Polar Bear, Hull

UPDATE 2022 This pub now operates as a music venue. Most nights there is an entry charge but there is generally free entry on Tuesday and Saturday nights. For details see their Facebook page - https://www.facebook.com/polarbearmusicclub

The stand-out feature at the Polar Bear is its magnificent ceramic-fronted counter, one of only fourteen surviving in the whole UK and the largest of any with a curved front. Its manufacturer was probably Burmantoft of Leeds, and Hull can proudly boast of another example - at the White Hart (see opposite). The pub itself, whose name reflects its siting near Hull’s one-time zoological gardens, was built in 1895 by prolific local architects Freeman, Son & Gaskell and later extended and refitted by them in 1922 (for the Hull Brewery Co.). This revamp added elements like the ‘orchestra’ area with its splendid domed skylight, the fitted bench seating and the striking stone signage outside. Modern alterations in the early 1980s retained the separate back smoke room (now a games room) but swept away a small partitioned-off saloon from within the large front bar. Statutorily listed in 2005 following a successful application by CAMRA.