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Chapel Tavern

Vivienne14

Vivienne14

Kentish Brummie Moderator
Staff member
The Chapel Tavern was on the corner of Great Charles Street. The old photo (1930s/40s ?) is looking up towards St Paul's church along Ludgate Hill. It must have been taken from Church Street. Since the time of the old photo Great Charles Street Queensway has been built - and the road widened I think.

There's an interesting structure adjoining the building on the far left, next to the two parked cars. Is it an air raid shelter exit? Viv.

image.jpeg image.jpeg
 
yes viv i think it could well be a shelter exit or entrance...had a good look at it and it looks brick built to me

lyn
 
Viv,

I've been looking for a pic of the Chapel Tavern ever since I joined this Forum in 2004. So thank you very much.

Briefly in the late 1950s it was what amounted to the Archer Street of Birmingham, where musicians gathered upstairs of a Saturday lunchtime to jam together, and to discuss what gigs they had or had not, and to find musicians to make up a band.
Amongst the players at that time were Johnny Patrick, the late Colin Willetts, Vince Thomas, & Johnny Beck. For non-players the charge was one shilling and for quite a while no one interfered.

Eventually someone tipped off the Musicians Union and they didn't like the fact that musicians were performing for free - the shilling went towards the cost of hiring the room. After some discussion, my understanding was that it was agreed with John Morton of the M.U. that the shillings would go directly to the Union and the Union would take care of the cost of room hire. What we did have to ensure was that anyone who played had to be a paid-up member of the Union. That was not a real problem as most players were or had been M.U. members, although two I knew of had let their subscriptions lapse, so it was necessary to regularise that or they couldn't play. It was still going in January 1961 when I left Birmingham.

Maurice
 
Very glad the photo struck a chord Maurice!! Sound like you have fond memories of the place. Viv.
 
Viv,

As a pub or a building, it meant little to me, but it triggers great memories of fellow musicians of the time, many of whom I haven't heard of for around 57 years, and a few of which I know are no longer with us - Colin Willetts, Mike Burney, Pete Airey, Pat Sweetman, to name a few. We never drank downstairs or knew any of the pub's regulars or went in there other than of a Saturday lunchtime. I've no idea how these Saturday sessions started - word just got around. As far as I know, the pub wasn't known for its music, but nice to see a picture of it again after all those years.

Maurice
 
I went to work in that area 1960/61 and on my first day I was surprised to hear the question asked by someone "Are you going to The Chapel at lunch time ?".
I kept my head down and thought I was going to be working with a load of bible thumpers.
To my great pleasure I was put straight as to it being the nearest pub and went there on a fairly daily basis. As it was always mobbed (being near The Eye Hospital ?) our regular pitch was in the marble tiled corridor and the usual lunch was a beef sandwich made with very rare beef and dripping instead of butter and a couple of pints of bitter.
I think the publican's name was Peter and we had free use of the upstairs room for my farewell do when I left to come to Oz.
Maybe Astonian Alan can confirm the landlord's name.
Cheers Tim
 
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