In addition to cheap food and drink, Wetherspoons is well known for taking old buildings and giving them a new lease of life as pubs and nightlife spots.
With so many of the chain’s pubs in the North East, these are the stories behind each of the region’s pubs and how they turned into boozers after, in some cases, a long history.
1. The Mile Castle
The Mile Castle is the region’s largest Wetherspoons and has its roots going back hundreds of years. A Roman biographer claimed the border between the empire and Scotland was marked with a castle at every mile, hence the name. The Grade II listed building was initially a bank which opened in 1863. | Google
2. The Harry Clasper
The Harry Clasper in Whickham is in the building of a former council office built in 1904 and is named after local boat-builder, oarsman and sportsperson Harry Clasper, who was well known in Victorian times. | Google
3. The Five Swans
This Wetherspoons is situated over the road from the Civic Centre, where a statue of five swans sits outside. The centre was opened by King Olav V of Norway while each swan on the statue represents the five Scandinavian nations of Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway and Iceland, representing the region's links to the city. | Google Photo: Google
4. Sir William de Wessyngton, Washington
This pub takes its name from the earliest of the Washington ancestors of the first president of the United States of America. Sir William de Wessyngton ( which later changed to Washington) changed his name from de Hertburn when he moved south from Northumberland. A descendant was Laurence Washington, who's son later became George Washington’s great-grandfather. | Google Maps