Swainson Photo Archive – The Magpie, Norwich

This monochrome photo show the very smartly turned out Magpie pub in the road of the same name. I remember it as a friendly and lively local in the late 1980s which served decent beer and was well run with engaging staff. The grid of terraced housing immediately opposite was originally developed by Quakers, so had no corner pubs of its own, so nearby pubs like the Magpie and the Artichoke had a bigger market nearby than many city pubs and thrived accordingly. Sadly like too many pubs owned by money-focused pubcos it was sold off and passed through the hands of a series of cynical developers who refused to reopen it as a community pub. Derelict for years it has now been turned into an apartment block, another distinctive Norwich pub lost forever.

© Julian Swainson 2023