King's Lynn: Pub and brewing heritage revealed in open days

Inside the Crown and Mitre pub, King's Lynn which is believed to have 16th Century origins

Some of a town's oldest pubs are to open to the public as part of a celebration of its culture and history.

The alehouses of King's Lynn, where the North Sea and the River Great Ouse meet, were once the heart of the town's trade and prosperity.

The pubs are taking part in Heritage Open Days which starts this weekend.

Kim Leonard of the King's Lynn Civic Society said researching locations for the open days was a chance to "do a pub crawl of the 18th century and before".

He said: "It was good doing the route in advance, not that I drink much."

Kim Leonard of King's Lynn Civic Society had an enjoyable historic pub crawl as he designed the route capturing the town's brewing and drinking history

In their heyday, the historic pubs were frequented by sailors who would be greeted by landlords as they came ashore with their pay in their pockets.

Before sanitation, many people drank beer rather than water "because you would get all sorts of diseases," said Mr Leonard.

Mr Leonard said it was important to find pubs reflecting a lot of history.

"A lot of them have got a lot of character, which is exactly the sort of premises we needed," he said.

Many of the pubs, breweries and warehouses have plenty of memorabilia

Many of the pubs, breweries and warehouses have plenty of memorabilia and artefacts.

Landlord Seamus Bell, in the old cellars of the Bank House at King's Lynn which still stores beer but used to contain large quantities of wine shipped in from France and Iberia

Seamus Bell, landlord of the Bank House, which is now also a hotel, said it remained "a very quirky building, which attracted a lot of people interested in its history."

Also opening for Heritage Open Day is WhataHoot gin distillery on King's Street, a 16th century warehouse recently restored "to its former glory" according to landlord Paul Turner.

While King's Lynn was not necessarily a distilling town, it was definitely a brewing town, with the buildings and places to prove it - many of which will open their doors to the public for the week-long celebration.