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From the 8th Jan 2024 and continuing they are serving CASK ales at £3.50 a pint on MONDAYS as part of their CASK CLUB.
Operated by the team behind the The Sussex Arms in Twickenham and The Express Tavern in Kew, The Magdala is an independent pub with 20 keg beers and 7 cask ales. The original 1885 pub, named after Lord Napier of Magdala, was rebuilt by Charrington's in the inter-war period. The interior is welcoming, clean and bright, with bar stools, wooden tables and chairs in both rooms. There is a small outdoor area with a few seats. Excellent Sunday roasts. Dog friendly pub.
Sold by Punch in the summer of 2014 to an offshore property developer, its future became threatened. Local activists succeeded in getting it listed as an Asset of Community Value. It re-opened briefly in summer 2015 but soon closed again.
Early 2021 saw a careful restoration of the wooden panelling throughout the ground floor bar and dining areas, with new sections of wood blending with the original paneling in the bar area at the back of the pub (where the toilets used to be). The green stained glass has been replicated in the dining area, letting in lots of natural light.
The function room on the first floor has not been reopened to date, but hopefully in future it will be available to the local community as an important meeting place.
See also http://camdennewjournal.com/article/historic-hampstead-pub-the-magdala-tavern-set-to-reopen
Historic Interest
Famous historic association with Ruth Ellis, last woman hanged in England, for shooting her lover to death outside the pub on Easter Sunday, 1955 (alleged bullet marks on facade are probably not authentic).
One star - A pub interior of special national historic interest
Listed status: Not listed
On the right is the pleasant and remarkably intact room from the thirties, with wall panelling, bar counter and bar-back from that time.
This delightful pub follows the gentle curve of the street as it winds up from South End Green. It went up in the late 1860s to serve the developing neighbourhood but is included in this guide for its 1930s makeover. You can see clear signs of this outside in the buff faience tiling on the ground floor and the attractive strips of green glazing in the windows. Access to the two rooms is via a centrally placed lobby. The left-hand room was extended; however only the bar counter here survives from the scheme. Just inside the doorway stands a glazed angled baffle. The walls are elegantly panelled to half height and there is a low-key Art Deco frieze. The bar counter is panelled and this follows the style of the wall panelling. The simple bar-back fittings look original. The picture is completed by a Tudor-style pink marble fireplace.
In 2021, the disused toilets at the back of this room were removed. Matching panelling was provided in the extended space, and stained glass in the rear window. Without doubt, a wholly beneficial change.
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This Pub serves 3 changing beers and 1 regular beer.
Magdala, London
Source: National
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