This comedy pub crawl comes with FIVE free drinks

If you like alcohol-fuelled jokes, a bit of boozy knowledge and a few free drinks, show creator Ben McFarland tells Jamie Walker why their Pub Crawl show is a must see.

The Thinking Drinkers

Komedia, Brighton, Thursday, January 24

Hi Ben, for anyone who hasn’t heard of you how would you describe yourselves as a pair?

I can’t believe that there is anyone that hasn’t heard of us. What’s that? Oh. OK.

We are the Thinking Drinkers (Ben and Tom Sandham), two drinks experts, award-winning writers, journalists and “alco-demics” who, several years ago, decided to transfer everything they know about discerning drink and drinking from the page to the stage and launch a comedy show and theatrical tasting in which every audience member receives five free drinks.

Yes, that’s right folks – five free drinks. You’re very welcome.

You both have a huge background in alcohol, what is it about beers, cocktails and liqueurs that you enjoy so much?

When treated with respect and enjoyed in moderation, drink is one of the true genuine pleasures in life and we shouldn’t demonise it like we do.

Alcohol has affected pretty much every aspect of civilisation since the beginning of time, the reason monkeys first came down from the trees was because they were attracted to fruit fermenting on the forest floor, and alcohol has oiled the wheels of evolution ever since.

The history of drink is absolutely fascinating and the more you learn about it, the more you realise that it is an integral part of a civilised culture. It also tastes nice.

What’s your favourite tipple?

Some would say that is like asking me to name the favourite of my two children – but that’s easy.

After this morning’s antics getting ready for school, I can safely say it’s the youngest one.

Choosing a favourite tipple is much harder.

Our favourite drinks very much depend on the occasion – for example, while we both enjoy a classic gin martini made with Four Pillars Rare Dry Gin, we wouldn’t stir one up after a game of 5-a-side.

Four Pillars is one of the five drinks we feature in our show – and it is very high up on our list of favourite tipples.

If you come to our show, you too can enjoy Lagunitas 12th of Never Pale Ale, a quality craft beer from California; Diplomatico Reserva Exclusiva rum from Venuzuela; a Dutch vodka with actual character and flavour called Ketel One; and Jameson Irish Whiskey – a spirit with a rich history.

Having both written about drinks for so long what made you want to turn your ideas into a show?

Off the back of our writing and books, we began doing beer and spirits tastings at food and drinks festivals up and down the country but quickly realised that, in general, the way drink was being presented was boring, predictable and pretentious.

So we decided to muck about a bit, tell a few jokes and, instead of telling people what they should be tasting (which is impossible as we don’t have their palates) we tried to engage audiences in the people, the places and the past that shape the drink in their hands – as that’s what is often the most interesting.

We then decided to turn these tastings into a show and, with the help of a wonderful director called Malachi Bogdanov, we took it to the Edinburgh Festival in 2011 and we’ve returned every year with a new show – before touring it around the country.

It’s great fun.

Was it a natural thing to infuse comedy into the mix?

Yes, drink is supposed to be fun.

Laughing and enjoying a beer is a much-needed break from the daily grind.

Also, comedy is a great way of getting information across and it makes the experience so much more memorable.

People have a lot of fun at our shows – they laugh a lot, they learn a lot and they get five free drinks.

Did we mention the five free drinks?

So how would you describe your Pub Crawl?

Our show is a pub crawl through time, a bar hop through history in which we celebrate drinking establishments all over the world from the oldest building in the world (a pub) and the Ancient Greek symposiums to the gin palaces of London, the whiskey-soaked nurseries of freedom that shaped Ireland, South American beach bars and Wild West saloons.

With pubs closing at an alarming rate, our show is a selfless two-man mission to breathe life back into the beleaguered British boozer.

We need to protect them, they are the lifeblood of our communities, the heartbeats of our neighbourhoods and upstanding antidotes to loneliness. We need to keep our pubs alive because once they are gone, they are gone forever.

We’ve actually set up a petition to save the pubs on our website – www.thinkingdrinkers.com – please go and sign it. Please.

What can the audience expect from this show?

Something truly unique – more than just a man/woman and a mic telling jokes.

It’s educational, amusing, silly and surreal, there’s dancing and singing, there’s did-you-knows, there are costumes, near-nakedness, wrestling moves and cricket balls.

A tortoise and a priest. Some back massagers and leather masks. And body oil.

You’ll laugh even if you don’t want to, you’ll learn stuff and you’ll have a great time.

And you get five free drinks. Did we mention the five free drinks?

What about people who don’t drink, will they still enjoy the show?

Yes, they will. We’re not just saying that.

We’ve had pregnant people (mainly women), designated drivers, teetotallers and abstainers come to our show and say they really enjoyed it. If it was solely about the drink, it wouldn’t work.

You kick off the 2019 pub crawl in Brighton, is that a place you’ve been out drinking before?

Yes. A lot. I lived in Brighton and Hove for about ten years on and off (and actually worked as a journalist for The Argus).

What do you make of the pub scene in the city?

I honestly think the pubs in Brighton are the best in the country.

Having moved back to the Big Smoke, I miss the sea a lot but nowhere near as much as the boozers of Brighton.

I worked in the Lion & Lobster many years ago but also love the Great Eastern (amazing whiskey selection) and the St-James Tavern (wonderful rum range).

The Basketmakers is a lovely little local in North Laine, the Evening Star was ahead of its time in terms of craft beer and, of course, you’ve got The Cricketers where Graham Greene once drank.

There are so many more we could mention.

So why is this the show to see?

Well, for a start, It’s in January and January is the worst month of the year.

Wetter than an otter’s pocket, darker than a gravedigger’s soul, it starts with a hangover and ends with a tax return. 31 days of unadulterated meh.

So, why not kick it up the backside, clamber gently down from the wagon in the most discerning fashion, and kickback with some culture, some comedy and a couple of discerning drinks.