Recent content by John L

It must have been bestcover, I don't know of any other one and I made it my duty to become very familiar with all of the city centre pubs. :D

The photograph might suggest that Lyn, but it isn't the pleasant road to walk down, that it was even forty years ago and that is very much more so the case at night. It was sad to see the trees go and it is even sadder to see the road that I grew up in become unwelcoming, unsafe and threatening. :(

Still there now too, nice to see that something is. ;)

Yes, it is Brian (I confused the two) :oops:, but my reference to the litter/graffiti refers to the chapel pictured below, that is sited on the other side of the road from The Bull pub near the flyover. I've noted that it seems to be no longer in use now, when attending our monthly pub quizzes.

I believe that it has closed down now. It certainly is currently in a sorry state, with litter and graffiti upon/around it. There is a link to an article in "The Dispatch" below, that confirms that it was struggling to survive two years ago. :(...

I was thinking about the name, rather than the pub in Stratford bestcover. Was it one of these two:

It looks like it, they have really gone to some trouble haven't they? Unbelievable.... :rolleyes:

AI has it that, "The brass plaque commemorating the Archway of Tears remains on site near the Western Road entrance of the former City Hospital (formerly Dudley Road Hospital), mounted on a surviving brick stump or pedestal where the gateway once stood."

Another couple of photographs from 1977:

I had a look on Wednesday and will continue the search. Where were the colours presented?

Illustrations of that day and a pewter medal struck to mark the occasion:

Such sad news. RIP Alberta, my thoughts are with her family and friends (including those many friends that she made on here) at this difficult time.

I wonder if quite so many of our pubs would have been closed, quite so fast had the 1989 Act not put a limit on tied house numbers? I was doing a little investigating last week, into the location in Wiltshire in which my grandfather's family had lived before he came up to Birmingham for work...

The council who have taken over the running of Aston Hall, said that they wouldn't be selling off any of the "family silver". I trust that still applies? I would have thought that opening the café, would help to meet running cost too, surely someone who lives locally, would be willing to run...

Another nice Ansells advert from an old football programme (1937). Who wouldn't help themselves to a glass?;)