The Mug House
The only known pub to stand in a
churchyard is The Mug House which stands on consecrated ground alongside the
churchyard of Claines parish church near Worcester. This timber framed pub is 600 years old and
was used as a coaching inn to cater for the aristocracy who had a distance to
travel to the church. The name ‘mug’
may be connected with old time communion plate or perhaps it simply related to
the clinching of a deal over a ‘mug’ of ale.
Although much altered over the years it still retains the air of an
ancient inn.
The Slip Inn
It is not unusual for a pub to be
called The Slip
Inn, a place to slip in for a quick
drink! However, The Slip
Tavern at Much Marcle in
Herefordshire is a bit different and recalls an unusual event which occurred
nearby in the year 1575 - ‘ the wonder
land slip’, as depicted on the inn sign.
Apparently Marcle Hill started moving at 6.0pm on 7th
February of that year and was still moving three days later, during which time
some 26 acres of the hill moved a distance of 400 yards, leaving a trail of
destruction in its wake. It crossed two
roads, demolishing a chapel, trees were uprooted and livestock was killed. No logical explanation has ever been found
for this landslip.
Ye Olde Trip
to Jerusalem Inn
A claimant for the oldest pub in
England title, Ye Olde Trip
to Jerusalem Inn at Nottingham, is certainly one of the strangest
old inns. Situated in Brewhouse Yard
beneath Nottingham Castle, the cellars of the inn are actually cut into the great
rock on which the castle stands. The
pub certainly dates back to the time of the Crusades and it is said to have
been well frequented by the Crusader’s.
© Copyright JThomas and licensed for reuse under this Creative Commons Licence.
To whom I am grateful for the use of his Geograph photograph
The Royal Children Inn
The Cuckoo Bush
Inn
You may not wish to linger in the village of Gotham in
Nottinghamshire when you hear about the antics of the locals, but then it all
happened a long time ago, and it explains the origins of The Cuckoo Bush Inn in the village It actually relates to the 16th
century ‘ Merrie Tales of the Mad Men of Gotham,’ which tells of the antics of a crazy group 'who built a hedge around a cuckoo in a bush to keep it and spring all
the year round. They also tried to drown an eel, put a cart on top of a barn to protect the roof from the sun and
burned down a forge to get rid of a wasps nest.'
Although referred to as ‘mad men’, their antics may have been
designed to deter King John from building a hunting lodge in the middle of such
a crazy village!
The Bramley Apple
Inn
An apple tree which was grown from a pip in about 1805,
became famous as the Bramley apple tree. Fifty years later Mr Bramley, of Easthorpe,
Southwell in Nottinghamshire, allowed
grafts to be taken on the condition that they carried his name and so
perpetuated the name Bramley. The
original tree still grows in the garden behind Bramley Tree House at Easthorpe
and gives its name to the local pub, The Bramley
Apple Tree Inn.
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Mr Bramley's garden
The Tin Hat
The Tin Hat pub in Trent Road at Hinkley in Leicestershire
is a relatively modern pub which was built on a housing estate on the outskirts
of the town in the 1980’s. The pub got its name as a result of a competition
for that purpose.
Hinkley was known for many years as ‘Tin ‘At’ supposedly as
a result of a supposed incident when a 19th century itinerant sheep
drover, who was drinking in a local pub, bragged that he could drink a hat full
of ale. It is said that the landlord put the man to the test by having a tin
hat made by a local blacksmith – apparently it held some 34 pints of ale. We
are not told whether or not the itinerant completed the task.
A tin hat certainly appears on the town coat of arms and a
tin hat can be seen on the top of a flag pole belonging to a local building
society.
Another explanation for the tin hat is that it originated as a metal
bucket placed on top of the town water pump to keep the water clean, something
that was probably given the derisory name of tin hat by drunken visitors to the
town making it a derogatory item.
It appears that there was a tin hat which changed hands on a
number of occasions and it, or a replica, is said to be in possession of the
local civic society.
The Bear Inn
In 1766, The Bear Inn at Bisley in Gloucestershire moved its
business from its former building where it had been trading since 1639, to its
present location in a very fine Tudor building, with later Jacobean and Georgian additions, in George Street. This building
was formerly the village Court house and Assembly Rooms with five Jacobean columns supporting the upper
floor at the front of the building. It retains many of its historic features and a fine 17th century Inglenook in the bar. The rock hewn cellars contain a well said to be 58 feet deep.
The Cheese Rollers
This village pub at Shurdington in Gloucestershire is close
to Cooper’s Hill and reminds us of a
strange contest which takes place each year at May Bank Holiday and has done so
for at least 200 years. Quite simply, a 7lb double Gloucester cheese is rolled
down this very steep grassy hill to be chased by the competitors. It is said
that the slope has a gradient that is in places 1 in 2 and in others 1 in 1,
its surface being very rough and uneven and it is almost impossible to remain
on foot during the decent. Although the
aim is to catch the cheese which reaches a speed of up to 70 mph, this is not
likely to be achieved and the winner is the one who reaches the finishing line
first, with the cheese being the prize. The event has been summarised as “
twenty young men chase a cheese off a cliff and tumble 200 yards to the bottom
where they are scraped up by paramedics and packed off to hospital.” Sprained ankles, broken bones and concussion
are the usual injuries but the event remains ever popular attracting
competitors from all over the world.
Cooper Hill
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