Stoke Newington’s Lost Pubs
and Ghost Cinemas - A Visual Journey
Amir Dotan
www.StokeNewingtonHistory.com

www.StokeNewingtonHistory.com
@HistoryOfStokey @StokeNewingtonHistory facebook.com/
StokeNewingtonHistory
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Pubs
Lost Pubs
Photo by Tony Hall

Number of Pubs in Stoke Newington (In the former Borough)

The Victorian Building Boom

The Victorian Building Boom - A Public House in Every Street Corner
1846 1894

The Victorian Building Boom
Stoke Newington Population Growth

Lost Pubs: The North and South Divide
Boundaries of the former Borough of Stoke Newington (1900-65)
The Northern Division of
the Borough
Population in 1902:
18,219
The Southern Division of
the Borough
Population in 1902:
33,450

The Decline of Pubs in Stoke Newington

CLOSING TIME
Who’s killing the British pub?
By Christopher Snowdon
Institute of
Economic A airs
“The UK has lost 21,000 pubs
since 1980. Half of these closures
have taken place since 2006.”
(2014)
https://www.iea.org.uk/sites/default/files/publications/files/Briefing_Closing%20time_web.pdf
48 Pages

Why Pubs Close (2014)
• Long-Term Cultural Changes - Decline in
alcohol consumption, Trend towards more
drinking at home, Change in the working
class’ leisure activities and a shift from the
pub to the home and other venues
• Shrinking of the working class and the
decline of heavy industry
• Off-Licence/Supermarket pricing
• Property development - It used to be easier
to turn a pub into a dwelling or shop
• Changing tastes - The rise of lager and wine
where a pub adds less value and the decline
of traditional ale and stout
• Taxation, regulation and recent decline in
disposable incomes
• The smoking ban and the alcohol duty
• Changing attitudes towards lunchtime
drinking and drink-driving
CLOSING TIME
Who’s killing the British pub?
By Christopher Snowdon
Institute of
Economic A airs

1830s 1840s 1850s 1860s 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s
Lordship Park Tavren
Free Trader
The Falcon
Freeholders Arms
The Stack Rock
Freemasons Tavern
The Captain Cook
The Prince Albert
The Woodman
The Atlas
The Howard Arms
The Nevill Arms
The Earl of Warwick
The Manor House Tavern
The Albion
Ebor Arms
The Allen Arms
The Victoria
Hornsey Wood Tavern
The Pegasus
The Arundel Arms
The Prince of Wales
The Happy Man
Stoke Newington’s 23 Lost Pubs

My free self-guided walk: Stoke Newington’s Lost Pubs (6.5km)
https://stokenewingtonhistory.com/stoke-newingtons-lost-pubs-walk

1830s 1840s 1850s 1860s 1870s 1880s 1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s
Lordship Park Tavren
Free Trader
The Falcon
Freeholders Arms
The Stack Rock
Freemasons Tavern
The Captain Cook
The Prince Albert
The Woodman
The Atlas
The Howard Arms
The Nevill Arms
The Earl of Warwick
The Manor House Tavern
The Albion
Ebor Arms
The Allen Arms
The Victoria
Hornsey Wood Tavern
The Pegasus
The Arundel Arms
The Prince of Wales
The Happy Man
In this talk I’ll cover 5 pubs

The Prince Albert, 33 Victorian Road (1850s-1970s)

The Prince Albert, 33 Victorian Road

Victorian Road, 1973

Photos by Tony Hall

Photos by Tony Hall

Photo by Tony Hall

The Nevill, 31 Nevill Road (1870s-1993)

1915
In fact the first bomb hit 16 Alkham Road

1921

1921 - The publican is Laura Eliza Kirby (1856-1929)

1964

1964 - Curtains providing privacy were very common in pubs

1970s

“We went there in the 70s but when a new guy Bill and
his wife took over he changed it. It was a good old Irish
pub but he changed it to a younger audience with
strippers.
I remember when we still went there he brought in a DJ.
The Disco was good but a few months later he he had
Go-Go dancers on with the DJ then one night one
stripped..half the pub walked out.” (Lyn Rennick)

1988

2020

Photo by Chris Dorley-Brown
The Howard Arms, 21 Howard Road (1860s-1984)

Howard Road as it is today

There were four pubs in Howard Road in 1952 (Five originally)
Howard Arms
Captain Cook
Ebor Arms
Freemasons Tavern
Freeholders Arms

Photo by Neil Martinson

Photo by Roy Barrows
The Public Bar in the 1970s

Photo by Roy Barrows
The Public Bar in the 1970s

The Public Bar in the 1970s

The Public Bar in the 1970s
Photo by Roy Barrows

The Public Bar in the 1970s
Photo by Roy Barrows

Photo by Roy Barrows
The Public Bar in the 1970s

Photo by Roy Barrows
The Public Bar in the 1970s

The Pegasus, 109 Green Lanes (1840s-2004)

Terry Day & Tommy Harris Trio in the Pegasus in 1968
Watch Terry Day & Tommy Harris Trio in the Pegasus: https://youtu.be/HU3u9ssgAj0

1977

1978 Tennis Shoes gig in the Pegasus
Listen to the Tennis Shoes perform Medium Wave: https://youtu.be/_xt9LvmY7kg

c. 1985 - Renamed Chas & Dave’s after its new owners

1989 The New Pegasus

1994 Auction Catalogue

2020 - Pekunluler Turkish Cultural Association
Extension

2021 - A planning application to redevelop the site was rejected
https://planningapps.hackney.gov.uk/planning/index.html?fa=getApplication&id=69178
“The existing building is identified as a heritage asset by the Council. The significance of the building sits
partly with its appearance as a Victorian brick building with some decorative features and partly with its
historic use as a pub.”

The Manor House Tavern, 316 Green Lanes (1931-c.2000)

The old Manor House Tavern in 1865 (Built c.1820)

Photo by Frederick Arthur Wirth

Photo by Frederick Arthur Wirth
Royal visit on 25th October 1843

The Manor House Tavern function room in 1936

What do all these musical acts have in common?

They all played in the function room in the Manor House Tavern

Photo by Peter Marshall
The Manor House in 1985

Ghost Cinemas

Borders of the Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington (1900-65)
Location

Borders of the Metropolitan Borough of Stoke Newington (1900-65)
Location
Biograph
The Albion Cinema
Vogue Cinema
Astra Cinema
Alexandra Theatre
Coliseum
The Savoy

Number of Cinemas in Stoke Newington

Alexandra Theatre
Vogue Cinema
The Savoy
Coliseum
Astra Cinema
Biograph
The Albion
1890s 1900s 1910s 1920s 1930s 1940s 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s
Years Active

The Savoy
Alexandra Theatre
Astra Cinema
Coliseum
Vogue Cinema
The Albion
Biograph
500 1000 1500 2000
Number of Seats

Vogue Cinema, 38 Stoke Newington High Street (1910-1958)

Opened as The Electric Palace in 1910
Designed by Gilbert W. Booth who designed the Electric
Palace in Clapham (1910) and the Electric Palladium in
Brixton (1912)
Originally 700 seats, reduced to 451 in 1945
By 1940 it had been taken over by Capital & Provincial
Cinemas Ltd and re-named Vogue Cinema
Capital & Provincial Cinemas Ltd became Classic
Cinemas and specialised in re-runs of classic
Hollywood films
Closed on 21st June 1958

1910

1956

1982
Photo by Kevin Newman

c. 1985

2022 - All that remains of the cinema today is the sign

Astra Cinema, 117 Stoke Newington Road (1913-1983)

Opened as the Apollo Picture House in 1913
Had 1,180 seats
Re-opened as the Ambassador Cinema in 1933
Converted into a Star Bingo Club by 1965
Re-opened in 1974 as the Astra Cinema
In 1978 it became a cinema playing martial arts movies
and porn films
Close in July 1983
Converted into a mosque in 1994

1926 - Showing ‘Souls in Exile - An Extraordinary Jewish Drama’

1943

1977

1982
Photo by Terry Gilley

Photo by Alan Denney
1984

Alexandra Theatre, 65-67 Stoke Newington Road (1897-1950)

Opened in 1897 as The Alexandra Theatre and Opera
House
Designed by Frank Matcham who designed of over 90
theatres including the Hackney Empire, the Hippodrome
and the Palladium
Had a capacity of over 1,700 on its opening
In 1934, the it was fitted for sound and began showing
Films, Variety, and Plays
Closed down in 1950 and remained unused for a
decade until it was demolished c. 1960

1946

1940s

1959 - Awaiting demolition

Alexandra Court was built on the site in the 60s

Coliseum, 31-33 Stoke Newington Road (1913-1972)

Opened in 1913 as the Electric Coliseum Cinema,
seating was provided on stalls level only
Had 600 seats
Was always an independently operated cinema and for
many years was operated by Kingsland Pictures Ltd
Closed in 1972
In the 1980’s, work commenced to convert the building
into a car salesroom but wasn’t completed
Vandals destroyed the building by fire in December
1992
Demolished in 2001

1983

1987
Photos by Ian Grundy

1983

1983

1983

The Savoy, 11-15 Stoke Newington Road (1936-1984)

The Savoy, 11-15 Stoke Newington Road (1936-1984)

Opened in 1936
1,890 seats
Built for the Associated British Cinemas (ABC)
Designed by William R. Glen in an Art Deco style
After it closed in 1984, the stalls area was converted
into a snooker hall with a false ceiling
The foyer had been converted into two shop units
The former dress and upper circles area wasn’t used
Revamped in 2018 as a multi-arts space

1984

15 May 2018
Photo by Amir Dotan

15 May 2018
Photos by Amir Dotan

15 May 2018
Photos by Amir Dotan

Photo by Amir Dotan

Photo by Amir Dotan

2022 - EartH (Evolutionary Arts Hackney) multi-arts space

2022 - EartH (Evolutionary Arts Hackney) multi-arts space

Thank you