The Queen Bess is a

grade-II-listed 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, Hi ...

(historic)

public house A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption Licensing laws of the United Kingdom#On-licence, on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the ...

Scunthorpe Scunthorpe () is an industrial town in Lincolnshire, England, and the county's third most populous settlement after Lincoln, England, Lincoln and Grimsby, with a population of 81,286 in 2021. It is the administrative centre and largest settleme ...

, Lincolnshire, England. It opened in 1959 and is one of the few remaining examples of postwar pubs that have not been altered, closed down or demolished.

Location

The pub is on Derwent Road, in the southeast of the town, close to the

British Steel Corporation British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. * British national identity, the characteristics of British people and cultur ...

Scunthorpe Steelworks Scunthorpe Steelworks is a steel mill with blast furnaces in North Lincolnshire, England. As of April 2025, the facility employs around 2,700 people. It is the last plant in the UK capable of producing virgin steel, which is used in major ...

History

Samuel Smith Old Brewery Samuel Smith Old Brewery, commonly known as Samuel Smith's or Sam Smith's, is an independent brewery and pub operator based in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire, England, established in 1758. It claims to be Yorkshire's oldest brewery. It is known fo ...

—who remain the owners—and opened on 18 December 1959. It was named after a similarly titled blast furnace at the nearby Appleby-Frodingham steelworks, which had opened in 1950 and was at that point part of the biggest steelworks in Britain. The sign outside the pub features a picture of

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...

on one side, and a picture of a blast furnace on the other. It quickly became a focal point of the local area.

Architecture

The premises has been largely unaltered since its construction. It was Grade-II-listed in 2018, as one of five postwar pubs—and the second in Scunthorpe—to be awarded this status. It features a brick exterior and a plain tile roof, which was designed to be compatible with new local housing developments. The

National Heritage List for England The National Heritage List for England (NHLE) is England's official database of protected heritage assets. It includes details of all English listed buildings, scheduled monuments, register of historic parks and gardens, protected shipwrecks, ...

consider the pub to be one of the best examples of post–

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

20th-century pub architecture, and notes that many pubs of a similar age have been closed or demolished. Most of the interior fittings date from the original opening, including bar counters, fixed seating, furniture and doors.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Queen Bess Buildings and structures completed in 1959 Grade II listed pubs in Lincolnshire Grade II listed buildings in North Lincolnshire Buildings and structures in Scunthorpe