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BEDFORDSHIRE - Luton, Painters Arms

National Inventory of Historic Pub Interiors Part Two

79 Hightown Road, Luton, LU2 0BW

(corner of Havelock Road)

Tel: 01582 732815

Public Transport: Railway Station: Luton

Listed Status: Grade II

View this pub on a local map

The Painters was built in 1913 and occupies a corner site at the junction of Hightown and Havelock Roads. The ground floor is faced with deep green glazed bricks and the upper floor is of red brick. What makes the pub special is the survival of compartmented plan and the array of tiling. As you enter you face a small snug. The etched glass in the door says it is the 'Jug Bar' - that is, for off-sales. Seats run down the sides of this intimate space and customers no doubt availed themselves of these for a swift one before returning home. The Jug Bar has timber and glass screens on either side, dividing it off from the larger bars left and right. The original bar back and counter remain in the front and right hand rooms. The pot shelf is a modern addition, but carefully created to include Art Nouveau-style glazing identical to those in the original partitions.

On the left two small rooms - note the 'Saloon' and 'Private Bar' etched panels in the doors - were combined many years ago. The tiling is particularly attractive and occurs not only in the entrance lobby floors but also in the dadoes of some of the internal walls on the left. The right hand bar has a splendid ceramic fireplace and the rear fireplace in the left room also dates from 1913 and includes 2 pictorial green tiles. A wall at the rear was taken out in 2000 and a door widened so it is now possible to walk all the way around the pub from room to room.