For a while I was a member of the Athenaeum Club in London's Pall Mall. It is very posh.

There were, however, a number of drawbacks. The food was terrible, women were not allowed into the club except after 6 p.m. The last straw was to discover that 'members may not take off their jackets in the sitting room' - even when the temperature exceeds 30 Centigrade. I resigned.

A few years later I was invited to join the Chelsea Arts Club which is about as different as it can be. It is not posh.

The food is pretty good. Jackets are not compulsory.Women are welcome. Cats are also welcome.

There is a decent snooker table.

And a gorgeous garden,

One of the joys of membership of the club is receiving the monthly chairman's letter. Today's has a nice literary story:

There has, of course, also been a strong literary tradition at the Club with diverse writer and poet members such as A.S. Byatt, Roger McGough, right through to Laurie Lee, for whom we always kept a special supply of Ruddles County behind the bar! The Club has a bust of Laurie Lee sculpted by Lyn Bamber. I will never forget the story that one day Laurie was sitting for the sculpture when he asked  “can you do something about my pendulous lower lip?” to which Lyn reportedly replied “I’m a sculptor darling, not a f***ing plastic surgeon”!

I can't find a picture of the sculpture in question but here is a picture of Laurie Lee in the gorgeous garden.

And here is the marvellous Erich Mendelsohn designed house where Paul Hamlyn used to live and which is immediately opposite the club.

PS from Grumpy old pedant. I saw a sign at Heathrow Terminal 1 yesterday beautifully typeset and printed under the BAA banner:

Everything you purchase now including liquids are allowed on board.

Nobody on the BAA staff could care less.