Never paid the Bowling Green a visit, but by all accounts it was a quiet and largely empty boozer in recent years which led to its closure in April this year. Real ale was apparently on offer [1] and in this one-roomed boozer which had a beer garden out the back, presumably the old bowling green itself [2].
Bowling Green, Grafton Street (c) Alan Perryman at flickr / East London Drinker.
Under competition from the nearby Grafton Arms, a Holt's house, and the various other cheap, student-friendly pubs along Oxford Road, it's no real surprise to see the likes of the Bowling Green struggle and eventually shut. The East London Drinker blog about the Bowling Green is worth a read [1].
Bowling Green, Grafton Street. (c) ManchesterHistory.
A shame because as late as last year, I was still calling in here. I thought it was a better boozer than the Grafton, and if anything, of recent, the ale had been very good. However, it always struggled and out of season, it really was a sad sight.
ReplyDeleteWent in there a few times over the years, had a good lunchtime crowd and served Ok food and appeared popular both with hospital employees and people from over the road at the university. However always appeared to me to keep strange opening hours and would be closed when you thought it'd be open. Sorry to hear it's closed.
ReplyDeleteIn process of being demolished, to make way for expanded A & E according to planning docs
ReplyDeleteThe Bowling green really did hold its own and opened as a gastro pub lunchtimes and wet led pub in the evenings and at weekends opened as a music venue on a Saturday night till 4a.m. . Most people who write about pubs that close assume it is because they didn't have much trade but this is wrong with the Bowler. It was sold by Punch taverns who at the time were selling pubs for fun. They actually sold 3 within 10 minutes walk of the Bowling Green at the same time . It was the location and punch been short of money that sealed the demise of the Bowling Green.
ReplyDeleteIt was never quiet when Leigh Sterling packed the place out on Friday night during the 80s
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