Drink with beardy old men

The Great British Beer Festival, organised by the Campaign for Real Ale, has been running since the late 1970s, offering beardy real ale fans their dream combination of around 450 different beers alongside pub games, live music, pies, pasties and all kinds of pub snacks.


It's not just for sandal-wearing middle aged men with an interest in steam trains, however, and when your author popped by for a couple of hours yesterday the clientèle was a rich and varied tapestry of beer fans, some of whom were even female. However, it should be said that the weather was much better outside than in the dull shed-like Earls Court Exhibition Centre, and this is probably not the place for teetotallers.

Even so, it is a fairly entertaining destination for beer-drinkers in poor weather, and there are certainly a lot of beers on offer (though more should be from Gloucestershire). Entry is £10 on the door and tomorrow is wackily themed as 'hat day'.

The Great British Beer Festival runs until Saturday at Earls Court Exhibition Centre. For more information visit the website at http://gbbf.camra.org.uk