A year ago I found out that Channel Swimmers are allowed to sign their names on the ceiling of a grand old pub in Dover called the White Horse.
A year ago I sank a very nice pint and took in all the names around me. It was then that I thought how cool it would be if I was allowed to sign my name up there too, amongst the lates and the greats.
So, following my successful channel swim on Saturday 24th September, I was looking forward to finding a space on the ceiling for my name!
On Monday 26th Sept 2011 saw me and (Uncle) Chris Keegan nipping to the White Horse to place the order I had dreamed of:
” Hello there! I’d like two pints of beer and a big marker pen please!!”
The bar lady chatted whilst she pulled the pints and double-checked that I was in fact a legitimate Channel Swimmer. Once satisfied, she handed the pen over with a big grin. Despite my arms being sore as hell, I certainly wasn’t going to let that stop me reach up and write my name on the ceiling!! I found a spot to write on next to the current female world record holder Becky Lewis!
Not that I make a habit of graffiti, but that was a special moment…….
The video says it all………..
Never did a pint taste as good to a man with a very sore mouth. What a lovely place to get rid of the taste of the channel water!
And on that note, Chris and I left Dover, driving our separate ways back home.
I grinned as wide as an over-excited tree frog all the way home.


