Three Blackbirds

This is an alright place to stop for a drink and a bite to eat on a long drive back to London down the M1. It’s a few minutes drive from Junction 9 and set in a fairly pretty little village. Warning, it does not serve lunch after 3pm, and stops serving dinner at 10pm.
I have a certain fondness for this village pub — I used to work here about ten years ago and enjoyed it immensely. As with any British country pub it has its own group of regulars, including the old Scottish drunk who turns up at opening time (11am). I was here for ⁹⁄₁₁ and had my fair share of interesting and poorly informed debates about world politics and small-​town-​hatred-​of-​America. (I was always on the more liberal side of the conversation…) You could easily strike up a conversation with a local and find yourself whiling away an afternoon.
The pub itself is mediocre in terms of décor, I don’t think it has been redecorated for years. But there is an open fire, an old billiard table, darts, and plenty of seating. The atmosphere is friendly and jovial, and it gets pretty busy on the weekends since it is currently the only open pub in the village (The Spotted Dog, a better pub in my opinion, was burnt down last year).