Heroes of the Hour – Free Christmas Lunch With Wine For All Lonely Singles At The Alexandra Wimbledon, 25th December 2022
Matthew Steeples
As the cost of living crisis deepens, the kindness of The Alexandra Wimbledon is to be saluted; they are offering free Christmas lunches with wine on 25th December for all lonely single people
Proof that kindness and generosity of spirit still does exist comes with news that a south-west London pub, Young’s & Co. Brewery PLC owned The Alexandra Wimbledon, is offering on-the-house Christmas lunches including wine for anyone who is by themselves on Christmas Day this year.
Rather like Bill and Cath Mullarkey – a pair of chefs turned EuroMillions winners who featured in The Steeple Times in January last year after they provided free Caribbean food to the homeless and pensioners – the staff and management of this Victorian boozer have been providing this service since 2014, but in 2022 when the cost of living crisis has well and truly hit, it will no doubt be especially welcomed.
Open to not only locals of the Wimbledon, SW19 area but to anyone who can get themselves to this public house on 25th December between 12 noon and 3pm, of the initiative Square Meal shared: “The only rule is you have be on your own.”
Single diners will be seated on tables of four, six or eight people and given a three-course roast Christmas dinner with wine or beer and will also thereby get the opportunity to make friends with others in a similar boat to themselves.
We say: Cheers to that and well done to The Alexandra; one Wimbledon ‘regular’ who sadly won’t be free to make it though is Boris Becker. Fresh out of the clink, this tennis legend skedaddled out of Biggin Hill on a chum’s ‘PJ’ just days ago and will unlikely be back anytime before 2032 given he’s banned from entry to the UK until then.
The Alexandra is situated at 33 Wimbledon Hill Road, London, SW19 7NE. Telephone: +44 (0) 20 8947 7691.
Editor’s Note – Unlike as is the case in many publications, this article was NOT sponsored or supported by a third-party.
This weekend on Instagram, the kind-hearted team at this south-west London public house announced that the offer would run from 12 noon until 3pm and is “completely free.” They did ask for support from those with the ability and for food contributions and volunteers also. “Every bit counts and we appreciate it all so much,” they added alongside a photograph of volunteers from when they did this in a previous year.The “free Christmas Day dinner and booze thing” was thought up to support “anyone who’s otherwise on their own this year.” Of it, the pub’s Twitter account recently shared: “Don’t be on your own on Christmas Day, come to us instead. We’ll give you free dinner and vino. I 100% promise you there’s no catch. Just come.” According to ‘Square Meal’: “So, how does it work? Guests who take up The Alex’s offer will be seated on tables of four, six or eight people where they’ll be served a three-course Christmas dinner along with wine. As much as it’s about the festive feast, the idea behind the tradition is to ensure no one has to spend Christmas alone. Plus, it’s a great opportunity to meet new people!”The fact that this pub also has its own book exchange provides definite proof that it is very much run with community spirit and kindness in mind. In a winter where cold weather has most definitely come to accompany empty pockets due to the cost of living crisis, this kind of initiative is something that other establishments should most definitely also adopt.
Elsewhere in East Kilbride, Lanarkshire, Scotland, a pub named The Kittoch is also offering a free nosh-up for “lonely local residents who would otherwise be spending the festivities on their own.” According to ‘Heart.co.uk,’ the pub will provide a table for up to ten people who will each receive a “complimentary drink on arrival and a three-course Christmas dinner with all the trimmings.” Who knows what Santa will bring as extras for the guests there – in May 2017, “a shocked motorist found a bag containing £30,000 worth of cocaine in the footwell of his [unlocked] car after he left it parked behind a pub overnight. He handed in the stash to police, who are trying to establish who dumped the drugs in the Citroën C1.”
