Today's mission was expected to be mainly pictures of former pubs, and I might end up not getting many drinks if I'm too late (To L8, see what I did there?) for ones that have closed down, but we'll see...
I began by heading briefly north from Edge Hill station to check out the Durning Arms (Last visited 2023) where I was disappointed to find it is now a supermarket:
Next, southwards past the Spekeland - aka Nags Head (Never visited)
On to the Boundary (Last visited 2023) which I was pleased to see was still going strong:
I'm saving my drinking for more desirable ticks, so I skipped the Boundary and walked along Lodge Lane. My database has eight locations on this street with just one open, what will we find today?
The Rob Roy (Last visited in 1999):
Masonic (1999):
Dart (Never):
I passed the former Grapes (1999) and the Sportsman, previously Coach and Horses (1999) without noticing. One still extant as a shop, the other demolished and replaced by more modern construction.
Next, the Grosvenor (Never):
Finally, Chaplin's (2018) and happily it is still going:
This plain pleasant one room boozer is clean and tidy. I was a little concerned as I entered that some tables and chairs were covered for a function of some sort, but it obviously hasn't started yet, and more cloths were being put out.
My Carling came in a glass I've not seen before, Carling branded but with a lions head with a crown badge. Some kind of sporting organisation I think, I'll look it up when I get home. [The answer is, of course, Premier League.]
The place was ticking over gently at half one on a Saturday, just five customers. Footie from Manchester was on the tellies but I don't think anyone was watching.
I looked around; plain, yes, but very well cared for, everything spotless, the seat upholstery in good nick.
I moved on, leaving Lodge Lane and passing through an area of beautifully restored Victorian terraced housing. A brief deviation to the Empress (2018) - Sadly its Beatles connection hasn't saved it:
The next pub recorded as still open in my files is the Queens Arms (2018), and lo and behold, it is:
The beautiful interior, one space knocked round the servery, is perfectly maintained. My notes say it was refurbished last year, what a good job they've done.
The bloke ahead of me at the bar had a rum and milk! Good grief. Try getting that if you're not a regular! My Carling came in a proper glass.
United went 2-0 up in the derby, only one customer was watching, is it really worth it for the pub?
Now on into Toxteth, my computer tells me the Bleak House is still going, but on a number of previous trips around here the door has been closed, so I haven't actually been in since 2003.
I passed what looks like a former pub but it isn't in my database, and then the location of the Poets Corner (2003), long gone. Checking once I got home revealed an error in my records, that former pub was in fact the Poets Corner and it hasn't been replaced by housing as I thought:
As I approached the Bleak House (2003) my spirits rose: It's still standing... It still looks like a pub:
And, YES, I can see people inside. Yippee, a really desirable tick twenty three years on.
The "busiest" pub so far, with the customer count nearly into double figures. Racing on the tellies, no one watching.
For the third time today I have to say that the interior is immaculately maintained, I suppose that is normal nowadays - people won't go in a scruffy pub.
What next? Plan A: A hefty walk to two more required ticks which may or may not be open. Plan B: A short walk to two places last ticked in 2022, which again may not be open. I'm struggling for "required" ticks this year so I really ought to go for A. But on the other hand the Herculaneum Bridge is an architectural gem and always good to visit so maybe B? I dithered as I sank my third Carling.
Eventually I selected a hybrid plan. I walked the short distance to Wilson's Tavern on plan B:
It was clearly no longer operational, so I switched to plan A and marched along Mill Street.
The Wellington Vaults (2012) is long closed:
The Derby Arms (2003) is still standing:
And the Great Eastern (2004) has disappeared:
On to the Mosley Arms (2018) which, sadly, looks to be no longer operational - I had been hopeful about this one:
Up to Park Road and the Globe (2018):
Happily this little gem is still open. The bar side was too busy with people watching the Liverpool match, so I retreated to the "newsroom" where there was only racing on the tellies, and only two other customers. In the historic layout of this pub, this room has a tiny hatch for service.
Of the five pubs I had hoped to tick, four were open which I have to confess is more than I expected, so with regrets about the Moseley I think I can declare today's excursion a success. Bleak House was especially desirable. Time for home...
But having caught a bus in to town there's an opportunity for one required tick which has limited opening hours. So in to Ruby Blues on Charlotte Street:
Noisy and very busy in here, I had to stand at the counter to drink my over-a-fiver Carling.
The singer was rather good, I should say, doing sixties classics to an appreciative audience.
"It's all about that bass" says the neon, I think I've done the joke before. The singer jumped some decades forward, to a very good rendition of Losing My Religion.
The place was really busy, I even lost my corner of the counter as people squeezed in to get served, making it very hard to write notes.
Beer of the day: Carling
Miles walked: 3.4
Maybe coming soon: Kirkby
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