The Downend Tavern in Fishponds recently reopened after almost four years (hurrah), and it’s got us thinking about some other pubs in the city we would love to see back up and running.
For some pubs, there are campaigns to restore them, but for others it is too late and they become housing or are knocked down altogether.
Have a look through our list of closed, abandoned and boarded up pubs we’d love to have a pint in again one day soon. Have we missed any?
1. The Bell, Redcliffe
The Bell in Prewitt Street remains sadly unused and slowly crumbling since closing in 2008. The pub, which is believed to date from 1750, will almost certainly be demolished despite being added to the Buildings at Risk register from Save Britain’s Heritage in 2023. In 2019 there were plans to demolish the pub and build a four-storey block of flats. | Google
2. Google
Farriers Arms remains derelict after no progress has been made since permission to grant demolition was rejected in 2021. The pub on Fishponds Road, has been closed since 2010 and has remained empty for the last 14 years. The pub, which was built in 1872, is expected to be absorbed into the next door Morrison's superstore. | Farriers Arms, Fishponds
3. The Rhubarb Tavern, Barton Hill
The derelict Rhubarb Tavern in Queen Ann Road is believed to date back to 1672. It has been closed since 2020 and there has been a campaign to keep it open after plans were submitted to turn it into flats. | Google
4. The Assembly, Bedminster
The Assembly pub on East Street was most recently converted into a short-lived bar and club called Cheekies in 2021, and was due to go under the hammer in an auction through estate agents Maggs Allen for a guide price of £600,000 at the end of last month. The pub has been marketed for at least 12 months with no takers to start running it again, while there is a planning application to create two separate HMOs for up to 12 people in the first and second floors upstairs. | Maggs and Allen