The Greenwich Tavern (formerly the Gloucester Hotel and Gloucester Arms, among other names) is a pub located at 1 King William Walk in Greenwich, London, opposite the northern entrance to Greenwich Park. In 2023 it became the third London location with a rainbow plaque denoting a significant place in LGBTQI+ history, being the location of a key scene in the 1996 film Beautiful Thing.
History
In 1902, the Gloucester Hotel was recorded as being on the site of a former prison used (c 1555) during the reign of Mary I to confine Protestant prisoners.[1] (Later sources record a debtors' prison in Greenwich in 1812, close to a Court of Requests[2] - this term may denote a law court associated with the nearby Greenwich royal Palace of Placentia, or a latter-day 'small claims court' instituted in the 18th and early 19th centuries).
The current building dates back to around the mid 19th century; The Examiner weekly newspaper recorded a fire at The Gloucester Hotel on the corner of Nevada Street (formerly Silver Street) and what was then named King William Street (formerly King Street) in December 1851.[3] The rebuilt Gloucester Hotel was subsequently renamed The Gloucester, The Gloucester Arms, The Greenwich Park Bar & Grill and The Greenwich Tavern.[3][4]
In June 2023, the Greenwich Tavern was announced as the third London location to be marked by a rainbow plaque - used to denote significant people, places and moments in LGBTQI+ history. As the Gloucester Arms, then a well-known gay bar, it was the location of a key scene in the 1996 film Beautiful Thing which was set and filmed in Thamesmead and Greenwich.[5][6][7] The plaque was unveiled at the Greenwich Tavern on 23 July 2023.[8]
References
- ^ Webster, Angus Duncan (1902). Greenwich Park: Its History and Associations. Greenwich: H Richardson.
- ^ "Debtors' Prison, Greenwich, Kent". The Prison: story of an institution. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
- ^ a b "Gloucester Arms". Dover Kent Archives: Pub List. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
- ^ Munro, Ewan. "Greenwich Tavern". Layers of London. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
- ^ "London Pride 2023: Five rainbow plaques to be installed across London". BBC News. 29 June 2023. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
- ^ Perry, Sophie (29 June 2023). "Five rainbow plaques to be installed across London to mark Pride Month". Pink News. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
- ^ "Beautiful Thing: filming and locations". IMDB. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
- ^ Nunn, Gary (22 July 2023). "The first gay pub I dared set foot in now has a rainbow plaque. Here's why that matters". Guardian. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
