I'VE walked past the Railway Arms a few times and never been tempted to go inside something which is out of character for me.

My reasoning was down to the fact the curtains are always drawn and you can't see inside, so I feared the repercusions of a stranger walking into the unknown.

How wrong I was.

From the inside, the drawn curtains give off a very cosy, homely feel. Even more homely was the landlord and his family (including young daughter) settling down to their evening meal together in the lounge.

There was music blaring away in the bar, where the locals were playing pool and generally having a merry old time.

But the volume didn't filter through to the lounge, and simply provided background music.

Other entertainment on offer is giant jenga and the obligatory fruit machine.

But who needs all that when there's a picture of Bushey and Oxhey Station's sign being whitewashed during the war?

A quick remark on it by myself and my friends led to a long conversation with a bloke sat at the bar who related back his memories of the era.

Don't get me wrong, the bloke was no Uncle Albert droning on about "during the war" his tales about what life was like and some lucky escapes he had from buzz bombs were genuinely interesting.

The only complaint I had about the evening was I had the car (which was in a much-needed car-park at the side of the pub) so couldn't hang around for the rest of the night.

Next time I visit, I won't be taking the car with me.

|HJ