The Old Contemptibles, Birmingham

Posted on 01. Dec, 2010 by Robert Gale in Pubs

The Old Contemptibles, Birmingham

The Old Contemptibles is an impressively decorated Nicholson’s pub located in the heart of Birmingham city centre.

Brief History

The Old Contemptibles pub is named after the First World War heroes, the British Expeditionary Force led by General Sir John French, who suffered heavy casualties in holding up the German advance at Mons. Kaiser Wilhelm II ordered his men to exterminate French’s ‘contemptible little army’, leading to the nickname that we now proudly remember and which also stuck to the 1914 Star medal – The Old Contemptibles’ medal.

There has been a pub on the site for more than two hundred years and has been known as the Adelphi Wine Vaults, the Albion Hotel and since 1953, the Old Contemptibles.

Interior

Restored in 2007, it was named the best-designed pub in the country in 2008 by the Publican. The interior is decorated with First World War murals, campaign maps and the pub sign is a recreation of the 1914 Mons Star Medal.

According to this article from the Birmingham Post, local carpenters hand-made much of the panelling and woodwork, including the ornate carving featured throughout the pub and the hand painted murals were commissioned just for the pub.

The Beer

Being a Nicholson’s pub, you can expect a good range of beers. When I visited 7 were available including Thornbridge Jaipur, Old Moor Porter, Sharp’s Cornish Coaster, JW Lees Brewers Dark and Salopian Darwin’s Origin. As with most Nicholson’s pubs, the beer was reasonably priced and the price is well displayed on all drinks.

More Photos of the Old Contemptibles

Venue Location

The Old Contemptibles

176 Edmund Street

Birmingham

B3 2HB

Tel: 0121 200 3310

twb.im/oldcontemptibles

View on Google Street View

Robert Gale (Twitter: @awv)

Beer Taster, Pub Attendee, Photo Taker

Robert Gale likes beer, pubs and beer festivals. He also likes to take photos of beer, pubs and beer festivals. Most weekends of the year you can find him travelling around the UK (and sometimes beyond) photographing and reviewing good quality pubs and beer festivals. He also has a day job in the form of a web developer for Ozum.