Albion Public House

An Arts-and-Crafts public house of 2 storeys, with a long elevation to Upper Gate Street and faceted N end to Bangor Road. It is brick in the lower storey, whitened pebble-dash in the upper storey on a corbelled tile band, and has a steep slate roof behind coped gables and with overhanging eaves. First-floor windows have lintels painted black. The angle between the 2 main elevations, which is curved in the upper storey on wooden brackets, has an external brick stack, which rises through a projecting imitation timber-framed gable with barge boards and deep verge. A similar external stack, rising through another imitation timber-framed gable, is to the R of centre in the Upper Gate Street elevation. There are entrances from Bangor Road and Upper Gate Street. In the Bangor Road elevation the entrance is placed at the L end, a round-headed doorway with tile arch, and half-glazed panel door. Its mullioned overlight has thin glazing bars incorporating central circle with crossed diagonal bars. To its R is an iron-frame vertical-ellipse shaped window with Art-Nouveau frosted glass. The 1st floor has a wood-framed 3-light mullioned and transomed window with leaded upper lights and central steel-frame casement.

In the Upper Gate Street elevation the main entrance is L of centre. It has a round-headed door with tile arch, a half-glazed panel door and mullioned overlight similar to the Bangor Road entrance. It is flanked on each side by a brick segmental-headed window with dripstone, and frosted glass to a hopper light. Another similar window is to the R of the stack. Set slightly back at the L end is a vertical-ellipse shaped window balancing the similar window in the Bangor Road front. At the R end are 2 further doorways. Of these the 1st has a round head with tile arch, but is boarded up. The 2nd has a round brick arch, double boarded doors incorporating a round glazed panel with X-pattern glazing bars, and strap hinges. In the upper storey are windows similar to Bangor Road elevation, 3-light, 2-light and 3-light L of the stack and two 3-light windows to its R.

The Bangor Street entrance has a vestibule with glazed tile Art-Nouveau-style dado, and round-headed panel doors with circular glazed panel. From the Lower Gate Street entrance is a corridor retaining some of its original decorative tile dado. The lounge on the R retains panelled wainscot and joisted ceiling. It also retains its original bar with panelled front, and shelves behind that incorporate a round clock by Parnell & Sons of Birmingham.