I can’t believe my ears either. One of the longest standing drinking holes in Nottingham - The Old Angel - is closing… for refurbishment. And I don't mean just a lick of paint to hide all of the distasteful graffiti on the bathroom walls, but a full on, Princess Diaries-style makeover.
Talk about the end of an era. New management will be taking over the old haunt, and with little public information on what to expect from the refurb, nobody can be sure whether the new gaffer will stick to the Angel’s rock roots, attempt to fit in with the rising numbers of hip bars and eateries in Hockley, or try for a bit of both. All we know is that The Old Angel as we know it will no longer exist.
The grade II listed building has had an interesting existence so far; once a chapel, and since a brothel and the pub we know and love. The place has been host to the murders of a policeman and a prostitute who allegedly still haunt the old walls, and has seen some of the heaviest, sweatiest rock parties in Notts.
It’s a shame to see the back of one of the only small scale rock venues left in town, especially such an iconic one. The function room upstairs has held countless amounts of gigs from local and up-and-coming artists, even the likes of Kasabian, Arctic Monkeys and Oasis have played there in their earlier days. With venues like this decreasing nationwide the loss of The Old Angel is another potential blow to the underground music industry, and a blow to the hearts of their faithful regulars.
But when old eras end, new ones begin. Whatever face The Old Angel takes next, we can only hope that it lives up to its legacy and becomes something just as memorable. It would be a sad to watch it fade into the background as another average pub.
Final events:
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