HERE is our seventh selection from the remarkable collection of pub photographs taken by Swindon photographer Mike Dolman in the mid-1980s, writes BARRIE HUDSON.
Each of the dozens of pictures is a slice of history.
Mr Dolman, 60, a retired civil servant who lives in Rodbourne Cheney, took the photographs of pubs throughout the Swindon area and beyond as a way of improving his camera skills.
He had just bought a Canon AE1 SLR camera from a former colleague, and still has it.
Our previous selections from his work can be found here
THE GEORGE, SWINDON
WHEN Mr Dolman took this image The Eastcott Hill pub was thriving, as was the nearby Duke of Wellington. Neither is a pub any longer. The George underwent several changes of management and image before closing for the last time a few years ago. The building first became an educational centre and is now home to a café.
THE GRAPES, SWINDON
STANDING at the corner of Faringdon Road and Cambria Place, The Grapes was a feature of local life for generations before falling victim to the downturn in pubs’ fortunes which began toward the end of the last decade. It closed in 2012 and was converted into private housing.
THE LADY MARGARET, STRATTON ST MARGARET
STAND where Mike Dolmam stood to take this photograph three decades ago and you’ll find yourself looking at a children’s nursery. The Lady Margaret changed its name to The Sandgate and had image problems in its later years, with local people complaining about noise. It closed in about 2008.
THE ODDFELLOWS ARMS, OLD TOWN
BY the time Mr Dolman took this picture, the Oddfellows Arms in Cricklade Street had already been converted into private housing. The handsome building stands to this day and seems to have changed very little.
THE SIR DANIEL ARMS, SWINDON
THE historic Fleet Street pub, demolished at the beginning of this century, is generally referred to by people who remember it as The Old Sir Dan. This distinguishes it from the modern Wetherspoon pub of the same name. Toward the end of its 140-year history, the pub was called The Sportsman.
THE SWAN, WROUGHTON
BY early this century The Swan in Wroughton had served its last pint and become a Christian centre, also called The Swan. Later still it became private housing. When this photograph was taken it was still every inch an idyllic semi-rural inn.
THE COLD HARBOUR, BLUNSDON
ASIDE from some cosmetic changes, The Cold Harbour is readily recognisable as the pub Mr Dolman photographed in the mid-1980s. Moving with the times, it has won out over changes in drinking and eating habits – and changes to the local road network.
THE FIVE BELLS, WOOTTON BASSETT
IN smaller communities outside Swindon, the pubs photographed by Mr Dolman often fall into one of three categories - the vanished, the converted to other uses and the still very much in business. The Five Bells in what is now Royal Wootton Bassett is firmly in the third category.
THE HARVESTER, WEST SWINDON
THE distinctive roofline of The Harvester at the West Swindon Centre is as easily recognisable now as it was when this photograph was taken.
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