#030 Catherine O'Donovan, Highgate, Birmingham : 1998 to 2021 (RIP)

 This will be a relatively short entry, mainly because of the lack of concrete information. Here's what I wrote in 2011: -

"Back in 1998 when I took this photo the pub was called the Pig & Whistle.

It is a pub I'd not been in then...and I still haven't in 2011!

I was somewhat surprised to see that it was still open thirteen years later, seemingly thriving under the new name of the Catherine O'Donovan.

It is quite remarkable that it has changed so little from the outside. I assume that it has been redecorated since 1998, but the owners/tenants have kept to the same colour scheme."

 

I did pass by in 2018 and took this photo from the other angle.

Largely unchanged in the intervening seven years (redecorated, no hanging sign), but, from what I can gather from t'internet, it was already closed by then.

 Moving on to 2021 and the Catherine O'Donovan is still in the same state as previously!

If it is closed, it's very strange not to see it boarded up, I can only assume that the premises are still occupied (but I'm guessing!).

 In the modern era (pre-pandemic) it's not too surprising that it had closed down, being the only pub on a street exclusively made up of industrial premises, but it is nice to see it preserved (museum-like) showing a fine example of a back-street boozer in a purely industrial setting.

 

Postscript: as I was researching the rather sparse details on the Catherine O'Donovan, I did come across a little bit of it's earlier histroy and it was once called The Beehive Inn - picture here.

#062 Town Crier, Digbeth, Birmingham : 1998 to 2021

The Town Crier is still a pub that I've never been inside, but despite that, it seems to be surviving OK! Here's what I wrote back in 2011: -

"This is a pub I've never been inside although I've passed by on many occasions. This is how it looked in 1998.

A rather unprepossessing appearance, but surprisingly it has survived into 2011!

Quite a few external changes have occurred in the intervening thirteen years. Most notably, it was an M&B pub and now it is Banks's. The Off Licence (or 'outdoor' as we Brummies call it!) is closed and boarded up and the windows have been replaced. Apart from that, there have been signage and other changes as well.

 

Apart from that I don't have much more information.

This is the twenty-ninth in my 'Birmingham Eastside' series."

 

One reason for its continuing success, that i didn't know in 2011, is that the interior of the Town Crier is on the Regional CAMRA Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors.

 

I revisited (for photographic purposes) in January 2018 and this was the scene.

Some superficial changes have taken place over the years...seemingly an equal split between design choices and general decay. On our Proper Pubs Day Out later in 2018, the Town Crier wasn't on our itinerary, but one of our party did take a detour to pay a visit. Sheffield Hatter's review can be found here on the Pubs Galore website. This was when I found out about the heritage of the Town Crier.

So, we move on to early 2021 and this is how the pub looks at the moment.

It is difficult to discern whether the Town Crier is still a going concern or whether it will reopen when the current lockdown is over. I suspect that it will as it has proven to be a survivor over the past few years (but I can find no confirmation either way!)

#155 Eagle & Sun, Hanbury Wharf, Worcestershire : 1997 to 2020 (revisited)

Whilst the world of pubs enters a period of seeming decimation, I'm going to carry on with views of yesteryear in order to keep spirits up!

Considering how close the Eagle & Sun is to where we cruise most regularly you'd imagine that we'd visited a lot more often than we actually have done! Unfortunately, it sits alongside the Worcester & Birmingham Canal along a stretch that we don't visit quite as often as you'd expect...and when we do the Eagle & Sun is often between regular stopping points!

Our first visit to the Eagle & Sun was at lunchtime on Monday 26th May 1997 after an unexpectedly difficult morning cruise.

Tibberton had been our intended lunchtime destination, but the throttle cable on Emma Jane snapped and driving the boat became a two-man operation. I was winding locks and I wondered what the delay was; and then Emma Jane appeared with the steerer shouting orders down to the engine room for more (or less) power to allow the boat to keep on moving!

To add to the complications it was a Bank Holiday Monday so we were expecting to be delayed quite a while. However, we were in luck (as we so often have been throughout the years!). That stretch of canal is home to one of the Black Prince Narrowboats hire bases, so we pulled in to see if they could help. Just fifty minutes later we were on our way again with a newly fitted throttle cable for the princely sum of £22.30p!

I remember little about the pub other than it was well geared up for serving food and was on a busy road into Droitwich as well as being canalside.

Our next visit was a lunchtime stop on Thursday 29th May 2003 travelling up from Worcester.

This view is from the car park, but is enough to see that it had been completely redecorated externally and was, seemingly, no longer a Banks's pub. I think that it had been extended to make more restaurant room.

The next picture is from the canal as we cruised by on the afternoon of Sunday 15th May 2013, again on the way up from Worcester.
 

From here the 'new' extension is clearly visible and (with extreme magnification) the blue sign says that it was being run by the (now defunct) Number Works Pub Company.

Our most recent visit was at lunchtime on Wednesday 26th August 2020.

Fortunately it was a nice day as, with the new COVID-19 rules, there was no room inside the pub, but there was plenty of table space in the garden. I'm not 100% sure who runs the pub now, but all of the warning signs were similar in style to the Marston's ones we'd seen before (and the beer range was consistent with it being a Marston's pub).

At the time we were there, they hadn't really come up with a user friendly way of operating under the new restrictions. We had to wait outside before being allowed in (or directed to the garden if not having booked in advance). There was also a one way system in place which meant that once I'd been served our three pints I had to walk the long way round (through the rest of the pub and car park) to get back to the garden. (It would have made much more sense to have the route reversed!)

Despite the minor irritations, we had a pleasant lunch in the garden of the Eagle & Sun setting us up nicely for an afternoon's cruise into Droitwich for the first time for all of us!

#270 The Wheatsheaf, Weedon, Northants : 1991 to 2019

I'm fairly sure that we'd visited The Wheatsheaf on previous trips, but this is the first pictorial record that I have.

This was on the evening of Thursday 24th September 1992 as we made our way north on the Grand Union Canal. Back then, as it is now, The Wheatsheaf is a standard little boozer which is now becoming an endangered species.

Although we did stop in Weedon the next year it wasn't until lunchtime on Wednesday 31st August 1994 that we revisited the pub.

No apparent change, but some maintenance work being applied to the front door.

We were back again the next year on our last trip from Winkwell.

This was on the evening of Wednesday 30th August 1995 and the pub was still largely unchanged.

Our next stopover in Weedon was on the evening of Monday 27th August 2001 as we headed south on a trip to Aylesbury.

Still no change to the pub, but the Weedon Takeaway (next door) has transformed to Riverside.

Our next visit to Weedon was as part of a short trip to take our boat Emma Jane to Nuneaton for roof repairs/replacement.

This was on the evening of Sunday 29th May 2005 and the pub was again as before...but next door it was now the Lucky House!

So, in 13 years of visits, The Wheatsheaf barely changed one bit...how would it be when we finally returned another fourteen years later, on the evening of Friday 19th April 2019?

Externally, a complete makeover, but we didn't actually venture inside as we were headed elsewhere for some food. (The mobility scooter is a bit of a giveaway regarding the inside, though!) The Lucky House, however needs a bit of tlc!

We didn't have long to wait to sample the delights of The Wheatsheaf as we returned on the evening of Friday 9th August 2019 and this time we did go inside!

I can confirm that it is still a basic boozer with a few regulars in when we were there. We were also treated to an impromptu music session as the gaffer's daughter and a couple of her friends performed a number of popular classics for us. Of the chanteuses, two were what you could categorise as enthusiastic, whereas the third was good enough to be a professional!

#253 Royal Oak, Polesworth, Warwickshire : 1998 to 2018

Our first ever canal visit to Polesworth was back in 1982, but I wasn't taking pictures of every pub back then, so you have to wait until the evening of Monday 22nd June 1998 for the first picture of the Royal Oak.

It is a small, proper boozer, close to one of the canal bridges in the village, so ideal for a quick pint as I don't think we've ever eaten in there (not sure if they've ever done food!)

We returned a couple of years later on the evening of Wednesday 31st May 2000.

In the space of those two years it had gone from being a Bass pub to a Banks's 'Free House'. It had been redecorated and re-signed on the outside, but I've no recollection of the inside.

It was a little longer between visits, but the next time we popped into the Royal Oak was on the evening of Monday 30th August 2004.

Again, the signage had been changed and any mention of Banks's removed.

Another five years passed by and, when we returned at lunchtime on Wednesday 27th May 2009, the exterior was remarkably unchanged.

There was a board advertising some food, but I have a feeling that there wasn't any!

We did visit Polesworth at lunchtime on Wednesday 1st June 2011 and, although we didn't go into the Royal Oak, I still managed to get a picture as we passed by.

Apart from the addition of an England flag (possibly left over from the 2010 World Cup?) nothing had changed.

Our next visit was four years later on the evening of Sunday 24th May 2015.

This time the signage had changed with what appears to be the return of the original hanging sign, although in a slightly different position to accommodate the new sign on the front of the pub.

Our most recent visit to the Royal Oak was at lunchtime on Saturday 29th September 2018 as we moved Peggy Ellen to her new mooring at Wigram's Turn Marina, Napton.

No changes to the outside and, inside, it s still the same, small proper pub...but no food. So after a pint we moved on to Foster's Yard for our lunch.

#247 Horse & Jockey, Grindley Brook, Shropshire : 1996 to 2018

Grindley Brook is a small village on the Llangollen Canal just outside Whitchurch. The only pub in the village is the Horse & Jockey which we've visited on the few occasions that we've stopped there.

 

Our first visit was at lunchtime on Sunday 25th August 1996 and this was the welcoming sight. As usual, I have little recollection of the interior, but as the sign says Food was served from 12 - 2 pm and 7 - 10 pm Every Day so we obviously were well fed. (as an aside, whatever happened to those sorts of food serving times? Admittedly, 2 pm is a bit early to stop. Definitely shows the changing times and eating out habits over 22 years.)

 

The Llangollen canal isn't one we take on too often and so we didn't return to the Horse & Jockey until another lunchtime on Sunday 2nd September 2007.

In the passing 11 years, the Horse & Jockey appears to have changed hands and was no longer a Banks's pub. Interestingly, aside from the complete redecoration, a 'porch' has appeared around the front door and a chimney has sprouted from the low roof on the right.

 

Coincidentally, it took us another 11 years to return and on this trip, we paid it two visits.

Firstly on the evening of Wednesday 29th August 2018 and then again - 

 on the evening of Sunday 2nd September 2018 (exactly 11 years to the day from the previous visit!). It has undergone yet further refurbishments both outside and in. One thing that hasn't changed is the civilised food times on a Sunday (til 9 pm).

 

The décor is what I would call, modern rustic, a style many food led country pubs have now adopted. The food was good with an interesting menu that changes monthly, but I have one quibble - why is it a modern trend to serve a meal with the various components piled on top of each other?

 

My fish and chips arrived with the battered cod on top of a stack of chips (piled Jenga style) meaning that the fat from the batter inevitably softens what were crisp chips! On the second visit, the roast beef (and Yorkshire Pudding) were on top of a pile of assorted vegetables which hid the abomination that is cauliflower cheese. The manner in which this was rectified was exemplary, which is the sign of a well-run establishment.

#189 The Tenth Lock, Brierley Hill, West Midlands : 1996 to 2015

One of the most impressive features of the Dudley No 1 Canal is the flight of eight Delph Locks. There used to be nine locks, but when the flight was rebuilt in 1858, the middle section was reduced from seven down to six locks. hence the now anachronistic name for the pub at the bottom of the flight.

We pass through this part of the canal system every five years or so, but rarely stop at the bottom of the flight as there isn't much mooring room. However, we did moor here at lunctime on Monday 27th May 1996, mainly because the propellor on our boat needed de-weeding.

As I recall it was a fairly standard Banks's estate pub that also did food.

I was passing by on the afternoon of Tuesday 27th March 2012 so I took this picture to show how the place had changed.
 
Just a few subtle modifications...and a large smoking area at the front!

We didn't stop at the bottom of Delph Locks again until the evening of Friday 12th June 2015 after a tortuous journey from Stourbridge in very shallow water!

The Tenth Lock has undergone a complete exterior refurb in the intervening 19 years and, although it doesn't look like it, it is now a Marston's pub.

On this occasion we didn't go inside. We'd planned a bit of a pub crawl down the hill from The Vine at the top, but we never left The Vine, aka the Bull & Bladder, as it was such a fantastic place and the Bathams was wonderful (and I'm a lager drinker normally!)

#187 The Round Oak, Wombourne, Staffordshire : 1991 to 2015

The Staffordshire & Worcestershire Canal is one of the prettiest on the system and is always worth the journey. Although it is a canal we visit on a regular basis, our stops at Wombourne are somewhat infrequent.

My first canal visit to Wombourne was at lunchtime on Tuesday 30th July 1991. I'd visited and passed through Wombourne many times by road, but this was my first experience of the Round Oak.

Our next visit was almost ten years later on the evening of Monday 28th May 2001.

I'll leave discussions about the exterior changes until after the final photo.

It was even longer before we ventured back to Wombourne for a stop (although we'd passed by on many other occasions!). Our most recent visit being on the evening of Thursday 11th June 2015.

It is rare for me to get the same angle each time we visit a pub, but the Round Oak lends itself to this as being the best view of the pub.

So, in nearly 25 years, it has gone from being the Round Oak an M&B pub to being The Round Oak, a Marstons establishment with a period in between as a Banks's pub.

The conversion from M&B to Banks's appears to have been quite drastic with the loss of a chimney and a part of the building on the left hand side. (I suspect that this coincided with the canalside extension at the back of the pub which is only partly visible in the later photos.) The windows have all been replaced and a porch added to the front door. The park bench has gone, the hanging sign has been relocated and the burglar alarm moved and yet the TV aerials remain at the same jaunty angle!

The change from Banks's to Marstons is less drastic (they are, in essence, the same company) with a complete repaint, the disappearance of the hanging sign and a straightening of the main TV aerial!

Outside the pub, railings appeared between 1991 and 2001 and, on each occasion, the street light has been changed.

One final observation, that I didn't notice on any of our visits, is what looks like a post box just to the left of the street light! I'll have to check that next time I'm there (in about 10 - 15 years time!!)

#167 The Greyhound, Sutton Stop, Coventry : 1995 to 2014

My first ever visit to The Greyhound was on my first canal trip back in 1980, long before I started taking photos of every pub we visited. It has a superb location being at Hawkesbury Junction where the Coventry and Oxford Canals meet. Although we passed it by on many occasions since then, it wasn't until 1995 that we stopped there again.

This was on the evening of Friday 1st September 1995 and was about halfway through our journey to bring Emma Jane back to the Midlands from her sojourn down South.

The Greyhound is such a traditional canalside pub that this entry will focus more on the changes around the pub rather than the pub itself which has remained almost immutable through the years. Back in 1995 it was possible to moor outside the pub. Also note the amount of hanging baskets and the, somewhat dilapidated, fence around the outdoor drinking area.

We returned again three years later.

This was another evening visit on Tuesday 23rd June 1998 and as you can see we managed to moor Emma Jane right outside the pub. (Not allowed these days!) Since our last visit, The Greyhound had been branded as a Banks's pub, but was unchanged inside.

It was quite a while before we stopped there again; mainly because it is a very popular spot and moorings can be difficult to find!

This was on the evening of Tuesday 31st May 2005 as we were taking Emma Jane to Nuneaton to get the roof replaced. Still a Banks's pub, but no upper level hanging baskets/window boxes and the fence around the patio area has gone.

This next picture was taken on the morning of Tuesday 26th May 2009 as we made a stop to get rid of our waste and rubbish at the British Waterways facilities nearby.

We weren't there at opening time, so we moved on.

Next time we were passing, again we didn't stop, but I still too a picture!

This was taken on the afternoon of Tuesday 31st May 2011 and the exterior was being redecorated (which explains the lack of hanging baskets!).

Our most recent visit was in 2014 and we actually went into the pub this time (twice!).

This picture was taken on the evening of Monday 6th October 2014 and, although we did go in the pub, we left after one pint. It was so busy we couldn't get a seat meaning that we couldn't eat in. So, that evening we ended up in Coventry for a curry! However, we did return a couple of days later and, although it was still busy, we did manage to get a very good lunch there.

The Greyhound has ostensibly stayed the same throughout the years, but has subtly kept pace with the times - note the smoking shelter, first visible in the 2009 picture. It continues to be a popular pub and, unlike many establishments in prime locations, the service is good and it is always a pleasure to visit (if you can get a seat!). If you're in the area it is well worth a visit - http://www.greyhoundinn.org/ 

#161 The Bridge Inn, Chirk Bank, Shropshire : 1996 to 2014

Our first trip along the Llangollen Canal was back in 1996. This photo was taken on the evening of Tuesday 27th August 1996 on our way back from Llangollen.

Back in those days it was a Banks's pub and was a friendly local. In the distance you can see the Chirk Aqueduct and running parallel, but higher, the railway viaduct.

We didn't return until lunchtime on Saturday 1st September 2007, again on the way back from Llangollen.

The outside of the pub had had a complete makeover including an outside terraced seating area. Judging from the date, I assume this outdoor area was installed for the smokers as this was just two months after the smoking ban was introduced.

Our most recent visit was on the evening of Monday 21st April 2014.

It was late as we'd already eaten at The Poacher's where we'd moored. We decided that a stroll was in order to prevent us drinking too much too quickly if we stayed in the same place! There didn't appear to be too many changes and I'm assuming that it is still a Marston's pub.

Subsequently, I've found their website which makes interesting reading. A very pleasant pub and well worth a visit if you are in the neighbourhood.

#153 The Lock, Wolverley, Worcestershire : 1987 to 2013

Our first ever visit to The Lock at Wolverley was on Tuesday 7th July 1987 as part of an epic journey that took us down to Worcester and as far north as Middlewich.

For boaters like us it has the perfect location, being adjacent to the canal lock. This photo was taken from our boat as we passed through this lock before mooring up for a lunchtime stop. As I recall it was quite small inside, but felt cosy and welcoming in the traditional pub style - and the food was good as well.

We didn't return for another ten years, again for a lunchtime stopover on Wednesday 28th May 1997.

This photo (not one of my best!) is taken from the road bridge over the canal and you can see the lock gates through the barrier. As I recall the pub was pretty much as we'd found it last time.

We were back again quite quickly with another lunchtime visit on Wednesday 2nd June 1999. The weather wasn't as pleasant as on our previous visit, but the pub was as welcoming as ever. It had also undergone the Banks's exterior re-branding that was prevalent at the time. Inside it hadn't changed much.

 This view is from a little up the hill away from the canal and shows the re-branding at its best.

This view again shows just how close the pub is to the canal!

That was our last visit to The Lock as on the occasions we've been that way subsequently the timings haven't been right for a stop. However, on our most recent trip along the Staffs & Worcs Canal I took this picture from the lock as we were passing through on the morning of Thursday 16th May 2013.

From the exterior view it would appear that it is no longer a Banks's pub and a search of the Marston's website confirms this. Judging by The Lock Inn website it would appear that it is now an independent pub. Hopefully it will still be there when we next venture down the Staffs & Worcester Canal and, if the timing is right, we'll pop in to see how it has changed in the passing 27 years.