The nearby Albert is a blast from the past that should be celebrated, and pleasingly the Turnpike officially has been, as earlier this year it was added to CAMRA's historic pub list. This Sam Smith's pub has barely changed since the 1960s, when it was renamed and expanded from the old Rochdale & Manor Brewery pub, the Wellington, into the biscuit shop (or was it confectioners and tobacconists?) next door [1]. The entry for CAMRA's Heritage Pubs web can be found here and has some fine images as well as a detailed examination of the pub's layout and decor [2].
Turnpike, Wilmslow Road, Withington. (c) Turnpike Pirates.
During our visit to the Turnpike, we tried both sides of the pub, but it was pretty busy so we settled for stools around the fire place as we tucked into our cheap and decent Sam Smith's bitter. It was a cracking penultimate pub for our Fallowfield and Withington crawl. The Turnpike is a fine local's pubs but they didn't mind a gang of sozzled gents popping in for a pint - no turnpike toll required (the old Withington turnpike road from Manchester to Wilmslow is the source of the renaming of the pub). The pub is clearly a valued community hub and even has its own football team, the Turnpike Pirates.
Was just searching for this topic about Manchester pubs and here it is!
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