The History of Public Houses
This may surprise my regular visitors but I actually have research interests other than darts. (Yes. It’s true!)
You cannot research darts, or any other pub game or sport that involves the public house without an understanding of both the pub and pub culture. So over time I have become not only a Darts Historian but also a Pub Historian.
The History of Pub Games
When undertaking research into darts, interest in other pub games comes naturally. While my main focus is on darts the involvement and overlap of other pub games in that research is unavoidable. In the past, pub games have been so often the target of licensing justices and unsympathetic police forces as those authorities struggled to reduce levels of drunkenness across Britain and in part blamed pub games
The History of Pub Signs
Another subject of great interest to me is Pub Signs. Although I suppose this is a peripheral activity compared to my interest in the habit of folks throwing pointy metal objects at walls I do thoroughly enjoy my occasion sortie into pub signs and pub names. As a result every so often my research into signs has been published in the Newsletter of the Pub History Society (PHS)
Pub Book Reviews
As a member of the Pub History Society (PHS) I am always one the lookout for both old and new books about pub games, pubs and pub signs. I have undertaken a good number of reviews of new publicatons on these subjects of which the ones found here are examples
Dr Patrick Chaplin 