Blackburn’s former Grapes pub looks like it could be available as a pub again, following the end of Liz ‘n’ Lil’s café.
Re-opening as a pub is just one of many options for this former Thwaites house, where Northgate meets King William Street and Sudell Cross
This was one pub I never really took to. As a teenager going in here, what used to put me off this place was the number of police officers who used to frequent this establishment. They were easy to spot, coming in the pub in their blue shirts, darker blue ties and regulation footwear. Being coppers, they were usually big blokes and they watched everybody like hawks. After all, coppers are never off-duty, like some of the characters they had their eyes on. This was enough to put off any teenager in the 1970s, gaining this pub its nickname the Sour Grapes.
For some reason police officers seemed to stop going in the Grapes in the 1980s. No doubt this went down very well with many young people and most of the criminal fraternity. But on the other side of the coin, the pub seemed to become very seedy, gradually deteriorating as time moved on. Eventually it closed down and became Liz ‘n’ Lil’s. Now this latest chapter in its history is also coming to an end.
Unfortunately this building is still owned by Thwaites. It does not inspire many of Blackburn’s pub-going community to expect the Grapes to become a public house again. A lot of drinkers say Thwaites have done for Blackburn’s nightlife what Venky’s have done for Rovers.
But our former town centre brewery is open to offers and the Grapes becoming a pub again is not out of the question. Perhaps Daniel Thwaites’ Scottish owners may even be rethinking their practice of sticking restrictive covenants on some of their licensed premises. This has been very anti-competitive over the years, depriving many of us of our locals and favourite watering holes, while the brewery seems to be less interested in brewing beer and more interested in estate management and trying to conjure up phoenixes from burnt down buildings.
But we have proved in Blackburn we don’t need Thwaites anymore. Microbrewers are the future of brewing. Though at the same time, it would be nice to see some of our old pubs return. Wouldn’t it be great if we were able to go for a pint in the Grapes as a pub again? If this could happen; how about the Borough next?