1973: The LAST DAYS of PORTER | Scene Around Six | Archivist Picks | BBC Archive 

'Work is the curse of the drinking classes.' Brilliant!

The level of oratory and unspoken, nostalgic emotion at the end was beautiful.

“The cream is borne majestically above to form a clerical collar-that proves the goodness in its heart-and the true porter drinker would look upon such a glass with great reverence indeed.” This guy goes hard

Porter has made a comeback in recent years. Lots of craft brewers make it and stouts too. Thankfully things are better than 20 years when if you closed your eyes all pub beer tasted the same.

Hats-off to that "re-PORTER" 😂👊🏻

These were also, as I've just now discovered, numbered days for Larry McCoubrey himself. He left his programme Scene at Six in 1974 due to illness and, so says an article in the Irish Times, died shortly thereafter. It feels fitting to me, somehow, that his heartfelt eulogy for porter is also a testament to the genius of the man.

This sort of quality journalism is badly needed today.

The reporter savoring this pint, admiring the history and relishing the taste is top-notch. I want to try it the old way.

Ive never wanted a pint more, this is the greatesr advert ive ever seen and its not even an advert

Wonderful report. Almost genius in its pace and poetry. Incidentally, porter was called "porter" because it was once so popular with the porters on London Docks and Covent Garden Market.

Me when talking about porter: "It's a drink that I quite like" Reporter: speaks in literature

What a brilliant presenter: a poet...he absolutely delivered a master class in pace and vocabulary.

Lmao. He sipped that pint like he was playing Hamlet.

What a fabulous piece of reporting. I've watched this a few times now, I love the imagery in his description. I'd never heard of Larry McCoubrey before, so I had to look him up. Sadly he died of a brain haemorrhage the year after this was broadcast. He was only 38.

I read some where that the last barrel of Porter to leave Guiness was given a decent send off.A load of men in funeral attire and bowler hats drank it and burried the empty cask with all due reverance. Whilst visiting St James's Gate a few years back.I noticed that Guiness say that Porter is just another name for stout. This vid would surgest otherwise. When in Ireland I drink bottled ,shelf Guinness

I've never been able to stomach a full glass of beer in my life, but after watching this I mourn its loss like an old friend.

With no small irony, porter has seen something of a revival in England. It's not a mainstream pint, but rather a niche style with a decent following amongst beer drinkers.

That poured pint was perfection in a glass, absolutely stunning

Larry was a wonderful reporter and loved by all the folks here in Northern Ireland .

It's now 2024 I'm 51 born in 73 and porter is now more popular than ever

"Porter: the drink that launched _thousands_ of ships." Very good!

Drawing beer like this was probably the high point of human civilisation.

I wish i could go back in time to a pub and ask for this "pint of plain"

I'm a bit surprised as porter never really fell out of popularity here in Sweden. Carnegie Porter has been brewed in Sweden since 1836 and still is. It's Sweden's oldest still living trademark. Actually, David Carnegie took over an already vibrant business of porter and sugar manufacturing in Gothenburg, that had been making porter since 1817 when import restrictions on imported porter was put in place.

Porter is my absolute favorite type of beer. Doesn't get enough love, especially here in the United States. Cheers from around the Globe my friends!

incredible, powerful, movingly poetic.

Bloody hell I've never felt so emotional about the idea of a style of beer. While porter has made a resurgence and I am a fan of the modern style, I cannot help but feel like what I drink isn't that close to what those older generations were enjoying. Absolutely exquisite monologue.

What a gem of a clip. Eloquent storytelling of the sort we just don’t see anymore. Journalism at its best.

Reporter drinking and waxing poetically. Fantastic!!

For the home brewer, porter never went away! I turned out a few batches of porter, and pretty good it was too. Basically a well-malted beer, with less hops than stout, and less of the roasted barley, just enough to give it the dark colour and a hint of smoke but not pitch black like stout. It's actually a refreshing drink, on a hot day (and pretty good on cold days, too 🙂)

If Porter is a supposed acquired taste, then I was born with it.

Interestingly enough Porter actually was originally brewed in London , first mentioned in the early 1700s . It wasn’t actually brewed in Ireland until 1776 .

Ah that took me back. I remember one could order a pint of "double" or a pint of "single" which was the Porter from the wooden barrels behind the bar. The pubs had sawdust on the floor and where packed and the craic was mighty!!

When things go wrong and will not come right, Though you do the best you can, When life looks black as the hour of night - A pint of plain is your only man. When money’s tight and hard to get And your horse has also ran, When all you have is a heap of debt - A pint of plain is your only man. When health is bad and your heart feels strange, And your face is pale and wan, When doctors say you need a change, A pint of plain is your only man. When food is scarce and your larder bare And no rashers grease your pan, When hunger grows as your meals are rare - A pint of plain is your only man. In time of trouble and lousey strife, You have still got a darlint plan You still can turn to a brighter life - A pint of plain is your only man. The Workman’s Friend”, by Flann O’Brien

Excellent reporting. I worked at a brewery in the USA we used to make a porter that was based on general George Washington recipe about 200 years old. It was excellent and very easy to drink. Served by hand cask

Brings a tear to me eye.

I’m a Guinness man today but still rate the Murphy’s as even better. I would love to know what the porter tasted like. That’s the great thing with some of these beers that go back so many decades, they give you a historical taste of what the working classes used to thrive on. Very interesting

Porter remains a popular drink in craft breweries around the world. Most of my friends don’t like dark brews, but it’s a good drop.

Was poetic journalism just what was done back in the 70’s or is it because of the history that Ireland has for storytelling, that makes this clip so wonderful. Can we really imagine a television presenter now, speaking with such lyricism? Not a chance.

That was a masterpiece of journalism, really. Not to mention the beer, of course. This was broadcasted before I was even born and I am not even British nor Irish. But my god, I could feel the taste of that pint on my tongue. I only ever tried porter in a bottle and it was special, top quality. It's the one brewed in Riga, Latvia, so if you're ever there, look for one. It's worth it.

Porter - a lovely drink. A lot of the smaller breweries offer it these days. Very nice.

Little did they know that porter and dark beer would have a resurgence 30-40 years later.

I've never drank in my life, but I'd kill for a pint of that stuff right now.

A great piece of writing that conjures, winkles out and tickles the historical, factual and taste buds of the listener.

Nice video, I like the only sound is a clock ticking away - no muzak, phones to a TV blaring away in the background. A man can be left in peace with just his pint and his thoughts.

I remember moonies in abbey st Dublin the old barman would have around 7 pints on the go around 5pm and guys would rush in while waiting for the bus and the barman would just be like a machine topping up the pints until after 6 when the rush died down, he pulled some of the best tasting pints I tasted, we either called it porter or a pint of single x , great nostalgia

Porter is a great beer, especially in winter

wow. thats poetry. amazing stuff. I love this stuff from the 60s and 70s

I'm appreciating just how many ways the person behind the camera managed to film a small dark glass with interesting shots. Seems easy enough until you try doing something like that.

Poetic, powerful and mesmeric. Fabulous.

This was more enjoyable than I anticipated.

Glad to be able to have a great porter these days, and it did not go extinct as this video seems to be foreboding at the time. Samuel Smith’s Tadcaster and Founder’s Porter are both excellent and widely available. People not into craft beer often make fun of us beer nerds, but who doesn’t like variety? I don’t want to be stuck with the only choice being blandly made lagers that are made to appeal to the masses. I like being able to have a pale ale, an IPA, a German dopplebock, stouts, Belgian beers brewed by monks, etc. Variety is the spice of life!

What a fabulous tribute, I drink this stuff, never heard of it referred to as ‘plain’!

A beautiful tribute. Porter will always have a place with me.

Here in the East Midlands we have had a revival of porter with Titanic Brewery's Plum Porter. We also have an excellent oatmeal stout, Dark Drake from Dancing Duck Brewery in Derby its self.

Wonderful clip. A bit of history and a presenter who was thoroughly enjoying his pint. You can get porter in 2022 though it’s more a craft/real ale thing.

Oh man, just MARRY that pint, ffs!

Glorious video showcasing a historic broadcast here.

What an amazing presenter. A stirring, well-worded eulogy for a type of beer and I enjoyed every second of it. Ah, I wish modern TV was a third as classy and competent.

Bottle porter can be found in supermarkets. It's great stuff to use in any beef in beer recipes.

porter didn't originate in ireland as far as i'm aware, i thought it originated in london where it was originally called london porter. porter is still drunk in lots of pubs, including by me so it has by no means died out.

Neato. "The clerical collar" indeed. I do so love me some porter after work. Foothills People's Porter ftw. NC represent.

I was doing summer stock and drank Sierra Nevada Porter at the bar. I was the only one who ordered it and the bottles were always so cold. Great on a warm Berkshire night

What a head on that pour! I got a shiver, then thirsty…

The best beer commercial ever made

I'm loving the BBC archive.

Glad we have craft beer keeping various styles alive today. It really is easy to take it all for granted.

I would love to be able to get this little beauty. I was drinking Mild in pubs at 17 and loved every drop.

The alliteration in this video is downright musical

oh my god I've been searching for this full segment for so long!

Im sitting here, watching a 50 year old piece on the last Porters in Ireland, and im thinking, "man that looks good"... and, i don't drink anymore... Really interesting piece.

Not sure if it's the same style or taste as a pint of 'plain' but Guinness West Indies Porter is one of my favourites but even that is becoming harder to get hold of. If you can find it and haven't tried it give it a go!

You'll be happy to know that Porter's still sold in Denmark, and several brands of it, too. The Carlsberg, the the Limfjords, and the sublime Wibroe. All of them sold bottled only, though, ne'ertheless, it's still possible to build ships on'em. They shouldn't be enjoyed cold but they'll still warm you.

That was beautifully shot and made.

Never knew it fell out of popularity, and considering how much I like drinking it I'm glad it never disappeared altogether.

As a 41 year old Scottish lover of cask ales, heavy and what I thought was porter (the bottled stuff you get today), I’m sad to learn that this wonderful looking brewing and drinking tradition died out. Would love to know what a real porter tasted like. My staple is McEwans 80 shilling (Scottish ale) and even that isn’t what it used to be, having stopped being cask conditioned about 15 years ago. Even worse, over the years the brewery has been purchased by the likes of Heineken and Marstons and they announced in May 2022 that the Edinburgh brewery that makes it is to be closed. They say production of various beers brewed there will be moved to other breweries, but I haven’t found any specific confirmation about my beloved pint of heavy. Even if they continue making it now, I fear it will die out in years to come, conquered by the tsunami of IPA in recent years to appeal to the young non ale drinkers and the resultant swing in popular tastes. The new Stewart Brewing co do a very nice version of 80 shilling which I enjoy almost as much, but for different characteristics. Belhaven Best is bland swill, Caledonian Best is bland swill with a bit of fizz and John Smith’s can take a running jump. There is no real substitute for a draught pint of McEwans 80, so I shall enjoy it as much as possible while it’s still here!

Porter still lives very much so and very well I can say in the United States. Hundreds of craft beer makers have brought back the bespoke brewing production of the olden days. Cheers! 🍺

London Porter began as the preferred drink of the porters at the London markets (Smithfield, Billingsgate, Covent Garden, etc,.). London market pubs had special licences to allow them to be open in the early hours to let market workers drink after their night shifts. It later moved out to the regions, including Northern Ireland. The business about mixing flat beer with unsettled beer has got to be sharp practice and a way to shift dead beer.

that zoom in on the glass at the end is SO 70’s lmao

Sitting in the pub drinking a dark pint whilst watching a video about dark beer in the pub,noice.

Well it certainly came back with a vengeance. We have the American craft brewing industry to thank for that in large part. They revived the style beautifully.

Here in Canada there have been some very good attempts at rebuilding a modern, more "port"able style of port. A couple of them were actually very drinkable. Mill St. Organic Vanilla Porter is one of the more recent examples. Unfortunately, now discontinued. As are the other brands that I grew to enjoy. The trend seems to be going to the IPAs and fruity-tooty beers.

This is pure poetry.

I don’t drink. However, I love excellence - and this reporting is simply sublime

Fascinating!! I wonder what bar that is? Very interesting he says Derry too. I would’ve thought anything Auntie Beeb back then would’ve said the long name.

Guinness was inspired by the London Porter process.

What a wonderfully poetic piece of reporting.

Beautiful.

The late, great Larry. RIP

Fascinating, I wondered why in the 1968 film Charge Of The Light Brigade’ Lord Cardigan had his insane rant about porter beer in the Officers Mess.

had a porter on the weekend. lovely

Best bit of journalism - ever 👏

I’m a homebrewer and brew porter every winter. It’s lovely stuff, and I have enough to last me four or five months, until March / April time next year. Its got so much more body and flavour than gassy lager, which I stopped drinking several years ago.

When things go wrong and will not come right, Though you do the best you can, When life looks black as the hour of night - A pint of plain is your only man.

Well now I want one, and you're saying I can't get it anywhere!!? What do you mean this is from 1973!?? I need it!

Amazing!

My God that man could teach today's journalists how to make a report. Craft brewing in New Zealand is bringing back Porter (Not quite the art that is shown here though)

Porter in bottles is pretty easy to get nowadays-at least in London. On tap is more difficult. Just because Guinness doesn't brew it, doesn't mean it's gone! My favourite is Five Points Railway Porter-absolutely gorgeous.

That ticking clock at the end with the slow zoom shot on the glass. A deathly touch.

This was beautiful.