#013 Carpenter's Arms, Digbeth : 1998 to 2018 (Revisited)

First off, here's what I wrote in 2011: -

Back in 1998 I went around the Digbeth/Deritend/Highgate area of Birmingham taking photos of all the pubs I could find. It was my intention to return in 10 years to see how the Birmingham Eastside development had affected these pubs. I didn't find the time in 2008 and so, finally, I revisited the area this year with my camera and these are the results.  This is the fourth in my 'Eastside' series.

  This is another pub that I've never set foot in, but it was a pleasant surprise to find another attractive looking 'local'. That was 1998, but I've kept an eye out for this pub when I've been passing over the years. I was concerned that when I came back it wouldn't be there any more as it was boarded up and there was a lot of demolition work going on in the vicinity. When I went back this year it was transformed into something that I would never even have thought about in 1998!

So, here we are in 2011 and the pub has become Moon Shisha Lounge. These types of establishment had started to appear around Birmingham, but I thought the smoking ban had put paid to them...obviously not! (Although, this venue was prosecuted by Birmingham City Council for a wrongly designed outside smoking area!) I know next to nothing about Shisha, so here is a link (Broken) to help you as well. Anyway, if a pub isn't viable then it is good to see it being put to use rather than being erased from the landscape.

 I went back again in 2014 to find that it was apparently closed.

Finally, we get to 2018 and this is what now occupies the space.

It is now a vape store which has opening hours that any pub would be proud of - 11 am to 2 am! As far as I can gather from the website it has morphed into a coffee and vaping shop where you can buy your favourite vaping product and chill out with a coffee and a vape at the same time. Sounds very civilised to me, if that's your sort of thing.

Digbeth Update

It is almost three years since I went around the Digbeth area taking pictures of the surviving pubs. I was in the area this week taking pictures, mostly non-pub related and I noticed that in the passing three years very little has changed, at least as far as the pubs go (Lots of other things have changed, but the pubs seem to be quite stable for the time being). However there are a couple of examples that are worth reporting.

Back in 2011, the pub that was formerly The Carpenters Arms had been turned into the Moon Shisha Lounge (see #013 on this blog). Unfortunately that has now also closed. I'm not sure when it happened, but I don't think there is much chance of anything pub related returning to this site.

The other story is much more upbeat. In 2011 I wasn't sure whether The Woodman was still open nor what the future held for it (see #056 on this blog).

After I wrote that blog it was closed for some time, but since September 2013 it has been restored to its former glory and open for business again. I haven't been back in, yet, but the details can be seen here on their website.

Although it currently stands a bit on its own, hopefully, the development of the surrounding area and the building of HS2 will lead to a secure future for this magnificent building.

For any other Digbeth related information, I always refer to the excellent blog Digbeth is Good.

#013 Carpenter's Arms, Digbeth : 1998 to 2011

Back in 1998 I went around the Digbeth/Deritend/Highgate area of Birmingham taking photos of all the pubs I could find. It was my intention to return in 10 years to see how the Birmingham Eastside development had affected these pubs. I didn't find the time in 2008 and so, finally, I revisited the area this year with my camera and these are the results. 
This is the fourth in my 'Eastside' series.

 This is another pub that I've never set foot in, but it was a pleasant surprise to find another attractive looking 'local'. That was 1998, but I've kept an eye out for this pub when I've been passing over the years. I was concerned that when I came back it wouldn't be there any more as it was boarded up and there was a lot of demolition work going on in the vicinity. When I went back this year it was transformed into something that I would never even have thought about in 1998!

So, here we are in 2011 and the pub has become Moon Shisha Lounge. These types of establishment had started to appear around Birmingham, but I thought the smoking ban had put paid to them...obviously not! (Although, this venue was prosecuted by Birmingham City Council for a wrongly designed outside smoking area!) I know next to nothing about Shisha, so here is a link to help you as well. Anyway, if a pub isn't viable then it is good to see it being put to use rather than being erased from the landscape.