A WORD FROM JERRY

"In 1996, I dreamed of starting my own pub. A place to call home away from home, a friendly place reminiscent of the English pubs I used to patronise in London. That dream materialised in the form of the Backyard. "It was always my dream to own a neighbourhood pub like the ones I used to go to in Sunderland and London. The pub was supposed to be for my retirement, but I sort of jumped the gun. One of the pubs I remember from those days was Frog & Firkin, a famous watering hole in London, and my regular -- Walmer Castle -- a small joint with a pool table where I first got hooked on pool. The opportunity to take over the Backyard came in 1996. Joan and I were already living in Taman Sri Hartamas and frequenting the pub and we decided to take it up as a new challenge for us. We slogged for six months to give it a new look and improve the food and music.

LIVE MUSIC

I love live music and we used to follow the circuit to listen to our favourite musicians in places like Underground, Street Connection, Concept and Treffpunkt. Most of these places had died by then and I wanted to revive interest in live entertainment. One of the first acts to perform here was the pairing of talented brothers Sam and Paul Ponnudorai on stage together -- which brought the house down. Our first solo act was the late Jairus Anthony who became a true friend. I am proud to say we still draw some of the best musicians in country to the pub, some of whom drop by just to jam with our regular acts.

SPORTS THEME

A couple years later we decided to turn Backyard into a full sports bar in keeping with the demand from regulars to have a place for them to congregate and watch live games. Thanks in part to Brian Martin of The Star, and other regulars, we've bedecked the walls and ceilings with sports memorabilia from various English Premier League teams.

We were one of the six pubs that hosted the Tiger On-The-Ball EPL Quiz with football pundits Serbegeth Singh and Zainal Abas fielding questions. We also hosted the ESPN announcement of the F.A. Premier League Asia Cup, the first and only football competition sanctioned by the F.A. outside England, during the Newcastle-Chelsea match shown live in Backyard. Newcastle, Chelsea, Birmingham and Malaysia took part in that one, as a warm up to the 2003-2004 season. Another highlight was appearing live on CNN during the World Cup semi-finals in 2002.

POOL

Pool has also become a central part of the Backyard and I enjoy playing myself. We have an annual pool tournament called the Gan Classic in November named after our regular Mr Gan who died four years ago. We started the BPL, or the Backyard Pool League last year and this year we are hosting a Merdeka Pool Competition.

FUNCTIONS

Over the years, we've had great fun hosting wedding receptions, anniversaries, corporate get-togethers, alumni gatherings, product launches, and many, many birthday parties. Every December we have an annual dinner for Christmas in which we invite regulars, relatives and friends over to have a good time and savour some great food . It keeps getting bigger every year. Last year we had about 300 people.

We have had a number of charity functions to raise money for homes for the underprivileged and various individuals. We did one for our resident singer and good friend Jairus to raise funds for his cancer treatment and had one for Hassan, my kitchen hand, for plastic surgery for his neuro fibromatosis. Amnesty International Malaysia hosted its International Human Rights Day here as well.

SPECIAL THING

The special thing about Backyard is that we try to make people feel at home the moment they step into the pub. We want first-timers to feel at ease and to know they've come to a fun place to relax and a.enjoy some good music, b.tuck into a great meal, c.play some pool, d.watch a live football match or do all four.

Many of our regulars say they come because the pub has become home away from home for them. There is none of the agro you may find in other pubs. All our staff go out of their way to make you feel comfortable. Our live music from Wednesdays to Saturdays with different and surprising acts each night continues to be the main draw. You will never find finer musicians elsewhere. If you look at the layout of our pub, we still have places for people to have a quiet dinner and conversation, or even cuddle under the stars just outside on the verandah with the music in the background.

SIMULTANEOUS GAMES

Sports fans can get their kick with the big screen we have on stage and the four 32-inch LCD TVs around the pub. We have two Astro decoders so you can watch simultaneously cast English Premier League matches in different areas and we also show live rugby and cricket games and F1 races.

PICK UP POTENTIAL

Backyard is often regarded as a pub for the older set -- although young at heart. I think we continue to attract younger pub-goers as well because they enjoy what's on offer. Of course there is the perennial reason why people go to pubs in the first place.

I am told, from reliable sources, although I have no experience in this myself, that Backyard is high on the pickup potential scales. You will have to try for yourself to find out. Any hanky panky in the restrooms is strictly prohibited, but elsewhere there are no holds barred!