How a famous Leeds Real Ale music pub bounced back from the threat of demolition
It was a pub threatened with last orders by a wrecking ball in the 1980s.
Generations of drinkers will remember how The Grove Inn on Back Row in Holbeck was earmarked for demolition in the early 1980s after the site was cited for new development.
Fast forward to spring 1991 and regulars were celebrating after the boozer won the CAMRA Pub of the Season Award and would go through to the national finals.
Landlord Mike Longbottom said: “The award strengthens the future of the pub because when we win anything, more people get to know about The Grove.”
Mr Longbottom had battled unsuccessfully with the authorities who refused to put a preservation order on the building on the grounds it was not of sufficient architectural value.
He said in his fight to save the pub he was still pushing for a preservation order.
“The Grove is a sanctuary for people. Anyone can come here and play music. The beauty of the pub is that it’s so hidden away that idiots can’t find it!”