Pubs and Bars / A-Z Bristol pub crawl
A-Z Bristol Pub Crawl: The Old Duke, King Street
Closing roads to cars has become a political battleground. For the al fresco drinkers outside the Old Duke on a recent Sunday afternoon, however, it was absolutely inconceivable that this stretch of King Street could be anything other than pedestrianised.
Not a half-arsed pedestrianisation like the Old City either. But a road closure which means absolutely no cars; opening up the road for people to be able to enjoy themselves.
When the sun is shining, King Street is one of the most popular spots in the city centre to soak up Vitamin D while drinking on the picnic tables with friends, and at the heart of that is the Old Duke.
But amid the posters covering most of the walls and the ceiling is a black and white photo of a band posing outside this pub when King Street between Queen Charlotte Street and Welsh Back was still very much a road for cars.
So kudos to the planning department in the Council House who pushed through this proper pedestrianisation scheme and in doing so created this unrivalled area. There’s much to learn here for elsewhere in Bristol in 2025.
A black and white photo in the Old Duke from when the short stretch of King Street outside the pub was still accessible to cars – photo: Martin Booth
A regular stream of punters from outside came inside to order their drinks on Sunday or to pop to the toilet, with two doors: Duke’s or Ella’s.
Westons’ Old Rosie and Thatchers’ Cheddar Valley were the two ciders on draught, next to five ales: Otter, Wye Valley’s HPA, Timothy Taylor’s Boltmaker, Sharp’s Doom Bar and Fortitude from Bristol Beer Factory.
This Sunday afternoon was a rare occasion at the Old Duke when there was no live music, with Eddie Martin’s One Man Blues Band due to be playing later that day.
While often assumed that this jazz-loving pub is named after Duke Ellington, it was originally called the Duke of Cumberland when it opened in the late 18th century.
Whether that old duke liked music, al fresco drinking and pedestrianisation has been lost in the mists of time.
Posters from gigs of yore are all over the walls and ceiling of the Old Duke – photo: Martin Booth
The Old Duke, 45 King Street, Bristol, BS1 4ER
www.theoldduke.com
Main photo: Martin Booth
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