatre upstairs. Called The Etcetera Theatre, it features young up and coming actors performing plays by new writers as well as the classics. Tickets range from £5 - £12 and there are often two shows a night. So after watching the overpaid players in the Theatre of Dreams you can go and watch an entirely different kind of player in an entirely different theatre. But one has to wonder how many times the football fan has turned up at the Oxford Arms to find the English weather has caused a cancellation and thought a bit of Shakespeare sounded like an adequately entertaining alternative.

For those drinkers not interested in players of any kind the Oxford Arms is still a fairly agreeable location for a session, offering a decent range of beverages and a relatively inexpensive, if somewhat predictable menu. Historic pictures of Camden line the walls for those with a taste for local history and for those with a taste for the here and now the large windows on two sides of the pub allow for a bit of people watching. For the sun loving drinker there is an outdoor area (to call it a beer garden would be inaccurate due to an absence of garden, grass or in fact anything other than concrete). Monday night is quiz night and the winnings come not in the form of more beer, but cold hard cash.

Review by AJS