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It was with sadness that we heard the news of the passing of Soho cocktail legend (and we don’t use the term lightly) Dick Bradsell over the weekend. Bradsell had been crucial to the cocktail boom in the capital, and a key player at some of the most notorious bars in the '80s and '90s. During his time behind the bar in Soho, he mixed dazzling drinks at the likes of The Player and Dick’s Bar at the Atlantic, as well as leading the team more recently at El Camion’s tequila-heavy Pink Chihuahua.
If it hadn’t been for dear Dick, some of our favourite cocktails may never have existed. The story goes that Bradsell invented the vodka espresso – now better known as the espresso martini – at Fred’s Club in 1984 when a now world-famous model (rumoured to be Naomi Campbell, no less) requested a drink that would ‘wake me up, and then fuck me up’. Bradsell kindly obliged and we can’t thank him enough. In his legacy he also leaves the glorious blackberry Bramble cocktail. So pour yourself a drink tonight and raise a glass to Dick Bradsell. Soho's drinking scene just wouldn't have been the same without his influence.
If you fancy raising more than a glass, a Just Giving page has been set up in Dick’s honour to raise money for drinks industry charity, The Benevolent.
Raise a glass at one of London's best cocktail bars.