That rings a bell – venues share a familiar name
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GLOUCESTER lost a landmark this week in 1967 when the historic Bell Hotel closed its doors awaiting demolition to make way for the Eastgate Shopping Centre.
Half a century on it seems like an act of wonton vandalism to knock down such a venerable and attractive building, especially taking into account what was put in its place.
But that’s the 1960s for you, a decade when the biggest swinger in town was the demolition man’s hammer.
The Bell was among the oldest hotels in the country. By 1550 the inn, as it then was, had already established a reputation as Gloucester’s foremost provider of accommodation for the weary traveller.
In 1785 it became the official stopping place for the London mail coach, plus the Bristol and Bath stagecoaches.
Henry Fielding extolled the virtues of the Bell’s hospitality in his novel “Tom Jones” and in 1714 the evangelist George Whitfield was born at the premises where his father was landlord.
In 1911, recognising the coming importance of the motor car, the Bell became the first in Gloucester to have its own garage facilities.
King Abdullah bin Al-hussein of Transjordan (1882-1951) was a guest and during his stay two armed guards were posted at the entrance. The pianist Dame Myra Hess, also stayed at the Bell in 1956 and ’59 when performing at the Three Choirs Festival.
Many people will have memories of attending a function at the hotel, or perhaps of tripping the light fantastic in its spacious ballroom.
Those with a honed memory for detail may even recall the large brass bell that hung at the Southgate Street door. Weighing in at 12lbs, the bell is now in the collection of Gloucester’s town crier Alan Myatt and makes an official appearance once a year at the Barton mayor-making procession.
In some old city guidebooks the notion is aired that the Southgate Street hotel was named in reference to Gloucester’s long tradition of bell founding. This dates back to the 14 century and Abraham Rudhall, whose firm was based in the city was known as the greatest bell founder in the land.
Perhaps this is true. But there are Bell hotels and pubs all over the country, local examples being found at Coleford, Selsey, Frampton and Shurdington among many others and they are usually located with earshot of church bells.
The Bell in Southgate Street certainly qualified having St Michael’s to one side and St Mary de Crypt on the other.
Mercifully, the wrecker’s ball wasn’t used to demolish the Bell’s immediate neighbour and the 17 century, timber fronted, former merchant’s house that’s now a Costa coffee shop graces Southgate Street to this day.
Tewkesbury’s Bell Hotel is one of the town’s many fine half timbered buildings. It must also be one of the oldest hotels in the county, as guests were booking into the present building at the time William Shakespeare was born and there was an earlier inn on the same site provided accommodation for pilgrims to the abbey.
Tewkesbury’s Bell is certainly within earshot of the Abbey’s bells, but in days gone by it was even nearer than it is now.
Tewkesbury Abbey has a ring of eight bells in its 132 feet tall tower, but at one time it had none at all. The 12 bells that clanged to call the faithful to church were hung in a separate bell tower (which, incidentally, also served as the town’s prison for many years) that stood on the site now occupied by the old National School in Church Street.
Tewkesbury’s bowling green was found behind the Bell Hotel and was widely regarded as one of the finest for miles around. It was certainly one of the oldest, as the green was originally laid out by monks of the Benedictine monastery and was in use during mediaeval times. County matches were played here and visiting teams came from Oxford, Birmingham and beyond to coax their biased bowls across the well manicured sward.
Surrounding the green was a yew hedge some 15 feet high and the same in thickness, which was also of great age. Its purpose was to shield the green from strong south westerly winds that blew in from the Ham.
Sadly the ancient bowling green was built on some years ago.