8 of the most-missed Basingstoke pubs closed over the years

Some were demolished to make way for redevelopment, others were converted into restaurants or housing, while a few simply faded into history.

From coaching inns visited by Jane Austen to neighbourhood locals remembered by generations of drinkers, these are some of Basingstoke's lost pubs.

The Angel Inn (Angel Cafe) at the Top of Town, Basingstoke (Image: Gazette archive)

The Angel Inn

One of Basingstoke's oldest and most important coaching inns, The Angel stood in Market Place for centuries and played a surprising role in the town's history.

Before the arrival of modern postal services, letters collected by Basingstoke's first post office were taken to The Angel each night to be sorted onto stagecoaches travelling across the region.

The inn's Assembly Rooms were also attended by novelist Jane Austen, who is believed to have danced there in the late 18th century.

At its peak, The Angel was licensed to provide dinners for more than 2,000 people and contained 17 feather beds, four-poster beds and 40 barrels of ale.

The building survived in various forms until the 20th century before eventually disappearing. Today, Barclays Bank occupies the site where the famous inn once stood

The George Hotel/Hole in the Wall pub (Image: Gazette archives)

The George Hotel/Hole in the Wall

Few lost pubs can rival the history of The George Hotel.

Standing in Market Place, the inn's roots stretched back centuries and records suggest an inn existed on the site as early as 1440.

In a 2004 Gazette nostalgia feature, local historian Robert Brown described how generations of travellers passed through its doors and recalled how the pub became affectionately known as "The Hole in the Wall" because the main entrance was tucked away beneath an archway.

The George finally closed in 2004. Today, the building is occupied by Zizzi restaurant, although many residents still remember it as one of the town's best-known pubs.

The Hop Leaf in 2000 (Image: Robbie Harding)

The Hop Leaf/The Black Boy

The Hop Leaf in Church Street had one of the most colourful histories of any pub in Basingstoke.

Originally known as The Black Boy, the timber-framed building dates back centuries and served as an inn from at least the early 18th century.

According to archive reports, the original name referred to King Charles I, with the phrase "You have blacked your reputation, boy" reportedly being associated with his defeat at the Battle of Naseby in 1645.

The name was changed in the 1950s and the pub became The Hop Leaf.

Over the years it served as a hotel, tavern, folk club venue and bar.

In more recent times it became McCarthy's and later Censo before finally closing in 2013.

The building survives today, although its pub days are long gone.

Hammer & Tongs pub in 2009 (Image: Google Street View)

The Hammer & Tongs

For many South Ham residents, few pub closures were as keenly felt as The Hammer & Tongs.

The pub opened with considerable fanfare in February 1961, with the Gazette devoting an entire page to the opening celebrations.

The report described an "ancient ceremony" being revived outside the new building and noted it was only the second new public house to open in Basingstoke since the Second World War.

Located in Old Worting Road, the pub remained a familiar local landmark for decades before closing in 2012.

The site has since been redeveloped for housing.

The Castle/Poison

The Castle in Old Reading Road was far older than many people realised.

Although many residents remember its final years as the nightclub-style venue Poison, heritage campaigners argued that a pub had occupied the site since at least 1830, with parts of the earlier building potentially surviving behind the structure that most people knew.

Before its demolition, members of the Basingstoke Heritage Society publicly appealed for the building to be saved as part of the planned John Lewis and Waitrose development at Basing View.

Writing in the Gazette in 2013, local historian Debbie Reavell described The Castle as one of many historic buildings lost during decades of redevelopment and urged developers to find a new use for the pub.

The appeal was unsuccessful and the building was demolished in 2014.

A painting of The Barge area and the Reformers tree (Image: Neil Jepson)

The Barge Inn

The Barge Inn was far more than just a pub.

Located in lower Wote Street, the pub became so closely associated with the surrounding area that generations of residents simply referred to the neighbourhood as "The Barge".

Writing in the Gazette in 2023, local historian Ian Richards recalled how the area once formed a bustling part of old Basingstoke, complete with shops, cafés, a hardware store, a fish and chip shop and two cinemas.

Among the landmarks were the Waldorf and Savoy cinemas, while nearby stood the famous Reformers' Tree, where residents gathered to discuss politics in a tradition likened to London's Speakers' Corner.

By the time the pub closed during town centre redevelopment in the 1960s, it was known as The Goat & Barge.

Litten Tree pub (Image: Gazette archives)

The Litten Tree

Anyone who enjoyed a night out in Basingstoke during the 1990s or early 2000s is likely to remember The Litten Tree.

Located in Winchester Street, the venue later became the Asian buffet restaurant Dragon Palace.

The building remains a familiar sight in the town centre, now a halal supermarket.

Three Barrels pub (Image: Mark Paine)

The Three Barrels

Once a focal point of the Winklebury Centre, The Three Barrels has been closed for well over a decade.

The boarded-up former pub has become a source of frustration for many residents, who have repeatedly called for the site to be redeveloped.

For many locals, it remains a reminder of a time when neighbourhood pubs sat at the heart of communities across Basingstoke.

Which pubs do you miss?

These are only a handful of the pubs that have disappeared from Basingstoke over the years.

The Nine Saxons, Pen & Parchment, Barbican, Bass House and Popinjay are among many others remembered by residents.

Which lost Basingstoke pub do you miss the most? Let us know in the comments