The Pub, Valletta

I very reluctantly put this pub down as a recommendation for a “night” time spot, as it generally closes between 16:00-18:00 in the summertime, depending on how busy it is. In the wintertime they apparently stay open a little bit longer.

Nevertheless, for an old film buff like myself this was a must see. This small English style pub was the place where Oliver Reed died while close to finish filming “The Gladiator” after downing one too many bottles of rum.

You can sit on the seat he was on when he collapsed on May 2, 1999. The ambulance arrived too late to resuscitate him as they were also engaged in attending to a car crash that occurred simultaneously.

It’s quite macabre to see how much The Pub has now established itself as an Oliver Reed shrine. There are scenes from his films on the walls as well as newspaper articles about his final hours and, yes, you can even buy a T-Shirt there showing a laughing Reed waving into the camera just shortly before he died.