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Tavern in the Town and The Mulberry Bush Pub Bombings

  • Thread starter Thread starter Kandor
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I have some photos of the aftermath of the damage to the Rotunda some where. I was in Corporation Street/Cherry Street when the bombs went off. I felt the ground move and then people were running past me then the sound of the emergency services arriving and a police cordon being put across Corporation Street.
 
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The shattered remains of the Mulbery Bush.
I find it very hard to post these clippings as I narrowly missed being in the tavern that evening.
 
I used to drink in the Tavern in the Town every evening but that evening I didn't have enough money so I gave it a miss and kept on working. When it reopened as the Yard of Ale it didn't have the same atmosphere as the Tavern.
 
I was learning shorthand at Sight and Sound by the Birmingham Post and Mail Building on that evening. I was not aware of the bombings until I got home on that night and it was on the news, but I do remember sirens continually going. Our teacher at the time never came back as apparently she witnessed the aftermath.
 
This brings back memories for me as the Birmingham bombings were instrumental in our leaving Birmingham to live in Lincolnshire.

I was at my mum's in Sutton that night, and my step-sister worked at Bernie Inn in town.
After we saw what had happened on the TV news my step-father went into town to find her as we hadn't heard anything from her and we couldn't get through on the phone, of course my step-father wasn't allowed near the town and had to come back home without news of her.

Thankfully we finally heard from her and that she was safe.

Our three daughters were then teenagers and beginning to want go into town in the evenings, that was when we decided to leave the city for rural Lincolnshire and hopefully a safer environment for them.

It was very traumatic at the time, and sadly a tragic time for the families affected.
 
I had been in the Tavern the night before the bombings and my sister was, we thought, in the Tavern the night of the bombings - my uncle who was an ambulance driver/crewman was at our house when the news flashed on the TV .................. we were worried to death about my sister - and my uncle had to go straight into Brum to help as he knew it would be terrible scenes. We finally heard from my sister and that she was OK, they hadn't gone into Birmingham afterall (luckily)
 
a-deserted-new-street-following-the-ira-pub-bombings-429097219.jpg emergency-services-arrive-at-the-tavern-in-the-town-707158002.jpg
The first one shows a very quiet New Street the next day and the second one was taken shortly before daybreak.
 
I have vivid memories of one incident that happened just after the police cordon went across Corporation Street. A bloke pushed his way through going up the street and when he was clear of the police line he yelled Up the Provos Up the IRA as he got to the front of Rackhams. Three blokes who were walking slowly grabbed him and beat seven bells out of him, the police turned around and ignored what was happening.
 
I've just been reading Les Robinson's (Kandor) tale as recounted by himself in todays Birmingham Mail. It's worth a read if only to remind us of exactly what happened that night and that officially no one has yet been punished for that terrible night.
 
I read the article last night Phil and remember reading Les's account on BHF of the terrible night in Brum all those years ago. The fact that no one has still been brought to justice for these terrible events is totally wrong. Thanks for posting Phil.
 
Well said Phil,

And with due deference to my friend Kandor (Les), a brilliant truthful article,
A Blues fan that this Villa man respects.


Last night a St Phillips (Pigeon Park to Brummies) a tribute was paid by many Relatives & Friends
of OUR 21 so cruelly torn away from us on that terrible night.

The Choir sang beautifully, the Poet wonderful, the reader of the 21 names,,just held firm, a Big man,
the candlelit service honouring the tomb outside,, words fail me here,

Who killed OUR kith & kin in those Pubs ? Will the truth ever be told ? John Y
 
Thanks Phil for that link. I didn't realize that Les was there that terrible night. Thank goodness Steve was made to stay at home that night by his parents. Have signed that petition John.
 
HI LES;
That was a very heart warming and damageing story of a fact that we the people of birmingham will never forget
the night of birmingham and its people was damage and the courage of all the people whom chanced there own lives in order to save and rescue strangers with there own lives sadly the police arrested the wrong people thats for sure; but the police did work hard on this case ;
they was aware of a cell net operating in the city but i beleive because of the arrest of these guys they was sure they had the right people
so they could not change there minds and release them ; but i am pretty sure the police will go through it all again;
it will take time to shift through what they have got that i do know and with gods way they think they have got it covered by getting away with it but think not as this is a political subject i have to be careful to what i can say on this forum about these guys
as i do have a angle on this ; if you pardon the expression ;
as you have said to a previuos member how do you choose which one out of your family ;you cannot ;its not just because they are irish ;
that aint got nothink to do with it ;
my wife and inlaws are irsh and my belated father inlaw came from limerick and the mother inlaw from naeice southern irland
and when all this happenend i was married into this family with my own kids growing up and i had two brotheres over in ireland fighting these
thugs ; as that whatthey was in them days ;and beleive me or not my own mother and part of my family turned there back on me and said do not bring your wife here we had a big fall out with my mother ; she hated the iris commutity just like the emediate reaction from most english people ;
but i will say alot of these guys are still around to be brought back to book ; so heavens abouve i hope the police do go through with the
opening of the files and get the real cow boys whom was responible ;
i would trul like to say more but i cannot for legal reasons ; i was not aware of the service that took place in the st phillips
i would have turned out ;at that time i was running the blarney stone pub when this kicked off; i say no more than that ;
thank god you all pulled through ; take car ; best wishes astonian;;
 
My Sister had a good friend called Linda Cox.She frequented the tavern .had her own stool by the bar ,The night of the bomb she moved away to speak to someone when the bomb exploded .Had she been sat at the bar in her usual place she would have been killed.She escaped with shrapnel wounds...but the shock was severe .however she got over it and moved to spain .If youre out there lyn .HI........xx Many were killed and badly injured and as previously stated noone has been made to pay for these hyenous crimes against innocent people ......Brummies certainly pulled together that night .!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
Hadn't read Kandors account before, how lucky you were and how brave to walk that distance, especially with burst ear drums. Glad to hear all turned out well for you and you bear no grudge against the irish, most of whom were as appalled by the actions as anyone else.
The memorial service last night sounds lovely a time to remember.
We were lucky that night, had been to town on a school trip, and went down New Street on the bus minutes before the blasts.
Sue
 
our dad was also very lucky that night sue...had he been able to stand a round with a couple of his mates he would have been in the tavern at that time but he was a bit short...he didnt go thank god...only the year before i was a regular myself at the tavern then i married and stopped going up town...

lyn
 
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It's strange how many memories forum members have. Michael and I were newly married. His best friend was supposed to meet him in the Tavern on that night. He worked at Hills Glass and the had an emergency job in so he had to cancel. We went to visit Michaels parents in Castle Bromwich and heard the blast but didn't know what it was until later. His friend lives in OZ now and has just been back on a visit we went for a meal at what was The Hunters Moon for nostalgia...a terrible time for our city and the Irish population.
 
My present husbands sister Margaret worked in the Indoor Market and she and other friends from the market went to the Tavern once a week , that week however there was a good film on in town and one of the group wanted to see it so the rest of the group , some reluctantly, gave in and went to see it.

My exhusband was on late nights as a bus driver.The buses were turned around before they reached Town but no explanation was given and it was later that he found out the reason.

I remember the radio the next day, the Ed Doolan show was awful, they had to keep cutting the broadcast as so many people were phoning in so full of hatred for the Irish.
Dreadful , because the Irish population in Birmingham,including my lovely brother in law Lexi ,R.I.P, were as shocked and outraged as we all were.
 
Every time I see threads about the pub bombings, and there are a few on this forum, most of the posts are about how hard it was for the Irish comunity. I'm amazed by how many people almost seem to forget that 21 people died, and over 200 had horrific injuries.

yes I do realise, and do remember how the Irish in Brum, some of them friends were given a hard time, I'm not condoning it, and didnt participate. but none of them died, or afaik, were badly injured as a result. So lets get a grip eh. It was nearly 40 years ago, and the powers that be have made no real effort to prove who did it, despite being given the names on several occasions.

If its not done soon it will be too late, its already getting so its not PC to even mention it.

I trust your all supporting the Justice for the 21 campaign, and have all signed the e petition.
https://justice4the21.blogspot.co.uk/

https://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/24443
 
fatfingers said:
Every time I see threads about the pub bombings, and there are a few on this forum, most of the posts are about how hard it was for the Irish comunity. I'm amazed by how many people almost seem to forget that 21 people died, and over 200 had horrific injuries.

yes I do realise, and do remember how the Irish in Brum, some of them friends were given a hard time, I'm not condoning it, and didnt participate. but none of them died, or afaik, were badly injured as a result. So lets get a grip eh. It was nearly 40 years ago, and the powers that be have made no real effort to prove who did it, despite being given the names on several occasions.

If its not done soon it will be too late, its already getting so its not PC to even mention it.

I trust your all supporting the Justice for the 21 campaign, and have all signed the e petition.
https://justice4the21.blogspot.co.uk/

https://epetitions.direct.gov.uk/petitions/24443
Click to expand...

Well said mate !
I was with the army in Germany when all that was going on. We shared a barracks and socialised with an Irish regiment. Our upstairs neighbour had a brother in "The Kesh". We got on well with them.
No one could ever accuse me of being anti-Irish but we had a deep hatred of the IRA in all its forms.
 
A post has been removed for discussion by the Admin team. It was removed as it veered into speculation. Following discussion it may be returned as was or in a modified form.
 
Don’t think we have seen this view of the Mulberry Bush ater the 1974 bombings. It appears in the February issue of the BBC Magazine History Revealed.


920004A9-2547-44C8-8267-B82295D2D9B1.jpeg
 
Some years ago I decided to write a book based around my wife's experience of the pub bombings, historical fiction the publishers termed it. In it not only did it describe the events of that night but also the impact it had on a fictional family who lost a loved one and how they coped with their loss. It was important to me to include my love of our city and those years of growing up there. A good story would have some colourful characters and there were plenty of those in our city. The plot twists and turns as the main characters lives collide. Some do bad things because they're bad - others do bad things for good reasons. Balancing the Scales is my book.
 
FNQBRUMMIE said:
Some years ago I decided to write a book based around my wife's experience of the pub bombings, historical fiction the publishers termed it. In it not only did it describe the events of that night but also the impact it had on a fictional family who lost a loved one and how they coped with their loss. It was important to me to include my love of our city and those years of growing up there. A good story would have some colourful characters and there were plenty of those in our city. The plot twists and turns as the main characters lives collide. Some do bad things because they're bad - others do bad things for good reasons. Balancing the Scales is my book.
Click to expand...
What is it called?
 
I was at Digbeth bus station with my boyfriend (later my husband) on the fateful night. We both commented on how eerily quiet it was. Not sure if the bombs had already gone off or what. I got the 55 bus back home to Bucklands End and my hubby got the Midland Red back to Solihull. When I got home my mom was beside her self with worry as to if I was ok knowing I'd be in the middle of Brum. I knew nothing of it till I got home. On going to school the next day we learnt that our class mate Jane Davis had died in one of the bombings. She was 16 years old. I remember her so well, we were all in shock. I recall it being reported in one of the newspapers saying ... What a penalty to pay for underage drinking. I think of you and your family often Jane. RIP xx
 
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