Last night ventured down to Whats Cookin’s new home at The Birkbeck Tavern in Langthorne Road, between the cemetery and the old hospital – perfect place for a knees up. Ramblin Steve and Ally now run the pub as well as the music night – an Americana boozer in the Lea Delta, serving up Maldon Gold ale from Essex’s Mighty Oak Brewery.

A trip to the Birkbeck is like time-travel for me – back to the London I first experienced as an 18-year old fresh up from the provinces and decamped to a terrace in Forest Gate. The Birkbeck is still there in 1989. The spirit of Whats Cookin reminiscent of the music nights that inspired me (drunk) to write reviews for the City Poly student rag.