The Bell Inn is a
pub
A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the late 17th century, to differentiate private ho ...
at the village of
Aldworth
Aldworth is a village and mainly farmland civil parish in the English county of Berkshire, near the boundary with Oxfordshire.
Orthography and slight change of name
Aldworth was recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 by scribes whose orthogra ...
, in the English county of
West Berkshire
West Berkshire is a unitary authority in the ceremonial county of Berkshire, England. It is administered from Newbury by West Berkshire Council.
History
The district of Newbury was formed on 1 April 1974, as a merger of the borough of Newbur ...
. It won
CAMRA
The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) is an independent voluntary consumer organisation headquartered in St Albans, which promotes real ale, real cider, cider and perry and traditional British pubs and clubs.
History
The organisation was founde ...
's
National Pub of the Year
The National Pub of the Year is an annual competition held by CAMRA, the winner of which is announced in the February of the year following that in which the competition is run, that finds the best pub in the UK. Established in 1988, the compet ...
in 1990, and received the accolade again for 2019. It is a
Grade II listed building
In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, H ...
and is the only pub in Berkshire with a Grade II listed interior. It is also on the
Campaign for Real Ale
The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) is an independent voluntary consumer organisation headquartered in St Albans, which promotes real ale, cider and perry and traditional British pubs and clubs.
History
The organisation was founded on 16 ...
's
National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors
The National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors was a register of public houses in the United Kingdom with interiors which had been noted as being of significant historic interest, having remained largely unchanged for at least 30 years, but us ...
.
The pub is built of brick with a timber frame, and is said to have once been a medieval
hall house
The hall house is a type of vernacular house traditional in many parts of England, Wales, Ireland and lowland Scotland, as well as northern Europe, during the Middle Ages, centring on a hall. Usually timber-framed, some high status examples wer ...
or
manor house
A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal mea ...
before it became a pub. It was built in the 15th century or possibly earlier, with C17 and C19 alterations and a C20 addition. It has two rooms, a large panelled tap room with
inglenook fireplace and quarry-tiled floor, and a smaller L-shaped room. The bar itself is a servery with sliding glass partitions and hatches, and has no bar fittings at all save for
ebony
Ebony is a dense black/brown hardwood, coming from several species in the genus '' Diospyros'', which also includes the persimmon tree. A few ''Diospyros'' species, such as macassar and mun ebony, are dense enough to sink in water. Ebony is fin ...
handpumps, which were fitted in 1902.
References
External links
*
Description of the pub interior
on CAMRA web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, Aldworth, The
Grade II listed pubs in Berkshire
National Inventory Pubs
Timber framed buildings in England
West Berkshire District