Between The Pubs: Norwich

We’re in Norwich this week for the City of Ale festival, which is extending the party from a week to a month. Plenty of time, then, to explore. So, we thought we’d offer a few suggestions that caught our eye on a recent visit, which we hope will provide interesting diversions as you go between the pubs. 

Hippy hoard 

When Jeannie and Philip Millward joined the hippie trail in Asia in the 1970s, they embarked on a journey that continues more than half a century later. On that first trip, the Millwards began salvaging and sending home objects from the Swat Valley in Pakistan. Paintings, photos, sculptures, textiles, furniture, arches, doors, balconies and more, all rescued from destruction, are now exhibited at The South Asia Collection, which is dedicated to preserving and celebrating the traditional arts, crafts and cultures of the region. There are pieces to buy, too, including affordable jewellery, clothes and homewares. They’re all displayed beneath the high arched roof of a building that’s also worth seeing, the city’s Victorian roller-skating rink. 

The South Asia Collection, 34-36 Bethel St, NR2 1NR, https://thesouthasiacollection.co.uk. Nearest trail pub: The Sir Garnet, Market Place (Mercer) 

Meet the flint stones 

Call in at The Book Hive – an excellent independent bookstore – and buy a copy of Colonel Unthank’s Norwich by Clive Lloyd, a compilation of fascinating articles about the city from the blog colonelunthanksnorwich.com, which will provide even more inspiration for exploring. One piece suggests a connection between some of Norwich’s finest examples of Norfolk flint – the flintwork on the Museum of Norwich at the Bridewell is exquisite – and ‘Public Sculpture’ on Prospect House by the modernist sculptor Bernard Meadows. An association with Henry Moore fostered his fascination with the composition of the flint from Norfolk’s chalk bedrock, its shapes and holes, and Meadow’s abstract work at the entrance of this Brutalist building is a good example, with its golden spheres oozing out of solid concrete blocks.  

Prospect House, Rouen Rd, NR1 1RE. Museum of Norwich at the Bridewell, Bridewell Alley, NR2 1AQ, www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk/museum-of-norwich. Nearest trail pub: The Murderers, Timber Hill (Mercer) 

The Book Hive, 53 London St, NR2 1HL, www.thebookhive.co.uk. Nearest trail pub: The Wild Man, Bedford Street (Mercer) 

Hang it all 

More art is on view at two new galleries. The top floor of The Granary by Jarrold, an offshoot of the city’s famous department store, now doubles as art space The Granary Gallery, where Contemporary and Country is exhibiting paintings, drawings, prints, sculptures and photography by artists and makers from the region, such as Katarzyna Coleman and John Kiki, until 31 March 2023. It’s a practical take on Arts Council England’s recent research on bringing retail and cultural expression together. Meanwhile, London gallery Moosey recently opened a Norwich outpost and the opening night of City of Ale is also the opening night of its latest exhibition, My Life As A Dog, by Alex Chien (until 18 June). 

The Granary by Jarrold, 5 Bedford St, NR2 1AL, www.jarrold.co.uk/departments/the-granary. Nearest trail pub: The Wild Man, Bedford Street (Mercer) 

Moosey, Labour In Vain Yard, NR2 1JD, https://mooseyart.co.uk/pages/norwich. Nearest trail pub: Belgian Monk, Pottergate (Mercer) 

Here be dragons 

It’s no surprise that dragons lurk in this city when you consider the patron saint of Norwich is that most English of Turkish-born soldiers, St George. You can see the warrior slaying the brute in a spectacular 15th Century, 12-foot-high wall painting in St Gregory’s, a place of worship that now serves as an antiques emporium. The Norwich dragon, known as Snap, is arguably one of the city’s best examples of street art (by Malca Schotten); the giant red beast is curled up on a wall above the corner of Red Lion Street and Westlegate. Snap was a regular in local pageants down the years and you can see an example, with painted wooden head and snapping jaw, in the museum at Norwich Castle. And while you’re there, check out the museum’s latest exhibit, a 32cm square scale model of the castle itself, meticulously created by local man Austin Goreham from no less than 4,769 pieces of Lego. 

St Gregory’s, St Benedicts St, NR2 1ER. Norwich Castle Museum & Art Gallery, Castle Mound, NR1 3JU, www.museums.norfolk.gov.uk/norwich-castle. Nearest trail pub: Walnut Tree Shades, Old Post Office Court (Mercer) 

A wing and a prayer

Norwich Cathedral hit the news in recent years for providing a novel way to inspect its notable display of medieval roof bosses by installing a full-size helter-skelter in the nave. The controversial fairground ride has (sadly) long gone, but other creatures with a head for heights provide an alternative view of this beautiful structure. A pair of breeding peregrine falcons have become a familiar sight on the 250ft-high spire in the summer months. The Hawk and Owl Trust has set up a nesting platform and you can get a close-up view remotely via the webcams or from the observation point in The Close, which is staffed by expert volunteers from the Trust.  

Norwich Cathedral, The Close, NR1 4DH, www.cathedral.org.uk/visit/things-to-see-and-do/peregrine-falcons. Nearest trail pub: Louis Marchesi, Tombland (Woolcomber) 

Underground overground 

Here’s one for the pub quiz – where and when were the first postcodes trialled? That’s right, Norwich, but points for guessing 1959. It’s not the only fact worth knowing about this city’s streets. If you download a free copy of Norwich District Council’s three self-guided walks, ‘Norwich’s Nooks & Crannies’, you’ll be able to pound no less than five miles of pavements through 50 historic alleys, courts and lanes. There’s a subterranean street beneath Castle Meadow with layers of architecture stretching back to the 15th Century, which you can explore on a guided tour. And, back on street level, medieval Elm Hill isn’t just a quaint place for a stroll, it was home to the Pastons, the family whose famous collection of correspondence provides us with a rare window on the early Tudor world. No wonder Norwich is a UNESCO City of Literature. 

Norwich’s Nooks & Crannies, www.norwich.gov.uk/citywalks.

Norwich’s Hidden Street Tours, www.theshoebox.org.uk/hidden-street-tours. Nearest trail pub: St Andrews Brew House, St Andrews St (Mercer) 

Elm Hill, NR3 1HN. Nearest trail pub: Louis Marchesi, Tombland (Woolcomber)

Only here for the beer? 

True beer nerds won’t be able to resist seeking out the site where Bullards’ Anchor Brewery once stood. The fermentation hall is now a block of flats. But stand on Westwick Street and look up to see the letters spelling out the brewery’s name, buffed up for posterity. Then dip around the back to see a relief of the Bullards sign at the back of the car park – though the anchor has been defaced. Just up the nearby steps is the rather more attractive St Lawrence’s Well. The ancient water source here was granted to a brewer, Robert Gibson, in the late 1500s, on condition he provide a conduit for public use. So impressed was he by his own generosity, he celebrated by erecting a grand stone surround inscribed with a verse singing his praises. Later, Harry Bullard is thought to have turned it into a drinking fountain. Another niche site for beer fans is the war memorial dedicated to the city’s brewers who fell in battle during the 20th Century, set in a gloomy location off Rouen Road. A more joyful note to end on might be Pub And Paddle, the chance to hire a Canadian canoe and follow one of three suggested routes along the River Wensum that end, of course, at the pub. 

Anchor Quay, Coslany St, NR3 3XP. Nearest trail pub: The Ten Bells, St Benedicts St (Weaver)

Brewer’s War Memorial, off Normans Buildings, NR1 1RB. Nearest trail pub: The Murderers, Timber Hill (Mercer) 

Pub And Paddle, Elm Hill Quay, NR3 1HY, www.pubandpaddle.com. Nearest trail pub: Ribs of Beef, Wensum St (Vintner) 

Inspired to find out more about the city? Go to Visit Norwich.

Photo © Alexey Fedorenko/Shutterstock