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Photos: then and now

Green Dragon pub, Sydney Street
Image reproduced with permission from Brighton History Centre
The Office pub, Sydney Street
Photo by Mike Snewin

Comments about this page

  • This place had some great young ‘alternative’ characters in the early nineties, and some great barmaids on a Saturday lunch time. Two gorgeous sisters.

    By N/A (01/01/1900)
  • Are the chamber pots still there? No chance! Mind you, you can get some cracking Thai food in there now.

    By The Prince (29/11/2004)
  • If you’re after chamber pots I believe that The Pond pub still has quite a few hanging from their ceiling. It’s just round the corner on Gloucester Road.

    By Roland (09/12/2004)
  • I used to work in the Dragon in the good ol’ bad ol’ days of the lovely Graeme and Dan. What a place!

    By Christina (16/01/2005)
  • Loved this pub, terrible toilets but a great place. Have not ventured back in as the Office as it just would not be the same.

    By Darren (27/06/2005)
  • I used to love the Green Dragon when I was a student in the early 90s. Remember the chorus of ‘F*** off punters!’ at closing time? Haven’t set foot in there since the revamp – couldn’t go back, wouldn’t be the same.

    By Breezy (18/11/2005)
  • What year is the old pub photo please?

    By Bridget (14/03/2006)
  • Used it when it was called the Green Dragon during the early 1960s – two bars from memory. Don’t agree that pubs should be allowed to change names. Should be a law against it. Us old un’s can’t give directions around the streets now.

    By Geoff Wells (03/09/2006)
  • I spent many an evening in here with all the metalheads, punks and crusties in the early 90s. My mate Broadie had it for a while. It was an amazing pub but with the worst toilets ever – a bloke got killed in them one night. Awful rebranding – shame on breweries!

    By Cam Vallance (03/06/2007)
  • During my years at the pub as a customer in the 1980s, it was owned by the avuncular and portly Ray Rickers and run by ‘Blue’. Ray went on to jointly own the Pond (I believe) and a pub in Dorset which I believe was less successful. He then went on to create Mrs Fitzherbert’s in New Road from the tiny theatre pub there originally. The 1980s were a good time for the Dragon (I seem to recall). Blue went on to run The Basketmakers Arms around the corner and then moved up the hill to the Prestonville.

    By Jules (07/08/2007)
  • Asked my soul mate to marry me here circa June 1990! Loved her then as I love her now!

    By Graeme White (15/04/2008)
  • Hi Christina. The saying was “cough punters”. It is always nice to have a clear throat at the end of the evening. I have a nice clear photo of the dragon sign taken from the flat if it would be useful.

    By Stuart (18/07/2009)
  • I agree with Geoff and Cam; I’ll never go in a pub called The Office. I used to go in The Green Dragon all the time in the 1970s and 1980s - nice backyard too. Does anyone know how far back The Green Dragon went before the rename?

    By Phil Collis (04/08/2009)
  • I worked there as a barman with Ray and his wife Lynn, in the late 70s. Sorry to leave the place, but went back there many a night for a beer.

    By John (30/08/2009)
  • Phil Collis: As I’m working on the Street Directory for Sydney Street I can tell you that the ‘Green Dragon’ as such appears first in the Directory as number 9, back in 1854. It had been there ever since. Too bad it got renamed, I would have loved to see it in reality.

    By Cindy Freitag (06/01/2010)
  • Parents used to run the place in the early nineties.

    By Tom Watts (22/05/2010)
  • In the late 70s/ early 80s it was a wonderful pub with a terrific atmosphere. Great memories – some a little blurred. Ray and Lynn made it a special time for us. They knew how to run a good pub.

    By Will (24/11/2011)
  • My wife and I were frequent drinkers at the Dragon when we lived in Gloucester Street from 1979 and well remember Ray and his gorgeous wife Lynn. I recall leaving late one Saturday night and a few minutes later heard a commotion, turned to look and saw Ray pick a guy up by his collar and throw him out through the door to land half way across Sydney Street. It later transpired Ray had caught this man chatting Lynn up – not a wise thing to do!

    By David Tiffin (08/02/2012)
  • This was my mum’s sister’s pub for years – Babs and Ray. My mum’s still around, Ivy, 90 and her sister Mavis – God bless them.

    By Rick Fowler (29/02/2012)
  • My uncle had this pub in the late 80s I think. Peter Brooks – would anyone remember him and his wife Margaret? Their son, Tony Brooks, also had a pub in the area.

    By Robbie Norman (30/05/2012)
  • The ‘Green Dragon’; what an excellent pub! I remember during the early to mid 70s, every Saturday, around 10:00, I’d visit my mate Dave, in ‘Harveys Railway Shop’, next door to the pub. We’d spend 10 minuites looking at his new stock, then straight into the pub for a liquid ‘lunch’. There we’d meet a great crowd of people, overseen by Ray & Lyn, of course. what a delightful couple they were. They threw great parties…….often fancy dress………..Ah.. such memories!! Great beer, great company…An era sadly missed!

    By Ivan Clough (08/04/2013)
  • My grand parents, George and Doris Drake ran the Green Dragon during the fifties and sixties. I used to spend my leave from the RN there. Great days! Oh! And all before all the potties got hung up.

    By Mike Gordon (18/12/2014)
  • My Great uncle used to play the piano in there during the 1950’s. Ernie Rickwood or “Ricky” as he was known. He was a coach driver “On the front” for a living. He was a real live wire, looked a bit like Terry Thomas and has the personality to match. I have never known anyone who could drink so much. Not great for a coach driver methinks.

    By Barry Plank (31/12/2016)
  • My grandparents George & Doris Drake ran the Green Dragon in the 50’s and 60’s and I spent a lot of time as a child there.  Incidentally I am Mike Gordon’s brother.  Many happy memories.

    By Paul Gordon (16/06/2017)
  • I have just discovered my great grand parents ran this pub – George and Doris Drake. 

    By Paula Gerard (02/07/2017)
  • My favourite pub late eighties to late nineties Chris Gabby Jim Graeme Lush Sue and Pete and the Sheriff. Sad to see a once lively pub now Boringly called the Office truly awful. 

    By Dave (19/07/2017)
  • Hi Paula Gerard, you must be a relative of mine but I don’t know who you are. Regards

    By Paul Gordon (25/08/2017)

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