They can still be found if you know where to look...
The Old Swan, Atherstone, Warwickshire CV9 1AH Atherstone is a market town in the northern “panhandle” of Warwickshire, standing on the main West Coast railway line and the A5 Watling Street, which gained a bypass as early as the 1950s. Historically, it was a major centre of the hatting industry. The Old Swan stands on Long Street, the former A5, at the eastern edge of the town centre. It is a…
> The Lord Eldon, Knutsford, Cheshire WA16 6AD The Lord Eldon is situated just off Canute Place in the upper part of the centre of the prosperous Cheshire market town of Knutsford. It is a cottage-style, brick building dating back over 300 years, considerably lower in profile than those surrounding it. The frontage is decorated by attractive hanging flower baskets in season, Although appearing…
The Shepherds Arms, Whaley Bridge, Derbyshire SK23 7HR The Shepherds Arms is an old, whitewashed, stone-built pub, originally a farmhouse, situated close to the town centre between Old Road and the newer Buxton Road, which was formerly the route of the A6. The main entrance faces Old Road, but it can also be accessed from Buxton Road via the attractive, sloping beer garden. The main door leads…
The Cross Keys, Penkridge, Staffordshire ST19 5HJ An old pub standing by the Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal to the south-east of the village centre, it was originally isolated in the middle of open fields, but has now been surrounded by post-war housing development. It is accessed from a residential street called Filance Road, and is not signed as such, although it is clearly visible along a…
The Sun in September, Burnage, Manchester M19 1NA The newest entry on this blog in terms of when it opened as a pub, the Sun in September was originally a detached Victorian villa in extensive grounds that was converted to pub use by Samuel Smith’s in the 1980s. The décor originally had something of an Indian Raj theme, which is where the name came from, but successive refurbishments have largely…
The Green Man, Milwich, Staffordshire ST18 0EG Milwich is a pleasant village situated in the deep Staffordshire countryside on the B5027 between Stone and Uttoxeter. The Green Man stands on the road junction in the village centre opposite a picturesque red-brick schoolhouse with a stone plaque dating it to 1833. It’s a long, low, cream-painted building. The entrance on the right-hand side takes…
The Swan With Two Necks, Stockport, Cheshire SK1 1RY A single-fronted three-storey pub situated on the now pedestrianised Princes Street on the north side of the town centre. It was rebuilt in 1926 and given a mock-Tudor frontage that has now succumbed to the regrettable modern trend of grey paint. The original 1926 interior, with an abudance of light oak panelling, survives largely intact, and…
The Commercial, Huddersfield, Yorkshire HD1 2AX A four-square, stone-built, three-storey pub on a corner site towards the south end of Huddersfield’s main shopping street. It appears to date from the early part of the 19th century, and is noticeably older than most of the surrounding buildings. It’s a Samuel Smith’s pub, with their characteristic comfortable, traditional interior. This includes…
The Bridge Inn, Topsham, Devon EX3 0QQ A rambling old tile-hung pub located at the “back” of the town overlooking the tidal estuary of the River Clyst. Although a substantial building, the interior is surprisingly small and intimate. It has been little changed for many decades and merits a three-star entry on CAMRA’s National Inventory . It has the distinction of having received an official visit…
The Templar, Leeds, Yorkshire LS2 7NU A long but shallow street-corner pub on the north-east side of the city centre, the Templar has an impressive tiled façade advertising Melbourne Brewery, who were later taken over by Tetley’s. It now belongs to Greene King, but still offers a wide range of other beers, including Tetley Bitter as a permanent beer, and brews from both Yorkshire brewers such as…
The Olde Cottage, Chester CH1 3DZ Although now bypassed by Hoole Way, Brook Street remains a busy thoroughfare with a variety of restaurants, takeaways and independent shops, and forms the main pedestrian route between the station and the city centre. The number of pubs has much reduced in recent years, but one that survives is the Olde Cottage, a striking mock half-timbered street-corner building…
The Blue Mugge, Leek, Staffordshire ST13 6LJ A highly characterful street-corner pub situated in an area of mixed terraced housing and industrial premises a few minutes’ walk to the east of the town centre. The plain redbrick exterior conceals a surprisingly extensive multi-roomed interior. There are a variety of areas radiating around the central island bar, including a large lounge with seating…
The Cricketers Arms, Oakamoor, Staffordshire ST10 3AB Oakamoor is a small village set in the wooded Churnet Valley close to Alton Towers, and approached in both directions on the B5417 by long, steep hills. The Cricketers Arms is a small, white-painted pub set right at the lowest point next to the river and slightly below the road level. While it outwardly gives the appearance of a basic rustic…
The Olde Boar’s Head, Middleton, Lancashire M24 6UE An ancient, leaning, half-timbered inn, dating back at least to 1632, situated at the north end of the town. While Middleton’s town centre has been extensively redeveloped, Long Street on which it stands retains a number of handsome buildings dating from the Georgian and early Victorian periods. Entering through a low doorway, the interior lives…
The Magazine, New Brighton, Cheshire CH45 1HP An imposing double bay-fronted pub situated half a mile south of the town centre commanding an impressive view over the Mersey estuary, although this is partly blocked by trees opposite. It was badly damaged by fire in 2010, but has been sympathetically restored and qualifies for a regional entry on CAMRA’s National Inventory . The bar counter is on…
The North Star, Steventon, Berkshire OX13 6SG An old white-painted cottage pub in a quiet location to the west of the main road through the village. The name comes from an early locomotive used on the main line of the Great Western Railway, which passes nearby. The unmarked entrance is through a covered porch which now doubles as a smoking shelter. It has one of the most unspoilt interiors in…
The Heatons Bridge Inn, Scarisbrick, Lancashire L40 8JG A freestanding redbrick pub situated in the West Lancashire flatlands next to the eponymous bridge over the Leeds & Liverpool Canal. It dates from 1837 and was built as a goods office for the canal. Since the StreetView image was taken, a couple of letters have been lost from the pub name on the front wall, but in a sense this is a positive…
The Circus Tavern, Manchester M1 4GX A tiny single-fronted pub in a row of Victorian buildings that is a surprising survivor amongst the modern chrome and glass that surrounds it. It still carries Tetley’s livery, and the blue plaque on the front records it being recognised as a Tetley Heritage Inn. Not surprisingly, it also qualifies for a full entry on CAMRA’s National Inventory . It claims to…
The Bell, Aldworth, Berkshire RG8 9SE An old brick-built pub where the licence has been in the same family for 250 years. It stands off the main road in a small village high on the Berkshire Downs, but only a couple of miles away from the Thames at Goring Gap. It won CAMRA’s National Pub of the Year award in 1990 and 2019 – making it the current holder (May 2022), and its unspoilt interior…
The Boat and Horses, Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire ST5 1LU A street-corner pub just outside the town centre on the road to Eccleshall and Newport. The name comes form the Newcastle-under-Lyme Canal, closed in 1935, which joined the Trent & Mersey near Stoke station, following a U-shaped course to avoid the hill between the two towns. It is now painted white, but was blue in earlier…
The Queen’s Head, Stockport, Cheshire SK1 1JT A small single-fronted pub standing in the shadow of the bridge carrying St Petersgate over Little Underbank. It was originally a free house attached to the wine merchant’s next door actually under the arch, hence its local nickname of Turner’s Vaults. In the 1980s, it was taken over by Samuel Smith’s, who carried out a very careful and thoughtful…
The Grape Vaults, Leominster, Herefordshire HR6 8BS The Grape Vaults stands on the north side of the town centre at the top of the handsome Georgian Broad Street. Behind the plain two-bay frontage is a surprisingly shallow interior little changed since the Victorian era, which earns it a Regional entry on CAMRA’s National Inventory . The fron of the pub is basically a single room, with the bar…
The Old House, Ightham Common, Kent TN15 9EE An old tile-hung cottage pub hidden away on a narrow back lane in the Kent countryside close to the romantic moated manor house of Ightham Mote. It was first licensed as an alehouse in the mid-19th century, but did not acquire a full licence until 1953. The inn sign has long gone. The unspoilt interior qualifies for a full entry on CAMRA’s National…
The Black Horse, Preston, Lancashire PR1 2EJ A striking redbrick corner pub on one of Preston’s main shopping streets close to the impressive Harris Museum and Art Gallery. It was built in 1898 by Kay’s Atlas Brewery of Manchester and is now owned by Robinson’s of Stockport. The exterior conceals an even more impressive interior which merits a full entry on CAMRA’s National Inventory . There are…
The Red Lion, Rugeley, Staffordshire WS15 2JH An outwardly unassuming cottage pub situated on what was once the main road through the town, but is now a dead end leading to a pedestrianised area. It used to have its own car park on the right-hand side, but this has now been sold off for redevelopment. However, there is a public car park on the other side which is free to use on Sundays. The brick…