Tony and his brother bought their first pub near Bude in 1975 followed by a second in ’78 and they played music as a duo for many years in both.  Tony bought a third pub in ’81 in Devon where he played in the bar with some other lads.

Eventually, he ended up playing in an-Exeter based function band covering the whole of the south west from Bristol to Bournemouth to Penzance… mainly Air force, Army and Navy gigs... even on board ship sometimes.

They played for a function at the Hotel / Pub that was for sale, in the village where he now lives, and he ended up buying and running it for 14 years until 2006 when he sold it and retired.

The Bullers Arms was one of the main venues for the Bude Jazz Festival along with the Parkhouse centre in Bude where Tony also ran the bar for many years where he met many of the Jazz bands and their members.  Guys like Roger Marks Armada Jazz Band, Savannah Jazz Band, Colin Kingswell Jazz Band, George Huxley, John Shillito, Spats Langham, Ken Colyer, Gambit Jazzmen (always up for a few beers).  He even saw them wheel George Melly on to the stage and prop him up for a gig.  Georgie Fame was good … those were great days!

Tony, who remarried his first wife in 2003 and has 2 sons by his second wife, is occasionally invited to sit in with some local muso’s.

 

CONTACT: CREW