Friday 30 December 2016

Of adventures and pub visits .............. the Millstone on Thomas Street

Now adventures should never be confined to anyone under the age of ten. 

Thinking about it they are best kept for those in receipt of a free travel bus, and pension who can remember listening to the Goon’s on the wireless and know that Wagon Wheels were bigger back in their youth.

All of which carries the added bonus that you aren’t going to be asked to show ID to prove that you are entitled to walk into a pub.

And with those qualifications out of the way Peter and I were set to wander the streets of Manchester in search of a shed load of historic pubs.

It was day two of the hands on side of researching the history of 79 ”hero” pubs stretching from the University up through the city centre and on out to the Northern Quarter which for those of us old enough to remember included places like New Cross, a street full of pet shops and the wholesale food markets.

Now as research goes it ticked lots of boxes, of which the most important was that we got to meet the landlord or manager, uncovered some fascinating stories about each place and spoke to the customers.

But at the Millstone on Thomas Street we got just that bit more.  The landlord Ged who over the years has run successful pubs across the city and into Salford was made up that we were interested in his place.  So much so that we ended up having our picture taken together, and we shared some of the history of his pub

By the mid 1790s Thomas Street was busy and open for business, and just sixty year later it offered the discerning resident a choice between the Millstone, then spelt Mill Stone and the White Lion at number 15, the Bay Horse at number 35 and the Wagon Horses across the road at number 16.

And he was keen to join us on the next trip, .......... not bad for one days adventure.

The book can be ordered from  www.pubbooks.co.uk

Picture; Ged and me, in the Millstone, 2016 from the collection of Peter Topping

Painting, the Millstone  © 2014, Peter Topping, Paintings from Pictures,

Web: www.paintingsfrompictures.co.uk

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