The Bishop Blaize Public House

The Bishop Blaize Public House is a complex of several buildings, currently owned by the Whitbread Brewery. The main range and an adjoining block to the rear date from the late 17th to mid-18th century, with later additions. The buildings are of mass wall construction, rendered and painted, with a slate roof and brick chimney shafts featuring bands and ceramic pots, many with crowns. Cast iron rainwater goods are also present.

The main range is two storeys plus a basement and cellar, while the block to the rear right is three storeys with boxed eaves. The asymmetrical front has a five-window facade. The left block has a 20th-century plank door to the right and a three-light small-pane casement window to the left, at ground floor level. Above this are two two-light small-pane casement windows, and a raking half-dormer window with a three-light casement. The building to the right has three small-pane windows at ground floor, with integral ventilation panels to the left and central windows. First floor features two horned sash windows. The block abutting the rear right of the main range is of painted brick with a half-hipped roof to the left end and a corrugated iron roof. A brick chimney stack with a band is present to the right end. There is a central 20th-century door with a two-light high-transom window on either side, and no windows above. The side elevation parallel to the main range’s front has a two-light small-pane window at both first and second floor levels. A hipped roof extension abuts the main range to the rear left, featuring a 20th-century plank door to the right and double doors to the left. The first floor has a four-light small-pane casement window to the left, a central two-light small-pane casement, and a twelve-pane hornless sash to the right.

The interior of the main range, partially inspected, reveals late 17th-century cross beams with worn run-out stops and one worn scroll stop. The block abutting the rear right has an early 19th-century chimney piece on the second floor and a newel staircase connecting the first and second floors.

According to the current landlord, the Bishop Blaize is the oldest public house outside the city walls, and the roof of the main range may be of historical interest.