Crown - a lost pub of Cardiff

The Crown

Another lost pub of Cardiff, the Crown was situated at 37 Bute Street on the corner with John Street, opposite the Custom House and but catered for a slightly more upmarket clientèle. In fact the shadow falling on the Crown in the above photograph belongs to the Custom House. I previously wrote about the Custom House and the Glendower here. All 3 pubs were demolished, together with most of the other buildings in the area to create what we see today. The Crown was quite a popular pub, despite its small size, and was home to a parrot called Captain as well as regular live music. The live music varied and often included impromptu performances from members of the Welsh National Opera who were based nearby and would pop in for a pint and a song. The pub was, I believe, owned by Ansells Brewery at one time but Sycamore Taverns were the owners in 1996 according to Dave Matthews' Complete Guide to Cardiff Pubs. There never was an exciting beer range in the Crown, but always a good pint of Tetley or Worthington Best.

This photo was taken in 1995 and the pub was demolished a few years later. 

This image from Google Maps shows that the area is still undeveloped

View Larger Map
Another photo of the pub is here on John Briggs flickr site,  it also has some great photos of Cardiff Bay before the redevelopment.

A couple of now demolished Cardiff pubs

View Larger Map
Sorting through some old photographs the other day, I came across these couple which I must have taken back in the 1990s. Both on opposite ends of the same street, the above photograph shows the infamous Custom House, a local pub popular with the certain sections of the community who would ply their trade along the length of the street and in the pub itself. In one of Dave Mathews Guide to Cardiff Pubs books, the landlord is quoted as saying, "We do not have a condom machine in the toilets as we give them away for free!" Have embedded a photo from Google Street View as to what the area looks like today.

The Glendower was the other end of the street and was another Brains pub, though slightly smarter than the Custom House, the ladies of the night would often change clothing in the toilets, bustling their way through the amused customers who would often be at a CAMRA meeting. This area was only redeveloped about 10 years ago but it seems like so long ago that Cardiff had such characterful pubs and customers to match. The City Centre is now almost totally devoid of small pubs and the ladies of the night have retreated to the massage parlours of City Road and even the Trumpet of Truth has stopped printing their 'personal adverts'. How much has changed in the last 15 years!