A perfect pint and something out of the ordinary

Paddy McGuinness is launching a search for a pub that is Only Ordinary By Name and he needs your nominations now! That’s pretty extraordinary, but what’s the strangest thing Paddy himself has ever seen in a pub?

“I once saw a bloke ride into a pub on a horse,” he says. “Granted it wasn’t a very big horse but nonetheless it was a horse.”

Paddy, 43, has a packed schedule, what with helping his wife Christine look after twins Leo and Penelope, and baby daughter Felicity, as well as filming hit shows Take Me Out and The Keith and Paddy Picture Show with pal Keith Lemon.

And he insists that there is no better place to relax on a rare night out than at the great British pub.

“A good pub for me is all about a friendly atmosphere.” Paddy says.

“It’s all about that camaraderie with your mates, a place to relax, socialise and have fun. No tools allowed.”

He says that from fashionable New York bars to German bierkellers, no country has better pubs than Britain, adding: “I’ve been in some lovely pubs around the world but none of them encapsulate the feeling you get in a good old British boozer.”

And despite the rise in gastropubs serving posh nosh and trendy nibbles like charcuterie boards, Paddy goes back to basics when it comes to bar food. He says: “I’m peanuts and crisps all the way. Although I did used to like those crab sticks what the fishmongers used to come in and sell.” Your local may not have ghosts, regulars on horseback, or one of Britain’s favourite TV comics propping up the bar, but it can still have something that makes it stand out from the crowd. That might be the landlord, the regulars, the building itself or something you don’t see at first glance.

So whether your local is called the Dog and Duck, the White Hart, the Royal Oak or the Red Lion, tell us what makes it Only Ordinary By Name.

You could win £200 just by nominating, and you’ll be able to read about shortlisted pubs in your area, before voting for your winner.

Regional winners selected by your votes will receive £300 and be entered into the national final for the chance to win £5,000.

The judges will then choose the overall national winner, where Paddy will drop in for a pint of John Smith’s to celebrate and deliver the grand prize.

Nominations close on July 2, so get nominating – cheers, and good luck.

ghost in one. She used to pull pints for a living and he says: “She worked in one of the oldest pubs in the UK. It’s called the Man and Scythe in Bolton. She was in the local paper for spotting a ghost in there.” RELAX

PADDY McGUINNESS ON HIS IDEA OF A PERFECT PUB