Pints West 86, Summer 2010 - Bristol & District CAMRA

PINTS WESTThe plight of pubs in south eastBristol (a personal view)It has been a concern of mine for while now that so many publichouses are closing down in the south east Bristol area. Not that manyareas have escaped from closures in recent times. I am originallyfrom north Devon and know the value of village pubs and the sad statewhere they have closed leaving the locals with no place to gather otherthan village halls.Now Bristol is no village but one area that concerns me most is theWells Road (A37) out of Bristol and its adjacent areas. I live in KnowleWest and it has been barren of pubs now for several years, for a varietyof reasons. Anyone living here mainly has to go to Bedminster for asocial night drinking.It came to my attention recently that the Happy Landings on thecorner of Hengrove Lane on the Wells Road has a ‘to let’ sign up. It hasbeen closed for over six months. There have been rumours of it becominga Chinese restaurant. It got me thinking that this will mean that, fora large distance, there will be no pubs within walking distance in thevicinity.public houses. Once again startingfrom the Three Lamps junction(Bath A4) on the right you have theThunderbolt, which is also a goodmusic venue. The Three Lamps pubwas next door but closed down manyyears ago. Other than the Black Castleand the Sandringham, which areboth within five or six minutes’ walkof the Bath Road close to the junctionwith St Phillips Causeway, you haveto go all the way to Brislington andthe King’s Arms down the bottom ofthe hill on the left. Opposite this, theHolly Bush has now been replacedby flats. There is also the Pilgrim onHollywood Road which is left at theKing’s Arms.The White Hart a little further along the A4 on the right looks likelyto become a local community theatre. From here on out on the A4 thereis not another public house until Keynsham, so not much on a busy mainroad from the Three Lamps junction.Obviously many people go into Bedminster or the city centre for anight out, but often a quiet drink with friends locally would be far moreconvenient as well as keeping up a sense of community. Do we really allwant to end up going to each others’ houses for a can or bottle? It mustbe said that often, in the right hands, failing pubs can be turned aroundand become successful community locals once again. Unfortunately, asthings stand, there are inadequate planning laws to protect them fromredevelopment.We all know what is happening with the rising costs of drinks andthe loss-leader supermarket price offers. This – allied with the woefullyinadequate planning laws and an apparent lack of policy at Bristol CityCouncil currently regarding community pubs – is leaving large swathsof our city without community pubs.Something must change urgently to stop the rot!Keith ShaplandThe not so Happy LandingsStarting from the Three Lamps junction (Wells Road), on the rightTotterdown is well served by public houses with the Shakespeare,Oxford, New Found Out and Star & Dove. On the main road close bythere is the Bush and then the George. On reaching Broadwalk at the topof the hill the situation is a bit grim. The Talbot which had closed is nowa steak restaurant. Off to the right was the Friendship in Knowle, whichrecently shut down and is to become a Tesco car park. The only otherpub I know of in this area is the Knowle Hotel which is about 400 yardsleft, off the main road.The Red Lion which was on the hill a bit further out is now flatsand then the next place is the Happy Landings mentioned above. Theclosest pub to that was the Glass Cutter in Hengrove Lane, which isnow flats. Going further up the Wells Road there used to be the LittleThatch, though not really a pub I believe, before getting to the Yeomanat the junction which turns right to Whitchurch village. Beyond that isthe Maes Knoll (formerly Black Lion) before turning left to Stockwood.This is a large suburban area which fortunately still has the Man inSpace, Concorde and Harvesters pubs.In the Whitchurch village area there is the Cartwheel (next to Asda).The Court Farm Tavern, formerly the Baccy Jar, was closed for a whilebut is now a pub with the emphasis on food. The only other here is theShield and Dagger which is in East Dundry Road on the edge of thearea.These are the only pubs in a large populated area before going backdown towards Hartcliffe which fortunately still has four pubs of varyingquality, the Fulford Hotel, the Hartcliffe Inn, the Red Hart and the Harrier.The Fighting Cocks, which became the Happy Cocks (to lose the“fighting” connotation?), closed down a while back following a fire. InHengrove Park there is the Wessex Flyer, which is the newest additionand a modern family-friendly pub.It seems a real shame that there are so few traditional public housesin some of these communities.The main Bath Road out of Bristol is also suffering with lack ofPubs closed or under threat in the south Bristol areaNo longer a community pubAntelope - Stockwood - demolished - 2004?Enterprise Inn - Bedminster - demolished - 2007Fox - Windmill Hill - converted to flats - 2009Glasscutter - Hengrove - converted to flats - 2005?Happy Cocks - Hengrove- demolished (after fire) - 2006?Hollybush - Brislington - demolished - post-2000?Mendip Gate Inn - Bishopsworth - closed 2001, demolished 2003 for flatsRed Cow - Bedminster - demolished - 2009Three Lamps - Bath Road - closed post-1999? - now flatsRed Lion - Totterdown - demolished for three houses - 2000Ship & Castle - Ashton Vale - demolished (one wall standing?) - 2009Wedlocks - Bedmister - demolished - 2009?Talbot - Knowle - closed post-2000? - now a steakhouseVenture Inn - Knowle West - demolished - post-2000? - now flatsWoods - Bishopsworth - demolished -2010Gatcombe House - Hartcliffe - demolished 2005? - now flats and dentalsurgeryPermission to convert grantedFriendship - Knowle - 2009General Elliott - Bedminster - 2010Park House - Bedminster - 2010Plough Inn - Bedminster Down - 2006 (converted to flats?)White Hart - Brislington - 2010Under threat?Golden Cockerel - Highridge - 2010 - closed, sold with potential forredevelopment and recent fire 2010Happy Landings - Hengrove - 2010 - closed 6 months - ‘Pub To Let’ signnow upCompiled by Les CooperPage 5