"I didn't go to Uni", says James Shreeve with a hint of regret in his voice. He has been able to work his way to the top of his profession but he is still not satisfied. "I finished school and I needed to make money. I'd spent my teenage years washing up in pub kitchens so I just sort of fell into working in pubs and restaurants." He hasn't looked back, until now.
Shreeve grew up near Colchester in Essex. He got a job in the kitchen of a pub when he was 16. Cleaning up after people wasn't exactly his ideal career, "but the banter was great and the customer's made it fun, so I got on with it no complaints" he says as he finshes pulling a pint of Guinness.
This December will see Shreeve's fourth anniversary as manager of The Case is Altered. "I love this pub. You couldn't ask for a better pub to work in. We've got a great bunch of staff and some really great customers." Yet behind his cheeky smile it is clear James wants more. The Case is Altered comes under the chain of The McManus Pub Company, or as James casually calls it "the boss". What has made Shreeve's career rise so quickly is that he's not happy until he can call himself "the boss". "I would like to own my own place. Look, I've made enough money for other people, I just think it's about time I made some for myself."
Shreeve moved to Ruislip, North-West London, when he got offered the job as manager of the small traditional English pub. It's described as the heart of the community. The list of locals who regularly drink at The Case is longer than the list of fine wines. "There are not many pubs in the area for locals to go to. It's all about young people getting a cheap drink before they go out, there's no social contact between the customer and the landlord anymore."
A few pubs in the area have been shut down for various reasons, including drunken teenage brawls. Pubs that were once proud to be called "the local". It is the difference between these types of pub and The Case which sets it apart. For James, the best thing about his pub is the social aspect, "it sort of keeps up the community spirit."
He looks forward to the winter season when more of the locals come in on their own for a pint. The real reason he got into pub work in the first place, he says, was because he liked chatting to people.
Yet Shreeve doesn't come across as a party guy with loads of friends. He is quiet and softly spoken. His arms, when they arn't pulling pints, are crossed or tightly tucked into his jean pockets. He talks of how he loves to chat but he's not big on loud music. When two young children run through the pub screaming and giggling, James tells them off. I expect he is joking and laugh. The look he directs at the parents suggests otherwise. He mutters under his breath, "what is this, a creche?"
The young bar staff Joe and Chris tell of how, when the football is on, he turns the volume up slightly on the TV. Otherwise it will stay turned off or occaisonally, when
X Factor is on, James will let them watch it on mute. They don't complain though, they love working at the pub. "You don't mind doing what James asks because he doesn't force you to do anything," Chris, 19, explains. "He's just one of those people you have respect for because he's so relaxed and lets you have a laugh." Joe recently turned 20 and James let him use the barn area of the pub as a private room for him and some mates. In the boys' opinion, James is best described as "easy going".
Shreeve lives above the pub in a small flat but the pub is where he spends most of his time. He describes it as his living room. "I don't even use my kitchen much anymore. In the morning I come down here for a coffee before we open." When locals come into the pub, he feels as though he's got his mates round for a drink.
One regular customer who would call himself James' mate is Bob Jones. "You want a quiet pint and a bit of a chat, James is your man...if you want to have fun you can bugger of somewhere else!" Bob visits the pub almost every night of the week. "I wouldn't come here if I didn't like the place. I don't think I'd like to go anywhere else, it's here or at home and I'd rather not spend an evening with the missus if I can help it." Bob's proud expression while he utters this sentence is marred only by the fact that he later speaks up about how "the missus" would rather have him out the house too, if he's honest.
Shreeve feels that his customers, like Bob, are what make the pub what it is. "Men will come in for a pint 4, 5, 6 days a week sometimes..." he looks over his shoulder and back at me with a smile. "I see more of these guys than their wives do."
I've recently discovered that you can't be happy for too long before something bad happens.
