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Picture source: Christoph John

The Litten Tree was opened originally as part of the Station Hotel and was the closest hostelry to the main rail station. In the above photo the hotel and the bar are behind a building marked Morgan, Baxter and Clark. In the 1970s and 1980s it was called the Whistle Stop and had two floors, although at this point it was no longer a hotel. In the early 1990s it was renamed as Buffers and became a key venue in Sutton's emerging nightclub scene. The town centre was thriving with pubs and clubs at this time, almost all now defunct, and Buffers had a dance floor with guest DJ's upstairs and a standard pub downstairs, which relayed the same music played in the club. It was a fun, slightly disreputable place with a predominantly young crowd up to hi jinx. At this time Kiss FM listeners declared it London's number one venue to successfully chat up a girl, which contributed to the town's student nick-name of 'Slutton'. Another name change turned the pub into the Litten Tree but the venue, like the area, embarked on a gradual decline. It closed in 2005 but reopened as part of the Revolution chain which morphed into Rift and Co in 2014.

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