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Picture source: Kevin Perkins

The Golden Fleece was situated at 37-41 Commercial Road. This pub has now been demolished.

Source: Darkstar

The Golden Fleece during the sixties and very early seventies was without doubt one of the toughest pubs in Portsmouth. Run by two brothers (can't remember their names) who were always prepared to leap over the Bar with Baseball bat in hand, to sort any trouble that arose. There was sawdust on the floor often damp with rough scrumpy, bloodstains on the ceiling, the odd melamine topped table and short stools dotted around (which often got thrown around) There was also a loud juke box and a painted steel pole supporting the ceiling in the main bar area. It was frequented by the famous 'Big Sylve', a lady of questionable character and tastes, she was as hard as nails, as the huge dried bloodstain on the ceiling proved, when she took on some characters that didn't know her reputation, she hit one of them with a bottle, which cut him severely, spurting the blood onto the ceiling. Sylve loved Royal Navy Sailors and they loved her, She would often cadge  pints of 'scrumps' off of foreign sailors and pass them down the bar to her RN mates. Sailors could often be seen 'choking' as most were drinking scrumpy and would float something in it to recognise their pint, and on occasion after a good few, the object would be swallowed with their scrumpy and lodge in their throat. Some were taken to hospital, where they were well used to it.

Kevin Perkins (July 2012)

It was run by my Nan and Grandad - their names were Ted and May Mitchell.  My whole family lived there, and it was where myself and my sister were born.  My father Tony Mitchell and his brother Ray both worked in the pub.   I was too young to remember much about it, but do know that it was a tough pub and my father and uncle had to be tough to deal with a lot of things.  I remember some of the layout of upstairs but one of the main things I remember is being happy as a kid with my sister and all my cousins.

Caroline Greenfield (October 2014)

I spent a couple of hours in the Golden Fleece in the late 1960's and I remember brass spittoons on the sawdust floor in front of the bar (the only pub I've ever seen them in!) Does anyone else?

Susan Arnold (January 2016)

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Name	Dates	Comments
Judith Lancaster	1965/1967
David Williams	1964	Best pub in Portsmouth. Used by the stokers from hms agincourt, loved the place, great atmosphere , a real pub, i would love to go back to the sixties for a pint of rough scrumpy.