Press Release
Liverpool Philharmonic pub becomes Grade I listed
11 pubs have received listings updates and upgrades as part of a listing project to protect rare historic interiors
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- Liverpool’s Philharmonic pub has been upgraded to Grade I, making it the first purpose-built Victorian pub in England to be given the highest level of designation for a historic building
- A further two Grade II* and eight Grade II pubs across England have had their listings updated to include further information about their interiors. This includes four of only eight pubs in the UK known to have no bar counter
- Historic England’s work to protect historic pub interiors is in collaboration with the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) Pub Heritage Group
The Philharmonic Dining Rooms, Liverpool, has been upgraded to Grade I by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on the advice of Historic England, making it the first purpose-built, Victorian public house to receive a Grade I listing.
Regarded as a ‘cathedral among pubs’ for its opulence, the Philharmonic was one of the most spectacular pubs to be completed at the end of the 19th century, known as the ‘golden age’ of pub building. It now joins the top 2.5% of protected historic buildings in England such as Buckingham Palace, Chatsworth House and Liverpool’s Anglican Cathedral Church of Christ in gaining the highest listed status.
In addition, two Grade II* and eight Grade II listed pubs have had their listings updated following recent inspections to include further information about their important historic interiors, adding new information and interior descriptions.
The list of pubs was proposed by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) Pub Heritage Group, part of an on-going collaboration between Historic England and CAMRA to protect historic pubs and their interiors.
Duncan Wilson, Chief Executive, Historic England said: “English pubs are some of our best-loved community buildings and are often threatened with closure so we are delighted to see 11 historic pubs receiving further protection. We are proud that the Liverpool Philharmonic pub, a remarkable survival from the Victorian era, has been given a Grade I listing which will help maintain and preserve its outstanding interior fittings and exterior fabric for the future. The 11 pubs range from the opulent Philharmonic in Liverpool and the picturesque Rose and Crown in Somerset, to a London pub with links to Bartholomew Fair. All of them fully deserve the protection given by listing.”
Paul Ainsworth, Chairman of CAMRA’s Pub Heritage Group said: “So few of England’s 40,500 pubs retain interiors which have not suffered major alterations over the years. CAMRA has identified 280 pubs whose interiors it considers to be of national historic importance, and we feel it is vital for these precious survivors to be preserved for future generations to enjoy. The majority of these pubs are listed and the new detailed listing descriptions will enhance their protected status and give the public more information about the delights they contain.”
Helen Whately, Heritage Minister said: “For centuries, the local pub has been a place for people to come together. The 11 protected today are each original and important in their own way, and their updated listings will help to protect their cultural and historical heritage for years to come.”
THE PHILHARMONIC DINING ROOMS, HOPE STREET, LIVERPOOL – GRADE I LISTED
The Philharmonic Dining Rooms is a public house built from 1898-1900 by the Liverpudlian architect Walter W Thomas. Built in an exuberant freestyle, this iconic building is a striking example of Victorian architecture in the city centre, which was first Grade II* listed in 1966. The three-storey building has been reassessed and upgraded to Grade I for its outstanding architectural quality and magnificent interior. The exterior features elaborate carvings, Art Nouveau elements including metal gates by the architect and designer Henry Bloomfield Bare, and stone sculptures of musicians and musical instruments in low relief. The interior includes rich work in copper, mahogany, plaster and glass. Unusually, the gentlemen’s toilet also survives from its original Victorian design and features high-quality decoration.
NATIONWIDE LISTING UPDATES
Two Grade II* and eight Grade II listed pubs from across the country have had their listings updated to include further information about their historic interiors.
Liverpool
Joining the Philharmonic, two further Liverpool pubs have been reassessed, with their Grade II* and Grade II listings updated to include their important interiors. Walter W Thomas also designed Grade II* listed The Vines (Lime Street). Built in 1907, The Vines’ upmarket, Edwardian interior is opulent and decorative, featuring rich, original mahogany woodwork and plasterwork, and a large stained-glass dome in the former billiards room. The separate lounge bar, public bar and smoke room survive well, as do a number of striking fireplaces. Peter Kavanagh’s (Egerton Street) – an eccentric and much-loved Grade II listed pub that was re-designed by its landlord and inventor of the same name, includes various unique features including carved ‘corbels’ (wall brackets) thought to be caricatures of the pub’s regulars, and original tables designed by Kavanagh, with channels for spilt drinks and in-built ashtrays.
West Sussex
Originally listed as 18th century or earlier, the revised entry for the Grade II listed Blue Ship (The Haven, Billingshurst) shows that it was originally a 16th-century cottage that was converted into a pub in the 1850s, and subsequently remodelled and expanded later in the century. It serves as a good example of how modest vernacular buildings were converted into licensed public houses following the 1830 Beer Act. The Blue Ship is one of only eight pubs in the UK known to have no bar counter. The updated listing now refers to the pub’s rare, still-surviving taproom ‘servery’ arrangement from the 1850s.
London
Two important London pubs from the Victorian era have had their listings updated to include information about their interiors. The Grade II listed, mid-19th century Hand and Shears (Middle Street, Smithfield) retains its public, saloon and private bars, and has a range of intact late 19th century fittings. The pub also has important historical links; to Bartholomew Fair, one of England’s most important medieval fairs, and its “Pye Poudre Court” – a court of medieval original convened at the pub to keep order and settle merchants’ disputes.
The Grade II listed Coach and Horses (Greek Street, Soho) is famously associated with a regular cast of prominent writers, artists, musicians and actors, including Francis Bacon, Lucien Freud, Peter O’Toole and John Hurt, and as a meeting place for The Spectator and Private Eye magazines. The pub’s famously debauched atmosphere was captured in Keith Waterhouse’s 1989 play ‘Jeffrey Bernard is Unwell’, in which its interior was faithfully recreated for the stage of the nearby Apollo Theatre. The pub’s listing now includes reference to this recent history, as well as to its historic origins as an early 18th-century pub of the same name. The present building dates from the 1840s but had its unusual cast-iron columns added in 1889. The interior was remodelled in the 1930s by Taylor, Walker & Co and this survives remarkably well, with bar fittings, signage and the partition screens all retained.
Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire
A historic pub sitting in the centre of Salisbury, Wiltshire, the Grade II* listed Haunch of Venison is a well-preserved building dating from the 15th century, though there is evidence of a pub of the same name at the site since the 1300s. The building retains clear evidence of its evolution from a church house in the 1400s into a public house, and it was refurbished in around 1909. It has its traditional layout of divided drinking spaces, with a small ladies snug, and still contains fittings from its 1909 refurbishment including a rare and elaborate bank of spirit pumps.
The Grade II listed Square and Compass (Worth Matravers, Dorset) is an 18th-century pub with 19th-century extensions. The layout and arrangements, without a bar counter, and with serving hatches from the rear ‘servery’, is now a rare survival, and adds to the building’s claims to special interest.
Two Somerset pubs have had their listings updated to reflect their important interiors. The distinctive and picturesque Grade II listed Rose and Crown (Huish Episcopi) dates from around 1800. Without a bar counter, it instead has a ‘servery’ area customers can walk into containing shelves and hand pumps. This pub was also refitted in the interwar period and retains various features from that time. Earlier fabric survives too, including flag-stone floors, timber joinery and the fireplace. Attached to the rear is a 19th-century skittle alley – a relatively common feature in Somerset, though rare nationally. Grade II listed Tucker’s Grave Inn (Radstock) is a pub thought to be named after the burial site of local farmworker Edward Tucker, who in 1747 is reputed to have taken his life and, according to contemporary practise, was buried at a crossroads nearby. Originally an 18th-century cottage, it was licensed as a pub by the early 1800s. It has no bar counter, the casks of beer and cider being stacked below the window of the central public bar. It also has hand-painted signage to the taproom. Thought to date from the 19th century, it may be among the earliest known to survive nationally.
Staffordshire
The Red Lion (Rugeley, Staffordshire) is Grade II listed 19th-century pub that originated as a house in the early 1600s. It is an early building within central Rugeley and is one of the last surviving 17th century buildings on what once was a busy commercial street. The pub retains substantial fabric from its origins and from the different stages of its development. It also retains an unusual salt safe and elements of an inter-war pub interior, including panelling and fireplaces.
www.historicengland.org.uk @HistoricEngland
www.camra.org.uk @CAMRA_Official
NOTES TO EDITORS
Although the term ‘public house’ can be traced back to the 1600s, the ‘pub’ as a distinct building type emerged in the mid-1800s. It brought together and developed three earlier types of building – the inn, tavern and alehouse.
Press images: https://photos.app.goo.gl/kcnWUwU9kSkWPoS49
For more information please contact:
emma.double@HistoricEngland.org.uk / 07825 192 944
press@camra.org.uk / 01727 798 452
About Historic England
We are Historic England, the public body that helps people care for, enjoy and celebrate England’s spectacular historic environment, from beaches and battlefields to parks and pie shops. We protect, champion and save the places that define who we are and where we’ve come from as a nation. We care passionately about the stories they tell, the ideas they represent and the people who live, work and play among them. Working with communities and specialists we share our passion, knowledge and skills to inspire interest, care and conservation, so everyone can keep enjoying and looking after the history that surrounds us all. For over 20 years we have managed the Heritage at Risk Register, our tool for shining a light on the listed buildings and places in England that need the most help.
About CAMRA
CAMRA, the Campaign for Real Ale, is a not-for-profit consumer group with more than 191,000 members that has been operating since 1971. Our vision is to have quality real ale and thriving pubs in every community.
Listing
The National Heritage List for England is held and managed by Historic England on behalf of the Government and Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport. It identifies the buildings, sites and landscapes which receive special protection, so they can be enjoyed by current and future generations. There are over 400,000 items on the List, covering England’s most valued historic places. You can now use the map on our website to find your nearest listed buildings using our new ‘near-me’ function. Follow this link and click on the ‘Use current location’ button to view your nearest list entries. For further information, see What is Listing?
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