Brownswood, London

Probably built 1864 (landlord list on pubology goes back to that date). Three-storey ex-Wenlock Brewery Victorian pub of London brick with larvikite on the ground floor and with good carved plasterwork decoration in the spandrels. Old photos show Wenlock and Bass signage on external walls. Locally listed in Hackney as a Victorian public house. An old, undated plan appears to show two bars – a saloon and a public bar – on either side of a central staircase, rather than the layout described below. No information exists about when this layout was modified, but reports suggest a substantial refurbishment in 2010-11 when some (further?) opening up seems to have taken place.

The pub has five original doors, but only one is now in use. There is a long bar on the Green Lanes side with a very good vestibule entrance with curved etched-glass windows but a modern tiled floor. The bar counter in this room is old/original with modern panels added and painted grey. The bar back is good featuring an engraved mirror and other plain mirror panels. Parts of the wooden structure may have been replaced relatively recently, but the etched glass is likely to be old. On the right are (rare) two mirror panels where the lower one rises and there is a (non-working) dumb waiter. Good cornice in the main bar. Good wood surround fireplace on the right with excellent mantelpiece with mirrored sections with the main one being an old ‘Bass in Bottle’ mirror. There are two good ceiling roses. There are remnants of former partitions which have been shortened and possibly moved from their original positions. Here, some glass contains transfers and is not genuinely etched. The wide opening on the rear right of the bar leads to a modern, open kitchen.

There is also a wide opening between the main bar and a smaller bar to the rear left of the pub. Here, there is an old curved bar counter, possibly inter-war, in unpainted wood; a quarter circle old bar back in decorated wood contains sconces with casks in them which are not in use. This seems likely to be older than the servery in the main bar. There is another Bass mirror in this room (marked “BO” on the bottom). Good arch for staff within servery with carved wood decoration in the spandrels.

The upstairs room has no old fittings.