You Little Star! Brewery comes to rescue of pub
SHIPSTONE’S IS BACK AT THE JOHNSON ARMS
A PUB that has struggled since the pandemic and was in need of some TLC has been given a new lease of life after Shipstone’s stepped in to save it.
The Johnson Arms at the Dunkirk end of Lenton has been transformed back into a proper traditional, community boozer.
Gone are the corporate white walls and the twee inspirational quotes have been covered up by traditional pub colours, giving its heritage back.
Old bits of breweriana and bric-abrac decorate the mantlepiece and lamps soften the corners, while the beer garden has been transformed into a hidden oasis, the beds filled with flowering plants.
And more importantly, it’s a place where they can showcase their own beers, with up to six cask ales on tap, all brewed a few miles away along the ring road.
Shipstone’s India Ale and Gold Star pale ale are amongst them.
Complementing the beer is a simple pizza menu and regular barbecues take place in the garden.
Landlords at the Johnson
Arms contacted the microbrewery called Little
Star Brewery, named in homage to Shipstone’s original Star Brewery in Basford which operated between 1852 and 1991.
The microbrewery brews beers at the back of another former Shippo’s pub, the Fox & Crown in Old Basford.
As one of the last Nottingham pubs to have original Shipstone’s windows, it seemed a challenge right up the microbrewery’s street and led to the creation of a new pub company – called Reunion Pub Co. Operations director Nick Dunleavy said: “We want to ensure that the pub is a central part of the community.
“A safe, inclusive hub where people can reunite with the neighbourhood as well as friends and family. “With pubs continuing to close each year and over 200 lost in the UK since January 2021, this is good news for Nottingham where Shipstone’s is on a mission to save local community pubs.
“Pubs are under more pressure than ever before after the pandemic with rising inflation, soaring business costs and consumer spending slowing with the cost of living crisis hitting. Keeping local meeting places open is essential for positive socialisation which has a proven benefit on mental health. So postpandemic we want to provide that hub for the community to confide in others or just talk over a beer.”
Mr Dunleavy described the Johnson Arms as having “wonderfully diverse regulars”, who have been supportive of the changes.
The pub is situated at the side of the River Leen opposite the Queen’s Medical Centre and has been an ale house since the 1860s.
It was called the Abbey Tavern before Frank Johnson bought it in 1904. In 1912, he knocked it down and built what is now the Johnson Arms. Shipstone’s took over the pub in 1953.
The pub is just up the road from the University of Nottingham campus, so student nights are held each Wednesday and there are NHS discounts on Thursdays. Live music is on Thursdays and Fridays.
One thing that has not changed is the quizmaster Jozef, who puts on one of the toughest pub quizzes in the city every Monday night and has done for six years.
The Reunion Pub Co. is also in discussions about re-opening other former Shipstone’s pubs that have closed.
Little Star Brewery’s beers are brewed by a team of “four mad passionate artisanal brewers” to original recipes found in the archives with quality English ingredients. They have won many local and national awards, including Champion Beer of Nottinghamshire in 2019.
We want to ensure that the pub is a central part of the community.
Nick Dunleavy