I would love this this theory about the Huntsman on Wilmslow Road to be true - that the pub is a front for an ancient Rusholme community of withered, malnourished, subterranean dwellers who are guarded by the smoking sentries that huddle around the front door [1]. Whilst the description of many of the Huntsman's old regulars may be unerringly accurate (here's one in 1959), I can confirm it was simply a very rough old Hardy's Crown boozer, situated in student central at the end of the curry mile.
Huntsman, Wilmslow Road, Rusholme. (c) Gene Hunt at flickr under Creative Commons.
During our recent crawl around the old pubs of Maine Road, it was firmly shut as we passed between two great survivors, the Albert and Hardy's Well, and it appears to have "unexpectedly closed" in July 2011 [2]. I made the grand total of two visits to the Huntsman - the second of which was memorable for watching Ryan Giggs getting his chest rug out after his wonder goal against Arsenal in the Treble-winning season at Villa Park in front of just 30,000 (City had just defeated Luton 2-0 at Maine Road in the 3rd division). Here's the Huntsman in 1971 and after a facelift in 1973.
2. www.whatpub.org/guide/004000/Pub004274.htm.
Eileen was the last landlady she was a character very small pub but still full of its original character's. original bar two separate vaults and a main room in the back
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