The White Swan, Leeds

According to the blue plaque on the wall outside, the theatre was built in 1865 on the site of the old coaching inn, the White Swan. A slightly different history is given on the Discovering Leeds website (www.leodis.net ): "The White Swan had a singing room, where various types of acts, though not drama, were put on while people enjoyed their food and drink. In 1857 Charles Thornton became the licensee of the White Swan. He rebuilt the singing room, to a design by George Smith, and opened it in 1865 as 'Thornton's New Music Hall and Fashionable Lounge.'" The modern pub has the feel of a theatre bar, a reversal of the truth! The description given below is very accurate, so I'll just add that on my visit all 12 hand pumps were available, just half of them with Leeds Brewery ales, the others included two from the local Cottingham Brewery. I tried one, which showed no sign of having been excessively cooled, so things seem to have improved on that score. Toilets are downstairs (turn left past the piano) for general use, but there is a ground floor toilet which is designated for disabled persons.

White Swan site - www.whiteswanleeds.co.uk

The White Swan is the fifth outlet for the Leeds Brewery. Recently re-opened, after a two year hiatus, it coincides with the re-launch of the famous City Varieties theatre, the auditorium of which is directly above. Originally dating from the eighteenth century, the pub has had a colourful and chequered history down the years, owing to its links with the theatre, but also because of its association with ‘the oldest profession’ and local villains. (In 1980, the pub temporarily lost its licence, after being raided thirty times by police in the previous year!) However, time moves on and in its current incarnation, the White Swan is a modern, split level, open plan bar. Roughly rectangular in shape, it has a raised area to the left, on entering, with a small recess beyond. To the right, glass doors open directly onto the foyer of the theatre. The colour scheme is predominantly pale green and cream, along with wooden block flooring and overall feels rather soothing. The large bar is on the back wall, lit by bare bulbs arranged in such a pattern as to evoke a dressing room mirror. Seating is largely based on traditional tables and chairs, although there is a sofa and low chairs in the recess. Several areas of wall space feature theatre posters from the saucy fifties, a less than salubrious period in the City Varieties’ history. At the bar, there are three banks of four hand pumps and three T-fonts. During my visit, two of the pumps were off, but the rest were serving various permutations of Yorkshire Gold, Midnight Bell, Pale, Best, Samba, Quality Pays and a solitary guest in Whitby Abbey’s ‘Black Dog’. On the T-fonts were Sagres, Kozel, Sierra Nevada, Peroni, Fruli, Blue Moon and Symonds Founders Reserve cider. I opted for the Yorkshire Gold and Midnight Bell and whilst the quality of the latter was fine, the Gold was very tired indeed. As the bar has just re-opened that may be linked to initial turnover. However, what was really disappointing was the serving temperature of both beers, which was very cold indeed, nigh on lager temperature. Unfortunately, this is a problem shared by other Leeds Brewery venues, in my experience. Service from the young barman was friendly and welcoming and trade was brisker than I was expecting, during my visit between five and six, on a Wednesday. Clientele appeared mixed, if perhaps dominated by post work professionals and the atmosphere was nicely chilled, helped by the modern lounge tracks playing discreetly in the background. Although a traditional pub hound by nature, I liked the place enough to call again, to give the beer a second chance if nothing else. I suspect Sam Moss and Michael Brothwell have another hit on their hands and I wish them well; I just hope one of them nips down to the cellar in the near future, to turn down that cooler.