Windermere Public House

935/0/10082 WINDERMERE AVENUE 15-MAY-03 South Kenton Windermere Public House

II

The Windermere Public House. c.1938, designer unknown. Brown brick, tiled roof. EXTERIOR: main entrance faces north: central shaped gable above four matching windows at first floor level, three at ground level to right of door. On either side, double doors set within red brick surrounds with overlights, single windows to either side, long windows arranged 1-3-1 at first floor level. Near-identical east and west sides with continuous rows of windows at ground and first floor levels; blind arch rises into gable on east side, blind panel with a pair of windows at second floor level within the west side gable. Tall chimney stacks. INTERIOR: retains many original features, including panelling, veneer-covered or glazed doors, bar fronts with foot rests, mirrored behind-bar counter, plasterwork, etc. Three bars: public bar facing Windermere Avenue, saloon bar to north, lounge at rear to south. The lounge is a particularly good survival, while the saloon retains a tiled fireplace surround with decorative tiles depicting windmills, and a gable-shaped mirror above. The public bar is given a more traditional, less Deco treatment than the other bars. HISTORY: probably designed for the Courage brewery by a staff architect, the Windermere is an uncommonly good survival of a 1930s suburban public house retaining many of its original decorative features. It was designed in the Dutch style, and is a picturesque composition, fusing Art Deco and historicist elements together. The building, unusually little altered, demonstrates the efforts breweries went to at this time to create attractive drinking places for an expanding suburban clientele.