But will they be selling cheap home made vodka? (Not a word to the tax man <wink wink>)


Perhaps it's an eastern european version of 'painting the town red'?

You are all assuming that permission would be needed - are you sure ???

Quoted from mr rotorvator

You are all assuming that permission would be needed - are you sure ???

Yes.  It is a listed building and it is in a conservation area. Either would mean that a change such as this would require planning consent.

Quoted from mr rotorvator

You are all assuming that permission would be needed - are you sure ???

Yes - it is a Grade II listed building. The Council have issued a stop notice & are in the process of seeing to it that the brickwork will be restored.
Apparently the landlord has done a similar thing in Reading.

Word from WBC is that the painting has stopped and they are working with the owners to ensure that the paint is removed in a manner that will not harm the brickwork.

Looking at the top picture with the purple paint, that wall is fairly modern and was bricked up when the walkway, owned by Simond's brewery and leading though to the Catherine wheel and out into the Market place was closed off. Probably when Bishop's shop alongside was demolished for the Kennet Centre.
The footpath was used a lot as a way through from Bartholomew St to the Market place but was closed every year on the Good Friday weekend so that the brewery retained their title.

Quoted from blackdog

Word from WBC is that the painting has stopped and they are working with the owners to ensure that the paint is removed in a manner that will not harm the brickwork.

At the owners cost obviously !!!  

Quoted from HJD

At the owners cost obviously !!!  

I hope so!

Dawwwww..... I think it pretties up the place a bit.

Bet the chavs are raging though  

If the white painted walls stay, can we not use this as a 'Designated Grafitti Area'?

I see the pub still remains part purple.

Quoted from user23.3

I see the pub still remains part purple.

And will until the owners have satisfied the conservation officer that what they do to remove it will not damage the brickwork.  They also need to get approval for whatever paint scheme they use.  Perhaps they will also need planning permission for internal changes?

Quoted from blackdog

Perhaps they will also need planning permission for internal changes?

It is unrecognisable inside from the days of Sid and Veronica!  

Quoted from blackdog

And will until the owners have satisfied the conservation officer that what they do to remove it will not damage the brickwork.  They also need to get approval for whatever paint scheme they use.  Perhaps they will also need planning permission for internal changes?

This wall is not of any historic value as it is new brickwork, put up to blank off the old Cathrine Wheel walkway and increase the internal size of the pub when the Kennet Centre was built. It doesn't exactly blend, now that it is purple, with the rest of the street, such as Iceland and other shops opposite.

Quoted from 9

This wall is not of any historic value as it is new brickwork, put up to blank off the old Cathrine Wheel walkway and increase the internal size of the pub when the Kennet Centre was built. It doesn't exactly blend, now that it is purple, with the rest of the street, such as Iceland and other shops opposite.

The wall is part of a listed building - it doesn't matter when it was built (although they have painted part of the older brickwoork as well). As part of a listed building any changes require listed building consent.  The fact that it is new would be a good argument if you wanted to demolish it and reinstate the carriage entrance, but not if you wanted to paint it purple.  Of course, when they applied to build the wall they would have had to get listed building consent and part of that would be that the wall should match the period of the rest of the pub - which they did pretty well.

It is also in a conservation area which requires planning consent to any changes that will affect the streetscene - a purple pub certainly comes into this category.