51-55 Westgate (Prudential Buildings, formerly the Black Bull/Great Bull coaching inn)

This large former coaching inn dates to 1772 and was extensively remodelled in 1921 by J.H. Pritt for the Prudential Assurance Company.

Materials and Construction

The building is constructed of red brick, mainly laid in Flemish bond with some sandstone dressings. The Westgate frontage is now largely concealed by stucco render and terracotta. The roof is covered with stone slate, with Welsh slate used on the rear ranges.

Plan and Layout

The main building fronts onto Westgate. The central entrance was formerly the carriageway through the building to the rear yard; this now forms the entrance stair hall. Two large projecting ranges extend to the rear, facing each other across the central yard, which is partly infilled by later additions. The interiors have been partly reconfigured, especially at the Westgate ground floor level.

Exterior

Main Range Westgate (North) Elevation

This elevation is nine bays wide and four storeys high. The central five bays break forward slightly and are pedimented, with the windows of the central bay set back in a giant round-arched recess. The pedimented bays are flanked by large canted bays to the first floor which feature low ogee-shaped leaded roofs. The ground floor was extended in 1921 to infill between these pre-existing canted bays, creating a broad balcony accessed from a centrally placed first-floor Venetian window. This window, which is stone-framed in Roman Ionic style, predates the 1921 remodelling; however, the rest of the architectural embellishment to the frontage—with the exception of the stone cornicing—all dates to the 1921 remodelling by J.H. Pritt.

The ground floor is finished in terracotta, mainly pale coloured but with a black plinth. It features deeply rusticated banding and engaged Roman Doric columns supporting a pulvinated frieze and a dentil cornice. To the east of the central entrance, instead of the columns and frieze, there are more recent highly glazed shop fronts set between columns of terracotta blockwork. The central entrance is inset behind a pair of flanking columns. It is round-arched with a keystone forming a console. The doors are panelled and double, with a fanlight above bearing the gilded text "Prudential Buildings". The door at the west end of the elevation is set between narrow windows and is flanked by engaged columns. It is also inset and round-arched, fitted with double panelled doors.

The first floor has banded rustication and, apart from the central Venetian window, has plate glass sashes set beneath voussoired flat arches with raised keystones. The canted bays at either end of the elevation have stone dentil cornices.

The second-floor windows are similar but have divided upper sashes. The central window is enhanced with a keystoned architrave with a swag moulding below the sill. The second floor has rusticated quoins defining the recess to the central bay, the central five bays, and the elevation as a whole.

The third floor is marked by a broad plain storey band which is overlain by a rectangular panel to the central bay. The windows are shorter, almost square, and fitted with modern casements. Excepting that to the central bay, the windows have keystoned architraves. The central window is flanked by heavy mouldings of bound sheaves, the window framed by the heavily architraved and keystoned round arch of the giant recess.

The pediment above retains exposed red brickwork and has a central blind roundel set in a stucco architrave supported by a stepped plinth ornamented with foliage.

The roof is low-pitched and has crossing ridges, being gabled to the north and south forming pediments and hipped to east and west. There are large tall stacks to either end of the elevation.

Market Street (East) Elevation

The main front range is three bays wide. The elevation continues down the hill for a further six bays of the slightly lower rear projecting range, which is three storeys over a basement (described separately below). The ground floor terracotta frontage of the Westgate elevation continues for two bays along Market Street, with an entrance set to the street corner and a more elaborate recessed entrance to the second bay with a pillared overlight above double doors. To its left (south) is a large leaded window incorporating stained glass. Windows above are multipaned hornless sashes and smaller casements, all with gauged brick segmental arches, the northern bay on upper floors being blind. Two chimney stacks rise from the eaves.

Rear (South) Elevation of Main Building

This elevation is of red brick laid in Flemish bond with window openings generally having stone sills and gauged brick flat arches, except for the central bay which has a Venetian window to the first floor and a Diocletian window within the open pediment of the attic. Many of the window openings have been altered. The central bay has a large round-arched recess spanning the third and fourth floors. This has a stone sill and may have been a large stair window but is now infilled with brickwork matching the rest of the elevation except for a window to each floor. The eaves line and the central five-bay pediment have brick modillioned cornicing. The pediment has four chimney stacks set just off the ridge.

Western Rear Range

This range is two storeys over a basement, extending for nine bays southwards from the western two bays of the Westgate frontage building. It is considered to be largely contemporary with this main building, its eastern elevation facing into the inn's yard detailed in a similar manner to the Westgate frontage before the 1921 alterations. The east elevation, facing the inn's central yard, is built in Flemish bond brickwork with the central three bays having an open-based pediment, these bays breaking forwards slightly. Most of the windows have stone sills and gauged brick flat arches, many retaining multipaned hornless sashes, although some window openings and joinery have been altered, some now blocked. The upper floor window to the centre is set in a surround imitating a Venetian window but with blind side lights. Below, off-set slightly to the north, there is a flat-roofed canted bay with Tuscan columns. The elevation facing the inn's yard also has external fire escapes and air conditioning units. The west elevation (onto Albion Court) is more utilitarian and more altered. A butt joint and change in the roofing indicates that the southern three bays are a later addition. The roof is gabled and has lost its chimney stacks.

Eastern Rear Range (Including Southern Part of the Market Street Elevation)

This range is thought to be an early 19th-century addition and is marked by a cogged brick eaves course. It is a five by three bay block with a hipped roof and eaves stacks that is connected to the main building by a narrower single-bay link. It is three storeys over a basement. It generally has two-over-two pane sashes with stone sills and gauged brick segmental arches. Bays with chimney stacks (centre bays to east and west, outer bays to north and south) are generally blind. On the Market Street elevation (east) the ground floor windows are leaded and include some stained glass. The far southern bay has a doorway accessing the basement (here at ground level because of the hill). This doorway is inset within a terracotta surround including an entablature. The west elevation (facing the courtyard) has a flat-roofed extension and a fire escape staircase.

Interior

The interior retains some period features such as joinery and plasterwork that appears to be mainly 19th century. The principal staircase is an early 20th-century replacement. The basement is reported to be extensive and to retain some evidence of former horse stabling.