In addition to cheap food and drink, Wetherspoons is well known for taking old buildings and giving them a new lease of life as pubs and nightlife spots.
With 10 of the chain’s pubs in Bristol, these are the stories behind each of the region’s pubs and how they turned into boozers after, in some cases, a long history.
1. The Commercial Rooms
Situated in the heart of Bristol’s old city and opposite the historic Corn Exchange, The Commercial Rooms was built in 1810 as a meeting point for the city’s traders. The retained weather vane, above the bar, would let merchants know whether it was safe for ships to negotiate the treacherous Avon Gorge. The three statues at the top of this grade II listed building represent Bristol, commerce and navigation. | Getty Images
2. V Shed
This former transit shed was one of many erected here in the City Docks around c1900. They were each identified by an individual letter. V-Shed is now this Wetherspoon pub of the same name. | Google Maps
3. The Berkeley
This was a former shopping arcade, which included Berkeley Tea Rooms. The name Berkeley has long been associated with Bristol, particularly the nearby Berkeley Square, built in the late 18th century. | Google Maps
4. The Knights Templar
The ‘leaning tower of Bristol’ is a curious landmark. The off-vertical tower of Temple Church is all that remains of the church from the 1390s (blitzed in World War II) which had replaced the original church built by the Knights Templar. This one-time order of warrior monks had been granted land here known as ‘Temple Fee’ by Robert, Earl of Gloucester (son of Henry I). It included Temple Meads (or meadows) and the adjacent Quay Point development, where this pub is located in Temple Square. | Google Maps