It is just one of those things, that the insides of our pubs are rarely recorded.
And even with the explosion of social media most pubs and bars remain places to visit not photograph.
All of which is shame, and will no doubt be a source of frustration for social historians in the future.
Now I should know, because the same lack of pictures of the interiors of our 19th and early 20th century pubs has made it difficult to write about them.
All of which is a lead in to this picture by Anne Robertson of the Kings Arms in Llandudno.
There is nothing over remarkable about the scene, but that very fact makes the picture both interesting and important.
According to WHAT?UB, it is a “Traditional town pub with tiled bar area and tarred timber floor, together with raised carpeted dining area.
Part of the Conwy Council Community Toilet scheme.A CADW Grade 2 listed building since March 1976 as a ‘Mid C19 building with good late C19 public house front. Group value’ with the date 1898 clearly visible on the fascia and eaves."*
Those with a keen eye, will talk about how the pub has been altered over time, and how those changes reflect what we want of a pub at the beginning of the 21st century.
Gone are the little rooms, with waiter service, and the almost complete absence of food, and now customers can gaze across the large open plan design, choose from a variety of different dishes which might range from traditional British “pub grub” to food inspired and influenced from the round the world.
In the case of the King’s Arms the guides tell me that it is “British pub food” while contributors comment on the televisions which is in itself a reflection of what we expect from a pub.
I doubt that there are many pubs which now do not have a telly and that most of those that do will have them tuned in to rolling news channels or perpetual football matches.
So I like Anne’s picture for the fact that it is so ordinary.
Location; Llandudno
Picture; the interior of King’s Arms, 2018, from the collection of Anne Robertson
* WHAT?UB https://whatpub.com/pubs/ABC/9553/kings-arms-llandudno
All of which is shame, and will no doubt be a source of frustration for social historians in the future.
Now I should know, because the same lack of pictures of the interiors of our 19th and early 20th century pubs has made it difficult to write about them.
There is nothing over remarkable about the scene, but that very fact makes the picture both interesting and important.
According to WHAT?UB, it is a “Traditional town pub with tiled bar area and tarred timber floor, together with raised carpeted dining area.
Those with a keen eye, will talk about how the pub has been altered over time, and how those changes reflect what we want of a pub at the beginning of the 21st century.
In the case of the King’s Arms the guides tell me that it is “British pub food” while contributors comment on the televisions which is in itself a reflection of what we expect from a pub.
So I like Anne’s picture for the fact that it is so ordinary.
Location; Llandudno
Picture; the interior of King’s Arms, 2018, from the collection of Anne Robertson
* WHAT?UB https://whatpub.com/pubs/ABC/9553/kings-arms-llandudno
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