Blackburn’s nightlife has been doom and gloom over the last few years. Pubs have closed, including the town’s only rock pub – the Sir Charles Napier. It was shut down by Thwaites in June 2015. But it’s looking on course to re-open, thanks to a spirited campaign mounted by its loyal and dedicated regulars.
I met Alex Martindale from the Sir Charles Napier Community Interest Company. He only found out the day after the pub closed its doors in June last year, despite being a regular and playing music there for many years. A meeting was organized which attracted a 100 strong turnout of regulars wanting to save the pub. This led to the formation of a non-profit company, made up of 60 members.
The company’s board of directors includes Alex, Nick Brown – former landlord of the Hope and Anchor in Accrington. Lisa Morton – the Treasurer, from Phoenix Rising. Hilary Carr – who will be involved in the food side of the pub and Daniel Colletta from the Chocolateer shop. Hilary and Nick will be the two managers, with Nick becoming the pub’s licensee.
Thwaites still own the building, but the new company has no tie to the brewery. Alex says they intend to make the pub a free house, putting on at least two or three lines of cask ale. They would like to sell local beers, such as Three B’s and Hop Star.
The Napier is known for being Blackburn’s home of rock music, but it will be welcoming to everybody. The pub intends to have sports teams, including darts, dominoes, pool and a pub quiz team. Karaoke and Open Mic nights are planned. Music will take place in the upstairs bar, where a stage is being built. Here, community groups will have the facilities made available and students will record sessions with groups for college coursework and make use of the pub’s equipment.
When asked about the highlights of the Save the Napier Campaign, Alex focused on the involvement of Rob Halford from Judas Priest. He gave his time for their Kickstarter video, which can be found on the Save the Napier website and Facebook page. He also mentioned the benefit gig at Blakey’s for the campaign. Sky Valley Mistress headlined and £600 was raised. A £6,000 council grant was also secured.
Low points of the campaign included dealing with the bureaucracy of trying to turn the pub into an Asset of Community Value (ACV). But the campaign managed this successfully.
Back to financial matters, the Napier committee has raised over £12,500 to invest in the pub. But this is only half of what they require. They are looking for investors, and are offering investments from £1000 3 year fixed term at 4% APR where tax relief is available. Alex is happy to discuss investment opportunities, please contact save@thenapier.co.uk or call Alex on 07710692226. The company directors are keen to meet potential investors to share and discuss business planning documents.
Alex was asked the most important question: Will the pub reopen? He said he was extremely confident it will. A momentum has built up to raise the rest of the money. He expects the pub to re-open in May – less than a year after it closed. This could be a turning point in rescuing Blackburn’s nightlife – all thanks to the regulars of the rock pub that wouldn’t roll away.
Visit the campaign website: https://thenapier.co.uk/
