THE Crown and Kettle is one of the great comeback stories. In 1989 the Grade II listed hostelry on the corner of Oldham Road and Great Ancoats Street was abandoned after an arson attack, its stunning interior seemingly doomed never to be seen by the public again. It remained boarded up for 16 years until it was restored and reopened in 2005.
Now a decade on this cask ale bastion has been named Greater Manchester’s regional finalist in the Campaign for Real Ale’s Pub of the Year competition. It is up against 15 other pubs from across the country, competing for the coveted national title, the result to be announced in February 2016.
The other regional winners are: Berkhamsted's Rising Sun; Swiffling's White Horse; Ashover's Old Poet's Corner; Orpington's One Inn The Wood; Broadstairs' Yard of Ale; St Helens' Cricketers Arms; South Shields' Steamboat; Cheltenham's Sandford Park Ale House; Edinburgh's Stockbridge Tap; Newdigate's Surrey Oaks; Pontypridd's Bunch of Grapes; Little London's Plough Inn; Carlisle's Drovers Rest and Sheffield's Kelham Island Tavern.
Previous national title winners from Greater Manchester include The Baum in Rochdale (2012) and The Nursery in Heaton Norris (2001). If ornate ceilings were the key judging factor the C&K would walk way with it; ditto with a colourful history. With the Express Building next door it once served as a watering hole for its journalists. The legendary story is of one tired and emotional hack trying to get in and being thrown out by the landlord; undaunted he tried the next entrance and then a further one with the same result. At the third door he asked the landlord, “Do you own all the pubs round here?”
There has been a (single) pub on the site since 1734 when a footnote on a drawing mentioned a pub called the “Iron Dish and Cob of Coal”. The current building dates back to the early 19th century.
Under current landlord Jason Stephenson the pub stocks nine cask ales and six keg beers plus a further selection of 30 bottled and canned craft beers and 25 ciders.
The Crown and Kettle is one of 159 Greater Manchester pubs among 4,500 listed nationally in CAMRA’s 2016 Good Beer Guide (£10 online price).
Crown & Kettle, 2 Oldham Road, M4 5FE. Tel: 0161 236 2923.