I see in a BBC item on Admiral buying some Greene King pubs: 'Suffolk-based Greene King, most famous for its Abbots Ale and Old Speckled Hen beers...'
Change Abbots for Ruddles and the story is complete.
BTW, is that story about MG cars and Hen an urban myth?
E.
Morlands claimed the beer was named after the old MG factory runabout when they introduced it. That doesn't mean the story is true of course, but they must have got the name from somewhere. Next time I run into an ex MG worker I'll ask them.
Paul
In the Times today:
"GK is selling 155 non-core pubs to Admiral Taverns. Mostly freeholds or long leaseholds." They say it's connected with the upcoming smoking ban.
Apparently some years ago MG produced a car in (I think) British Racing Green covered in golden speckles. When it was driven around the streets of Abingdon the locals would exclaim, 'There goes the old speckled 'un'. The last word became corrupted to 'hen', and Morland used the name for their beer.
When Old Speckled Hen was launched on draught we in West Berkshire CAMRA had a very good relationship with Morland and some of use were invited to the launch. One of the party wrote a piece for our branch newsletter incorporating this story; if I can find it after all these years I'll confirm the above details.
Roy.
My version of the story has it that the car was an old Morris which was used as a runabout in the Abingdon factory itself. Over the years it became splattered with paint and, as you say, was known as the old speckled 'un. If your version came straight from the brewery it's more likely to be the correct one though, and the name may refer to an actual MG production model.
Next time I'm in Oxford library with time on my hands I'll have a look at the old Oxford Mail microfilms and see what Morlands were saying at the time of the launch.
Paul
DrinksForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.