11 Remarkable Historic Pubs Given Protection
Whitelock’s Ale House in Leeds and Prince Alfred in Maida Vale are upgraded to Grade II* as part of a project to help save rare historic pub interiors.
There are also two new listings in London – Blythe Hill Tavern and Admiral Vernon in Dagenham. Another seven pubs around the country have had new information added to their list descriptions to highlight their historic interiors.
Our historic pubs are national institutions that have sat at the heart of local communities for generations, bringing people together and shining a light on our shared past. These listings recognise and celebrate the importance of the local pub to people across the country and will make sure their legacy endures for many years to come.
The two Grade II* listed pubs are among the top 5.8% of protected historic buildings in England and are in the company of the Old Bailey Court of Justice in London.
The list of pubs was put forward by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) Pub Heritage Group, as part of an ongoing collaboration between Historic England and CAMRA to protect historic pubs and their interiors.
Whitelock’s Ale House, Leeds – upgraded to Grade II*
One of the best examples of a late 19th-century upmarket luncheon bar
Whitelock’s Ale House in Leeds, one of a small number of upmarket Victorian ‘luncheon bars’ has been upgraded from Grade II to the second-highest grade, Grade II* by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) on the advice of Historic England.
Described by Poet Laureate John Betjeman as ‘the very heart of Leeds’, Whitelock’s became a favourite watering hole for celebrities including actor Peter O’Toole, star of epic 1962 film Lawrence of Arabia and Prima Ballerina Assoluta Dame Margaret Evelyn (Margot Fonteyn).
Whitelock’s is one of the best examples of a late 19th-century upmarket luncheon bar. It retains its 1895 interior decorative scheme and a wealth of high-quality features, including fixed-bench seating, brass barley-twist columns, stained-glass windows, an abundance of mirrors and a rare ceramic-tiled bar counter. The pub’s long narrow yard also reflects its original medieval plan.
In 1897 when electric lighting was installed there was a futuristic revolving searchlight at the entrance to draw customers in. It soon gained the reputation amongst the arts world of being the social and cultural hub of Leeds.
See the list entry for Whitelock's Ale House
Prince Alfred, Maida Vale, London – upgraded to Grade II*
Lavish fittings and exceptionally well-preserved bar compartments
A second pub, Prince Alfred in Maida Vale, London has also been upgraded to Grade II*. This pub, with its lavish fittings and exceptionally well-preserved bar compartments, dates from the height of the pub boom in the 1890s and gives a clear sense of the way pubs would have looked and functioned.
Five small compartments, each with its own entrance, radiate from an elaborate peninsula servery. The drinking compartments are divided by ornate screens, all of them with a low service door to allow ‘pot boys’ to duck through to collect the glasses.
The original set of ‘snob screens’ to the Ladies Bar was designed to give privacy to women ordering at the bar here. The screens are an extraordinarily rare survival with only around eight authentic sets known to remain in pubs across England.
A pair of cast-iron lamp standards at the front of The Prince Alfred have also been newly listed at Grade II. Lamp standard adjacent to the south entrance of the Prince Albert and Lamp standard to the south-west of the Prince Alfred.
Erected around 1898, they are a very rare example of lamps installed to draw in passing custom at a time when lighting was not commonplace on residential London streets. Only a very small number of these lamp standards are known to survive.
At a time when many historic pubs in England are susceptible to change or at risk of closure, we are pleased to celebrate pubs that have kept their remarkable interiors.
These rare interiors help tell the fascinating story of pubs over the centuries and how they reflected society. From celebrity haunt Whitelock’s Ale House in Leeds to the Prince Alfred in London with its ‘snob screens’, they all fully deserve the protection given by listing.”
Blythe Hill Tavern, Lewisham, London – newly listed at Grade II
Unusual layout and surviving inter-war fittings
Blythe Hill Tavern (Grade II) with its unusual T-shaped layout was designed to create a serving counter in each of the three rooms. The inter-war fittings survive throughout, including curved counters, freestanding benches, imitation wood panelling, and two fireplaces – one with a decorated metal hood and another with a grey-blue tiled surround featuring a sailing ship.
See the list entry for Blythe Hill Tavern
Admiral Vernon, Dagenham, London – newly listed at Grade II
1930s interior almost completely intact
The second pub to be newly listed (Grade II) is the inter-war estate pub, Admiral Vernon in Dagenham.
Built to serve the Becontree Estate, one of the largest and most ambitious council estates of the period, its interior is much as it was when its first customers walked through its doors in the 1930s.
The building is in the popular ‘Brewers’ Tudor style with characteristic timber-framing and brick chimney stacks. It has kept important elements of its original plan, fittings and character. Its almost completely intact interior, includes a games room, private bar, saloon bar and publican’s offices behind the counter.
See the list entry for the Admiral Vernon pub
Times are tough for all pubs at the moment, including those with important historic interiors. The more protection they can receive, the better.
We have been working with Historic England to identify pubs that deserve to be listed, upgraded or have their list descriptions enhanced so that people can truly appreciate why they are special.
New information about another seven pub interiors
The King’s Head, Laxfield, Suffolk – listed at Grade II
16th-century pub with unusual high free-standing bench seats
This village pub dates to the 16th century and was extended in the 18th century.
The front doorway leads into the main bar, which is dominated by high free-standing bench seats, the backs of which define a corridor around the room. This is a rare, historic arrangement paralleled at the North Star, Steventon in Oxfordshire (see below).
The servery, which is also the ‘cellar’ has no counter, with beer served directly from casks. It is one of just seven pubs in England which still retains this unusual arrangement.
See the list entry for the King's Head
The Red Lion, Duke of York Street, London – listed Grade II
A fine example of a Victorian gin palace style
This is one of London’s most remarkable pubs and a fine example of a Victorian gin palace style. It was built in 1821 but its frontage was reworked in 1871 by architect W H Rawlings.
There are three doorways at the front of the pub, which is a sign that it was subdivided internally with separate spaces around the central servery.
There is a glass panel from a doorway marked ‘private bar’, which gives access to a glittering room at the back lined with etched and diamond-cut mirrors. It is a showcase of the finest late Victorian pub-fitting.
See the list entry for the Red Lion
The Harrow Inn, Steep, Petersfield – listed Grade II
Historical 18th-century roadside inn, once used by cattle drovers
This roadside inn dates to around the 18th century or possibly earlier.
It’s well-located at the meeting of six roads, including two known routes for cattle drovers headed for Alton or the Farnham Corn Market, which in the middle of the 18th century was one of the largest in the south of England.
Phases of the building’s history can be read through its timber frame, smokehood, inglenook and beams. It retains many historical features including informal bar hatches, rather than bar fronts.
See the list entry for the Harrow Inn
The North Star Inn, Stocks Lane, Steventon, Oxfordshire – listed Grade II
The main bar's free-standing bench seats focus on the warmth of the fireplace
The North Star Inn dates to the late-16th or 17th centuries and may have originally been a house before converting to a pub.
The main bar contains free-standing bench seats with arms and a high back that are normally found in country kitchens. They form a rectangle focusing on the warmth of the fireplace.
There is no bar counter, a rarity in itself – service is instead via a stable door from the ground-floor cellar and from a hatch to the garden. A second room is served from a hatch to the cellar.
See the list entry for the North Star Inn
The Victoria, St Johns Street, Great Harwood, Blackburn – listed Grade II
A fine Edwardian pub of 1905 with full-height Art Nouveau tiling
A fine Edwardian pub of 1905 with an intact northern ‘lobby plan’ arrangement. The lobby, drinking corridor and staircase all have full-height Art Nouveau tiling with flower motifs.
Five rooms lead off the lobby, mostly with original fittings. Four are named in the door glass – the Commercial Room, Parlour, Public Kitchen and the Bar Parlour.
See the list entry for the Victoria
The Black Horse, Friargate, Preston, Lancashire – listed Grade II
A Victorian urban pub with mosaic flooring and a semi-circular ceramic counter
An impressive pub from the boom years of Victorian urban pub building. It was rebuilt in 1898 to the designs of local architect J A Seward for Kay’s Atlas Brewery of Manchester.
The Orchard Street entrance leads into a remarkable public bar, with mosaic flooring and a semi-circular ceramic counter.
See the list entry for the Black Horse pub
Bridge Inn, Bridge Hill, Topsham – listed Grade II
Family-run since 1897 with many features unchanged
This former malthouse with kiln has been run by the same family since 1897 and still retains many of its historic features.
The entrance leads to a panelled corridor, on the left of which is the tap room. There are freestanding bench seats, a large stone fireplace, a salt cupboard and a hatch to a parlour through which drinks are fetched from the ground-floor cellar.
The parlour area is a private space where customers may be invited to sit – only a handful of pubs are thought to have similar rooms where customers may sit behind a working serving area.
