The Graduate, Chesterton Road

• Bass acquired the pub in 1999 and converted it to a tacky "It's A Scream" student theme bar and venue, opening at the start of October 2000.
• No real ales.
• As the Allied Domecq "Fresher & Firkin" (1995-2000) it had a patchy time.
  • As a typical post-David-Bruce Firkin, it belonged to the blackboard school of corporate decor, for instance thinking it's cute to have these slogans chalked above the bottled beer chiller cabinets:
    • Colder than a well-diggers bum
    • Chillin' like... Mr. Bob Dylan, man
  • Opened on 6th December 1995 and for the first year or two it used to have five regular beers brewed in its upstairs brewery and kept in cellar tanks (instead of in barrels) under nitrogen, so it could not claim to be real ale under CAMRA's definition (no artificially-applied gas used). It claimed to be the only true brewpub in Cambridge as The Druids used malt extract.
  • The upstairs bar (when open) was the quieter one though it had MTV or Sky Sports showing.
  • Firkin Comes To Town
  • It appeared to be desperate for trade: it tried a pair of video bike games, for instance.
  • Yet in late 1998 it sometimes had no real beer on at all.
  • It had a modest revival in mid-1999, with band gigs in the upstairs bar.
• Formerly was the Spring Brewery, then Tivoli Cinema, then The Exchange (variously a health club and eatery).