Pub preservation campaigners are in shock over ‘inappropriate and destructive’ plans to modernise two of Otley’s oldest inns.
Otley Pub Club have condemned brewer Heineken over their plans to convert the Black Bull and White Swan into trendy, city-style bars with industrial furniture and open plan seating. These are 12 of the oldest pubs in Yorkshire The two historic taverns were purchased by Heineken’s pub company, Star Pubs and Bars, in 2017. The Grade II-listed buildings are both inside the boundaries of the Otley Conservation Area. This is the best pub in Yorkshire according to the Good Beer Guide The plans for the Black Bull, which dates back to the 16th century, show that the inn’s old frontage and heritage signs would be replaced by modern ‘steakhouse’ stencilling. The company has stated that it wants the Black Bull to become a ‘modern, stylish’ pub.
The Black Bull was where Oliver Cromwell’s soldiers are said to have drunk just before fighting in the Battle of Marston Moor during the English Civil War. Over the years a wealth of historic finds have been made there, including an 18th-century Continue reading →
LONDON: With the final brass “toad” nestled at the bottom of the hole, team members from the Black Horse club jumped in the air to chest bump after becoming world champions at one of Britain’s more obscure pub games.Toad, which is said to have originated in France hundreds of years ago, involves throwing four large brass coins, or “toads”, at a small hole on a lead square nearly eight feet (2.44 meters) away.Two points are awarded for throwing a toad in the hole, with one point awarded for landing it on the lead table.”Is toad skilful? Absolutely. You’ll see players with varying techniques and skills that they’ve honed over a period of time,” competitor Bryan Vaananen told Reuters.
“You can’t just rock up and chuck it in the hole.”The Black Horse came out victorious at Wednesday’s championship at a hall in the team’s home town of Lewes in southern England. More than 50 teams vied for the title, an increase on last year’s entrants.The game is hugely popular in the East Sussex town, having waned elsewhere in English pubs amid competition from darts and pool.