The Swan, aka The Duck, is a small but deafening Garston boozer with screens placed in every possible corner, meaning when the footy is on, it can be seen every time you move your head, even with your eyes closed and nineteen feet of gauze wrapped round your face.
Surprisingly, when I visited on a Sunday afternoon, the place was heaving, with 'River Deep, Mountain High' belting out the speakers at jet engine volume. This gave the place a sense of terrifying jollity, a slight break from the ordinary Sunday pub atmosphere of silent, crippling depression.
Screens and fruit machines aside, the interior was of the good old-fashioned variety, with shelves up to the ceiling and a tiny window from the bar serving the lounge half. With their checked shorts and Primark flip-flops, the clientele simply cluttered the place up. This is a pub that is more suited to a customer base of felt caps, gnarled canes and Hemingway beards. read more