I suppose most of us rather like to think of our pubs as cherished old things, which have survived the test of time, having seen off world wars, depressions and two Brexit debates and votes.
And certainly when Peter and I came to write our new book on Didsbury‘s pubs and bars, we were confident that the majority would have clocked their first century and a bit and some like the Old Cock and the Didsbury Hotel could trace their origins back beyond the time that King George lost the American colonies.
But of course, there is a big chunk of the township which owes its existence to the inter war housing boom of the 1920s and 30s.
Out in East Didsbury and onto Burnage and Withington, private developers and the Corporation built new homes, and with these came schools, churches, a cinema and a clutch of brand-new pubs, like the Gateway and the Parrs Wood Hotel.
These two we fell on with abandon, and because we could, we crossed the border into Burnage, and described The Mauldeth Hotel and the Kingsway, reasoning that many in Didsbury might well have traveled to the two for a change of scene, or perhaps a romantic tryst.
These were pubs built for the motor car age with carparks, and an eye to coach parties.
And like the cinemas of the period, the pubs were large, plush and designed to be places of comfort.
Sadly, both The Mauldeth and the Kingsway had closed before we wrote the book.
I had first noticed the To Let sign on the Mauldeth Hotel back in 2014., and while it stayed there into the following year it later closed, reopening as a children’s nursery.
The Kingsway closed in 2018, and I did wonder its fate.
But how that wondering is over, because a few days ago Tony Kelzo posted three pictures of the demolition of the pub.
I haven’t yet checked with the City Council’s planning portal to see what might go up on the site, but rest assured something will.
Leaving me just to mention the book again, Manchester Pubs The Stories Behind the Doors Didsbury, which neatly recounts the history of 49 pubs and bars, across Didsbury and Withington as well as the lost ones.
Together they help tell the story of how these areas changed over time.
The book is available from us at www.pubbooks.co.uk
Location; Burnage
Pictures; The Kingsway in 1959, H W Beaumont, m49830, again in 1995, M Luft, m47481, courtesy of Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov.uk/index.php?session=pass and the Kingsway in June 2019, from the collection of Tony Kelzo
 |
| 1959 |
But of course, there is a big chunk of the township which owes its existence to the inter war housing boom of the 1920s and 30s.
Out in East Didsbury and onto Burnage and Withington, private developers and the Corporation built new homes, and with these came schools, churches, a cinema and a clutch of brand-new pubs, like the Gateway and the Parrs Wood Hotel.
 |
| 1995 |
These were pubs built for the motor car age with carparks, and an eye to coach parties.
And like the cinemas of the period, the pubs were large, plush and designed to be places of comfort.
 |
| 2019 |
I had first noticed the To Let sign on the Mauldeth Hotel back in 2014., and while it stayed there into the following year it later closed, reopening as a children’s nursery.
The Kingsway closed in 2018, and I did wonder its fate.
But how that wondering is over, because a few days ago Tony Kelzo posted three pictures of the demolition of the pub.
 |
| 2019 |
Leaving me just to mention the book again, Manchester Pubs The Stories Behind the Doors Didsbury, which neatly recounts the history of 49 pubs and bars, across Didsbury and Withington as well as the lost ones.
Together they help tell the story of how these areas changed over time.
Location; Burnage
Pictures; The Kingsway in 1959, H W Beaumont, m49830, again in 1995, M Luft, m47481, courtesy of Manchester Libraries, Information and Archives, Manchester City Council, http://images.manchester.gov.uk/index.php?session=pass and the Kingsway in June 2019, from the collection of Tony Kelzo
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