Bartender of the week: Morgan from The Academy

Meet Morgan: a 21-year-old surfer from North Yorkshire who works night shifts at The Academy and, for the next seven days, holder of our prestigious Bartender of the Week crown.

Academy is everyone’s final stop before heading to Yoko’s, the Angel or Pier. The bar is a former chapel and its high ceilings, pillars and old balustrades make up the special atmosphere of the venue.

Astrophysics grad Morgan is one of the heroes behind the bar that will serve you your Cheapy Vimto no matter how wasted you are or how busy the crowd.

Vodka Coke, anyone?

Having one the glamorous Tab title, Morgan said: “I’d say the best thing about my job is the people that you meet. I mean yes you get the odd dickhead who treats you like filth, but there are some that make work actually seem easier and are more understanding as well as patient.

“Academy used to be a chapel if I remember hearing right, plus it’s fun to work in and usually has good vibes especially early on in the night.”

“What I like about being a bartender? Working nights. It means I still have a full day to do what I want as well as get things done without having to be in a rush.”

Morgan does not miss being the drunk one standing in a queue waiting to get served, adding: “Being the sober one actually can be better at times. You can still socialise while making money rather than rinsing your wallet and having a hangover the next day!

“It sometimes does make you want to go out after – even if it means having to catch up.”

Pulling the pints

Being the bartender might be good for the wallet, but there are some downsides to every bartender’s life.

Morgan said: “The worst part is when it’s mega busy to the point where you don’t even have time to stop and take a drink of water.

“Our busiest nights are usually Wednesday with Friday/Saturday really. The biggest night though was Halloween by far. We ended up running out of tumblers by half 11 and ended up serving bombs and spirits with mixer in wine glasses as well as pint glasses.”

Sometimes you just have to be creative, and The Academy crew knows what they’re doing.

Waved your money at Morgan and didn’t get served?

When Morgan isn’t pulling pints behind the bar, he’s into surfing, skating and snowboarding. He doesn’t mind going out drinking at The Academy, but he prefers a different venue: “My personal favourite night would probably be Friday after work if there’s anything good on in the Angel.”

There’s one last thing you can learn from our Bartender of the Week: “I can’t really think if I know any party tricks off the top of my head, never really thought about them to be honest I don’t really have a weirdest thing. I have a funny thing though where people think I’ll serve them faster if they wave their money at me, always makes me laugh.”