Home > London > SW14 > Jolly Milkman Jolly Milkman
	Picture source: Andrew Taft
The Jolly Milkman was situated on Lower Mortlake Road. This Watneys pub was closed in the early 2000s and is now used as a restaurant. This was the only pub in Great Britain to bear this name.
Source: Chris Forester
The Jolly Milkman pub changed its name to The Pickled Newt sometime in the mid 1990’s (around 1995), possibly to attract a new younger age group but probably due to new management. It reverted back to the Jolly Milkman only a few years after this (probably changing hands again) in about 1999 or 2000, before closing in the early 2000’s (2003?). The pub didn’t have a mixed clientele, but was largely working class, and would have been used by people employed at the Watneys brewery opposite. It would have competed with The Jolly Gardener (which was, and still is directly opposite); and also other pubs in the area such as Charlie Butler, and The Railway (both of which have also closed). The pub may have been empty for a year or so before becoming ‘The Tapestry’ restaurant (2004?)- which it still is today. The name ‘The Tapestry’ refers to the ‘Mortlake Tapestries’ that Mortlake was famous for in medieval times - long before Watneys built their brewery nearby in 1869.
Rob Tyman (November 2013)
All my uncles were coopers at Mortlake brewery from the 1940’s through to the 1960’s we lived at No 6 Lower Richmond Road a tied cottage then which later was demolished. Even though they got 8 pints of beer a day from the brewery for doing their work which was very hot because of the fires lit inside the barrels during the process they still drank at this pub in the evenings. This was their local. My earliest memory of it was standing outside aged 6 having just won a goldfish at the fair. My jam jar broke and the fish fell to the ground, my uncle promptly picked it up and put it into his pint. As it was strong ale I doubt it survived but he did the best he could. I am 75 now so that must have been in 1949. These pubs always exist in the summer heat in my memory and the smell of spilt beer and sounds of good cheer are lovely. We lived with the smell of hops all my young life.
Chris Pawley (April 2018)
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