News, nuggets and longreads 5 September 2026: Grand Vitesse

Every Saturday we round up the best writing about beer from the past week. This time, we’ve got lists, pub crawls and ‘GDPI’. First, some news. Or, rather, some ‘news’: Prime Minister Andy Burnham has told Time Out his three favourite London pubs. This is interesting for a few reasons. First, because it’s part of a wider strategy to engage the public through social media and lightweight comms, meeting Nigel Farage on his own turf and demonstrating that he’s less stiff and aloof than Keir Starmer. Secondly, it positions Mr Burnham as a Londoner “I don’t think there’s a pub in London I’ve not been in”) when he’s spent the past decade or so building an association with Manchester. And, thirdly, it’s quite a risky move, as demonstrated by the fury and ridicule the article prompted online. Though obviously not the three pubs we’d choose, and perhaps showing signs of having been workshopped by advisers and comms people, it strikes us as… fine? And quite relatable. Lots of people are fond of…