Crown Posada, Newcastle upon Tyne

Rebuilt 1880 (architect W.L. Newcombe) for local brewer John Sanderson, this is a three story pub on a narrow site which retains its three drinking areas, one behind the other. The front windows contain two impressive Pre-Raphaelite style stained glass windows which may be by Birmingham artist Edward Burne-Jones and are believed to have been a later addition. One window depicts a lady serving a drink and the other a Tudor gent about to consume it. Originally the Crown, and renamed Crown Posada, legend has it that the pub was bought by a Spanish sea captain for his mistress (Posada is the Spanish word for resting place).

Owners since 1901 are the long-established, family-run business Sir John Fitzgerald, who have made a number of careful refurbishments over the years and much of the fixed leather seating, panelling and other woodwork are likely to be true replicas of the originals. In the 1980s they replaced the windows running down the right-hand side, which only overlooked an alley, with a series of mirrors with mahogany surrounds. Behind the wallpaper are some old wall paintings (claimed to date back to the Spanish Civil War) which see the light of day when the pub is re-decorated approximately every 15 years!

Look for the unusual stone painted blue with carved crown symbol and the word ‘Posada’ on the exterior and the glazed brick lobby with a wrought-iron ‘Crown’ gate. The long narrow interior has a high ornate moulded ceiling with deeply recessed panels. There is a delightful small screened-off snug at the front left-hand side which has lost its door. You can order your drinks from the side of the servery but originally this was covered by a curtain and service was via the tiny hinged stained glass window attached to the bar back. The fixed seating is post war.

The bar fittings are essentially original but have some modern replacements such as the mirrors and stained & leaded panels on top section on the four-bay mahogany bar-back fitting, and the pot shelf is a later addition. Only recently was permission given to replace a small section of the lower bar-back fitting with a couple of small fridges. The two side panels of the screen that separated the front public bar from the rear sitting room remain and have good colourful leaded pictorial panels at the top but, again, the door has been lost.

The last major change was in the early 1950s when new ladies' and gents' toilets were added at the rear (formerly a disused warehouse) and the seating area at the rear was extended slightly. The present fixed seating was likely to have been added in the early 1950s. The gents' has a terrazzo floor and the doors to both the ladies' and gents' are of an inter-war style and, again, could date from the early 1950s.

Music comes from a 1941 turntable record player situated on the bar counter and customers are encouraged to bring their vinyl LP's to play.