Meanwhile, Warden Road is an offshoot to Grafton Road, its sole pub was The Admiral Napier which
opened in the 1850’s was named after Admiral Sir Charles John Napier KCB, a
decorated naval officer of sixty years-service who saw action in the Napoleonic,
Syrian and Crimea wars and fought for better working conditions in the navy and
championed the development of steam ships. Originally a Courage house, the pub
was frequently in the press, sometimes for all the wrong reasons, in 1907,
George Thomas of Kentish Town as charged with assaulting barman John Warren,
when he struck on the head after Warren asked him to gather up his glasses in
the bar; while in 1929, barman Ernest Bainbridge was charged with stealing £67,
19s and 1d from his employers, which had be entrusted for taking to the bank. On
a lighter note, the pub was involved in charitable endeavours, such as the
Winkle Club established in 1946 by Mrs. Hampton (wife of then licensee George
Hampton) for the local women patrons of the pub. This was an initiative to
organise a day trip to Southend that August.
Over a twelve-week period they would meet every Monday, a fine of 3d was
imposed every time a member swore, the collected money was used towards the
trip where each member was given 18s 6d pocket money. The pub also featured in
the film ‘It Happened Here’ (1966), during the scene where the central figure
in the movie ‘Pauline’, is seen walking north- east up Warden Street, where are
the time part of it was being demolished. During it’s later years the pub had
an infamous reputation, drug dealing was commonplace. People openly smoked
spliffs, despite the fact that Holmes Road police station was only several
hundred yards away. Following its enforced closure by the police in 1995, Grand
Met sold the site for housing. Today the exterior remains largely in-tact and
like its neighbour The Carlton Tavern it is a fascinating example of mid-19th
century architecture in a sea of postwar mundanity.
Several roads in the area were
named places or military from during the Crimea War, including Inkerman and
Alma (battles) and Raglan, Cathcart and Willes (generals). The Crimea on
Inkerman Road was the most vivid example, its earliest reference dates to 1861
when Thomas Probyn is listed as a licenced victualler; only a few short years
after the war had ended. It latterly became a Courage house and closed in 1996,
though today the frontage remains largely in-tact with the hanging sign and
Courage lanterns still extant. While the George IV on Willes Road is
another example, also dating back to c.1861. its name was taken from a pub that
stood a century earlier on the opposite corner (what is now Spring Place. An
imposing two storey corner-pub, it was noted for its distinct foliage covered
frontage replete with hanging baskets, rows of bay and sash windows bordered
with stucco flange and pediments, while George IV’s royal cypher proudly
displays on its central column. Over the years, it was used as a venue for
local clubs including the Almin Old Age Pensioners Club and the local darts
league, and frequented by wedding receptions. It was described as a traditional
back-street boozer with a cosy interior replete with old signs, a gabble of
paintings and scores of red lamps. It in its latter years it sold the likes of Marstons
Pedigree (4.5%) and Directors (4.8%) along with extensive many of
intriguingly named sandwiches (such as The Casino Special and Florida Melt), pies,
platters, Danish open sandwiches and salads. The pub closed during lockdown in
2020, the following year it was sold for £2.4m. Unlike its contemporaries it
will remain as a pub, however it is still on the market via Estate Office
Investments LTD for in excess of £3m.
Going northwards past Kentish
Town Station resides the site of the Torriano estate. It was named after
landowner Joshua Prole-Torriano who had inherited an estate stretching over
fields between The Assembly House and Brecknock Road, in the late 18th
century. His namesake appears in local road names including Torriano Avenue and
locations such as the Torriano Meeting House, the Torriano Poets group and most
notable The Torriano Arms on 140 Leighton Road. Situated on the corner of
Torriano Avenue and Leighton Road respectively, the latter road incidentally was
named after General Sir David Leighton, a relative of Torriano, who was ADC to
Commander-in-Chief for 4th Regiment (Bombay) Native Infantry. The earliest
records date back to 1856 where a Mr. J Verey was listed as a licenced victualler.
At the time it was owned by Truman’s and by the turn of the 20th
century it had become a communal hub; under the ownership of George Streib, he helped
establish the Torriano Rifle Club, while a number of group used the premises
including the Foresters Lodge (London and Provincial Yearly Dividing Friendly
Society) and the Torriano Mutal Loan Club who organised weekly meetups every
Saturday evening,
while its billiards room was a popular fixture which the landlord was keen to
promote to the local press.
Latterly the pub had a thronging atmosphere, music gigs and comedy nights were a
common fixture, on the whole it had a lively and homely atmosphere. Such was
the pub’s local following, when it was threatened with closure in 1996, a 17-year-old
Pete Doherty (who was living in the area at the time) performed an impromptu benefit
concert. Doherty has since become a seasoned pub campaigner and also voiced
support for The Bull & Gate when it was put on notice, stating “It would be
sad to see another pub in the Kentish Town area developed. It cuts up the
community. A public house is exactly what it says – a house for the public”.
Unfortunately for the likes of The Torriano Arms, it ultimately closed and was converted
into residential housing, a likely fate for many pubs in the area. Development
of the Torriano estate began in earnest during the late 1840’s, Towards it southern
reaches was Lawford Road named after John Eeles Lawford who founded the local
building firm Lawford & Sons; he was also land agent for the 5th
Earl of Dartmouth, whom also owned estates in the area.
Over on Falkland Road, at the end
of a row of mid-19th century terraced housing resides the former
site of The Falkland Arms, opened in 1869, for many years it was an
Ansell’s house. The pub was deeply involved in communal life, it was
headquarters of the Falkland Darts Club, and it help set up the Falkland Social
Club who over time comprised of 60 members, they frequently organised outings
to places like Marlow, Melbourne (Cambridgeshire) and Street.
The pub also hosted a number of other societies including St. John’s Lodge
R.O.A.B, the Top Hat Club and Dibbin Anglin Society who held annual dinners
here, which featured an eclectic program of songs, sketches, music recitals and
prize giving ceremonies. In 1996, planning permission was approved for
converting the building into flats, and it closed shortly after. Today, the pub’s
exterior is remarkably in-tact, the original signage and Ansell lanterns are
still visible. The ground floor is decorated in patterned brickwork, with a
large bay window facing the entrance framed with decorative mouldings, while
facing Willinghurst Terrace is a row of arched windows and former doorways
topped off with keystones. The 2nd and 3rd floors are
replete in yellow stock brick, and maintain a symmetrical theme with its rows
of stucco flanged sash windows while the corners are rounded off with string
courses, while it is topped off with an elegant cornice. This building is so well
preserved, a passer-by could still mistake it for a pub, this same could be said
for the Duke of Cambridge over on Lawford Road. Owned by Truman’s, the
earliest records date back to 1865 when George King is listed as the licensee,
at the time of its opening, the road name was known as Bartholomew Road in
reference to the local hospital, until it was renamed in 1868. By 1927, the pub
was run by the Rolles Bros. as one of four pubs in the area run by the chain, moreover,
the pub has a number of claims to fame, it was a one time a favoured watering
hole by author George Orwell and in 1987 it became the first pub in the area to
appear in the CAMRA Beer Guide. The following year The Doc Theatre company was established,
where they acquired the use of the upper floors. They staged their productions in
a small l-shaped room on the 1st floor, one of Doc’s first
productions was ‘Hard Feelings’, where the producers took advantage of the
surroundings by placing the stage at a right angle while situating the audience
on both sides of the room to create a 3D effect. The club staged a wide range
of plays from Shakespeare plays like ‘Macbeth’ and ‘Much Ado About Nothing’ to
obscure examples such as ‘Yerma’ by Spanish playwright Federico Garcia Lorca.
By 1998, the club had ceased performing at the pub when closure was threatened.
In September that year, planning permission was granted by Camden Council in September
1998 for conversion to flats, the pub closed early the following year and
another illustrious chapter in community life had come to an end. Like the Falkland
Arms and The Carlton Tavern respectively, the exterior for this pub is remarkably
preserved with its original signage still visible, while of right-hand side
carved stonework signs bearing the text ‘Duke of Cambridge’ and ‘Wine &
Spirit Stores’ are still extent, offering a throwback to another age when public
houses were keen to promote their wears on the frontage of buildings.
The whole building is a vision in stucco with asymmetrical window arrangements and
a channelled stucco ground-floor frontage that blends well with the black and
gold signage.
The closure of pubs around Kentish
Town over the past forty years offers a microcosm to the national situation
where thousands of pubs have been closed and sold for residential property or
other uses. The mere fact that around 15 buildings that were formerly pubs are
still extant is miraculous, but ultimately offers a poignant reminder to what
we have lost over the years. Despite the raft of closures over the years there
has been several cases of success stories, the Bull & Gate reopened
in April 2015 after it was closed for two years following acquisition by Young’s
who extensively renovated the building, the Rose & Crown notable for
being the last pub on Torriano Avenue reopened in August 2014, while latterly in
November 2024, the Lord Southampton in Southampton Road reopened after
being closed for several years reopened as a free-house under the ownership of Chris
Harrington and Aimee Brown who lengthily restored much of the interwar interior
fittings, the same month the Old Farm House on the Kentish Town High
Street reopened for business under new owners the First Restaurant Group who
restored the pub’s original name after it had closed for over a year. Perhaps
the most notable case of a pub being rescued from the jaws of destruction goes
to The Pineapple, in 2001 landlady Mary Gately sold the pub to Crossier
Properties following the death of husband Sean, on the premise that the ground
floor would remain a pub while the upper floor would be converted into flats.
The new owners subsequently lodge a planning application to convert the whole building;
locals were outraged upon hearing the news and in December an action group was
formed with support from CAMRA who called themselves The Pineapple Rescue
Campaign, various meetings were held, articles appeared on the local press and
Mick Lewis (Chairman of North London CAMRA) featured on BBC Radio London to
promote their cause. In the process they managed to rope in the support of
famous regulars including Roger-Lloyd Pack, Rufus Sewell,
Jon Snow and Ken Scott. A public meeting was held on 12th December featuring
local councillors, writers and lawyers etc, following this a raft of press
releases were sent to local and national newspapers, stories ran in the New
Journal, Evening Standard, Sunday Times, Daily Telegraph and even London Drinker.
Only eight days later on 18th December, English Heritage awarded the
building grade II listed status, the developers soon pulled out after losing
money on the project and it was sold to Francis Powell and his daughter Chloe
in March 2002, they promised to continue running it as a pub and following renovations
it was reopened later that year. Since then, the pub has become a popular community
local, it has appeared in the CAMRA beer guide numerous times (since 1990) and has
been awarded CAMRA North London Pub of the Year in 2012 and 2024 respectively,
thus proving the continued appetite for community pubs in the area. The raft of
former pubs around Kentish Town offers a stark reminder of the town’s past and what
has been lost to time, while there has been a number of success stories of pubs
reopening against the odds, these extant tombstones of the town’s former public
houses remind us what can easily be lost if we don’t make the effort.
