The Grosvenor Pub

[Frank Johnson 24]

When I was a teenager I used to be mates with the landlord's son.( early 60's ) .The pub's cellars were part of the cave system under Nottm. and you could get as far as the cemetry on Forest Road East.

I expect the caves have all been bricked up by now. It was rumoured that the ones in the cemetry were used by "beatnicks".

[jonab 1,644]

Did you go into the caves? If you did, did you go anything like the distance it is to the Forest Road Cemetery? I used to live next door to the Grosvenor and yes, there was a cellar there (probably still is) - as there were in the majority of Victorian properties but it wasn't, by any means, connected to any caves, as was rumoured.

I also lived at No 1 Second Avenue, Sherwood Rise. That, again, was rumoured to have a cellar which connected with The Lodge on Mansfield Road (the Greco-style building that used to be used as a toolshed for the Forest/Rock Cemetery groundsmen). Yes, it did have a cellar but no, it didn't link anywhere. It was just a dank cellar in a Victorian townhouse.

During that period, I worked on Gregory Boulevard at, what is now Page & Kirk. At that time the site was a research station comprising two Victorian/Edwardian/(possibly Georgian) townhouses with a 1950's monstrosity linking them. Viewed on Google SV, the house on the left was/is Thorneywood and on the right, Thistlebank. Thorneywood has/had an extensive cellar which I explored thoroughly but there were no indications of there ever being any caves or links to anywhere else, even though the building itself looked out on The Forest.

 

I am interested to know more about these tunnels and caves in that area. I have heard lots of stories and anecdotes but not heard from anyone who has had experience of seeing or entering (and travelling the length) of any "secret" tunnels. I know there are numerous ex-commercial/obsolete railway tunnels but these are something different.

[Frank Johnson 24]

Hi Jonab

 I do remember going along a sandstone passage for  a short while; however, my friend could have exaggerated the extent of the passage! 

Just out of interest, my first home in Nottm. was in Third Avenue in 1956.

[NewBasfordlad 3,599]

There are extensive tunnel systems all over Nottm, including a rather large one to the right of Mansfield Rd as you run down into town but I know nothing of the ones mentioned here.

 

There was quite an extensive one entered from the cellar of a house on Nottingham Rd Daybrook. If you remember at the Nottingham Rd side of Daybrook brewery there was a row of Victorian terrace houses it was in the last one of these nearest to Arnold.

 

I worked there for EMGAS during the early 60s, went into the cellar to check the meter and saw another door beyond which was a further flight of stairs leading downwards, the occupant told me these lead down to a tunnel, so I grabbed my torch and went for a look. I went some 50-100 yards in and then turned back but it was obvious that it continued on.

[LizzieM 9,507]

I’ve just nicked this from a Facebook site, hope the guy who posted it will forgive me, but the majority of photos on the internet go round and round.  It’s apparently 1979 and another of the still recurring flash floods we get around The Grosvenor.  In fact Severn Trent Water have just sent out questionnaires to Mapperley Park residents regarding floods and how it affects certain properties.  We’re not affected at all as we’re up the hill but I know one or two properties at the lower end of our road that have flooded cellars every time there is an exceptional rain storm.  Then an added interest on the photo is the new Savoy Hotel built by the Pickerings.  

[jonab 1,644]

I feel that the date is very wrong for the picture, above. It's certainly earlier than 1979. I would put it at 1972 - 73.

 

I lived next door to the Grosvenor (and opposite the Savoy at 291 Mansfield Road) at the time of that storm and subsequent flood - I can characterise the approximate date by builders signs outside of the Savoy. I think it was Easter time.

 

The house I lived in was a little bit higher than the Grosvenor and it escaped the worst of the water, although the garden was under water and we had to leave via a ladder perched against the back wall and jump down to Pelham Avenue. We then had to borrow another ladder to get back from Pelham Road to the garden!

 

As I remember things, this flood was the first of a number of really severe deluges which resulted from the confluence of the bottoms of Mansfield road (both into and out of the city), Hucknall Road, and the various roads in the Mapperley direction.

 

The stuff falling from the skies wasn't just rain. There was an awful lot of hail which seemed to wash up into the garden at 291. It was there for weeks.

[Rob.L 1,088]

There definitely was flooding there in July 1972, as at the time, I had a mate visiting from Germany who was amazed at how quickly it flooded.

 

I recall my dad trying to negotiate it in his Mk2 Cortina before seeing sense and giving up.

[LizzieM 9,507]

14 hours ago, jonab said:

I feel that the date is very wrong for the picture, above. It's certainly earlier than 1979. I would put it at 1972 - 73.

 

I lived next door to the Grosvenor (and opposite the Savoy at 291 Mansfield Road) at the time of that storm and subsequent flood - I can characterise the approximate date by builders signs outside of the Savoy. I think it was Easter time.

 

I was only going on the date that the photographer gave and he actually took the photo.   I’ve been trying to establish when the Savoy Hotel opened and tend to agree that that was earlier than 1979, I wasn’t living in Nottingham at that time though.  

However, I thought you for one would be interested in the photo anyway as I recall you lived just out of shot.

The floods still occur which is why Severn Trent Water are finally thinking of doing something to alleviate the problem.  My resident Civil Engineer says it’s all down to the drains not being big enough to cope.  Not too technical then 

[benjamin1945 16,139]

Can't recall when the Savoy first opened,, had a meal there about 78,, also remember going to a Party in a street near there in the 60s,, and waking up just wearing a pair of leather Gloves...........lol   think it was a good night....................

[Jill Sparrow 10,303]

I went to a christmas do at The Savoy in 1974.  Wearing more than a pair of gloves, I hasten to add! 

[TBI 2,351]

I remember the Savoy had just opened when I first went Christmas 1972.  It wasn't as nice as the Albany and you needed to get the car to it from town. The Colonial restaurant wasn't bad though.

[FLY2 10,108]

Super steaks at the Colonial. 

[TBI 2,351]

They were FLY, very good. The problem with the Colonial was it was a quite large and lacked atmosphere. I preferred a more intimate setting back then...

[Cliff Ton 10,454]

 

On 12/29/2018 at 7:58 AM, jonab said:

I feel that the date is very wrong for the picture, above. It's certainly earlier than 1979. I would put it at 1972 - 73.

 

12 hours ago, LizzieM said:

I was only going on the date that the photographer gave and he actually took the photo.   I’ve been trying to establish when the Savoy Hotel opened and tend to agree that that was earlier than 1979,

 

I suspect Lizzie may have borrowed it from the Nottingham FB page, where they've now amended their date to 1973, which suggests that everyone here was correct.

[LizzieM 9,507]

2 hours ago, Cliff Ton said:

 

I suspect Lizzie may have borrowed it from the Nottingham FB page, where they've now amended their date to 1973, which suggests that everyone here was correct.

Thanks CliffTon.  It did come from a FB page.  Many of the photos I see on here have been on Facebook time and time again, including originals taken by you and Enigma