#170 Prince of Wales, Llangollen, Denbighshire : 2007 to 2014

Llangollen is a place we don't visit very often and on our first trip there in 1996 we didn't venture much beyond the town centre. On our next visit we decided to explore a bit more and one of the pubs we found was the Prince of Wales.

This was on the evening of Friday 31st August 2007. As I recall it was a fairly standard back street boozer.

The next time we returned was in a boat hired from nearby Chirk Marina, just a day's trip away from Llangollen. Again, we strode out looking for the pubs we'd seen on our last visit.

This was on the evening of Saturday 19th April 2014. Seemingly very little had changed, apart from the For Sale sign and the fact that it was closed! Another victim of the Smoking Ban?

Apparently it reopened in May 2014 and is run by the Llangollen Brewery, which, if true, is excellent news.

#169 The Red Lion, Knowle, West Midlands : 1996 to 2014

Although Knowle is only a few miles from Lapworth where our boat was moored for many years, we very rarely visit the village by boat. This is mainly because it is on a different canal (Grand Union) and the journey from there into Birmingham is far less attractive than the North Stratford Canal route.

In the days before I took a picture of every pub we visited we'd been to the Red Lion, but the first occasion I have a picture was from the evening of Sunday 7th April 1996.

Back then it had been renamed Felons & Firkin, but you can just make out that the red lion hanging sign is still there. This visit to Knowle came at the end of our first Easter trip to Stratford-upon-Avon as we had some time to kill on the way back to our moorings.

Our next visit was on the evening of Friday 31st May 2002 as the last stop on our one week trip to Banbury and back.

By this time it had reverted back to its original name and was now part of the Ember Inns chain of M&B.

It was quite a long while before we returned, this time on the evening of Sunday 28th September 2014.

This time it was at the start of a journey that started at Napton Junction and we visited Knowle before heading off to Stratford-upon-Avon. It is still part of the Ember Inns chain, but with an added 'The' to its name.

From the outside, very little has changed and I'm pleased to say that it has retained the quite magnificent hanging sign which I took a picture of a few days ago.

Inside, well that's a different matter. Back in 1996 it was a typical Firkin pub, then in 2002 it was a typical Ember Inn of that era - a cross between a pub and a wine bar - and in 2014 it was still typically an Ember Inn, but now a hybrid of a pub and a restaurant. 

#168 Ring o' Bells, Marple, Cheshire : 2000 to 2014

My first ever visit to the Ring o' Bells in Marple was during an epic canal trip from Lapworth (south of Birmingham) to Manchester and back, in a fortnight. This wasn't the first time that our narrowboat Emma Jane had been to Marple; that was back in 1989 when the boat was being moved up north. At that time I was living in Australia so was unable to partake of the delights of the Ring o' Bells.

This picture was taken on a lunchtime stop on Friday 1st September 2000. I don't remember too much about the interior apart from the fact that it was full of canal memorabilia and served good food.

Although we repeated this journey in 2010, we didn't stop in Marple so it wasn't until lunchtime on Tuesday 24th June 2014 that we next stopped in Marple.

It's amazing what tricks the mind will play on you, especially after 14 years. We moored our hire boat by Marple Junction and expected to see the Ring o' Bells just by the bridge there...but there was no pub! At somewhat of a loss to understand why such a good pub would have disappeared we wandered into the centre of Marple, had lunch and a bit of a pub crawl and headed back to the canal only to find the Ring o' Bells where it had always been - by the bridge 200 yards BEFORE the junction - doh!

On this occasion we didn't venture inside, but we rectified that situation a few months later when we popped in and had a very good meal in what is still a lovely canal themed, old style pub!

Unsurprisingly, over the 14 years the pub has been completely redecorated on the outside, now in Robinson's Grey. (Is that a shade you can get from Dulux?)

If ever you are passing through Marple, the Ring o' Bells is a pub well worth a visit for its traditional feel and good food. The website is here.

#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/ 

#166 Tilted Wig, Warwick : 1998 to 2014

As previously reported, back in 1998 our boat broke down and we spent two days exploring the hostelries of Warwick at our leisure. It is quite surprising how memory plays tricks on the mind, I hadn't remembered our 1998 visit to the Tilted Wig until I opened my picture album! (which is the reason I started taking these pictures so many years ago!)

This was on the evening of Sunday 30th August 1998 and I have no recollection of the visit! The pub is situated in the Market Square.

Although we've been back to Warwick many times since 1998, we didn't venture back to the Tilted Wig until the evening of Saturday 27th September 2014.

In the intervening 16 years, the Market Square in Warwick has become a completely pedestrian area meaning that the pub has extended the outdoor area. Obviously there have been substantial changes over the years.

What is also remarkable is that this was taken at almost 11pm and we were sitting outside the pub in short sleeves! 

#165 Bull Inn, Llangollen Denbighshire : 1996 to 2014

On our first trip to Llangollen we only stayed in the town for the lunchtime session with the Bull Inn being one of the pubs we visited.

I don't recall much about the interior as this was a long time ago on Tuesday 27th August 1996. It is a grand looking building that gained Grade II listed status in 1989. Back then it was a Burtonwood pub.

The next time we went back to the Bull Inn was for an evening stop on Friday 31st August 2007.

It was quite busy for a Friday night and seemed to be largely unchanged. I assume that it had changed brewery, but I can't make it out from this night-time photo.

Moving onto our most recent visit.

This picture was taken on the evening of Saturday 19th April 2014 and we chose not to go inside this time. It is clear from the hanging sign that it is now a Marston's pub.

It is interesting to note that the shop to the right of the pub is different on each visit, yet on the other side the Ladbrokes shop is a constant companion!

#164 Wharf Inn, Hinckley, Leicestershire : 1995 to 2014

Our first ever trip along the Ashby Canal wasn't originally planned. We were moving our boat from Winkwell near Berkhamsted on the Grand Union Canal to Lapworth on the Stratford Canal. Once we reached Hawkesbury Junction on the Coventry Canal we realised that we'd got a couple of days in hand, so off we went along the Ashby Canal.

We didn't stop at Hinckley on the way up, but made sure we had an evening stop on the way back down so that we could have a bit of a pub crawl!

This was taken on the evening of Sunday 3rd September 1995. Back in those days this was the nearest pub to the canal and was our first stop before we ventured into town. Beyond that I have little memory except that we did end up having a curry in the Indian restaurant next door.

As the Ashby Canal doesn't link to any other waterways, we didn't venture that way again for a number of years.

This picture of the Wharf Inn was taken on the evening of Sunday 29th August 2004. It had undergone a fairly extensive external refurbishment to bring it into line with the Marston's pub branding. Again it was our first port of call and again we ended up next door for a curry!

Our most recent visit was on Tuesday 7th October 2014, again an evening stop. The Wharf Inn is no longer the closest pub to the canal as there is now a Chef & Brewer as part of the Trinity Marina development. However, the Wharf Inn was our first port of call again.

In the intervening ten years the Wharf Inn has undergone another complete external refurbishment which has included the transformation of the front car park into a beer garden, but it is still a Marston's pub (and the curry house is still next door, although we didn't partake this time!)