A “one-of-a-kind” historic pub where Black Sabbath played their first gig has secured listed status, in a small victory for campaigners trying to save a famous Birmingham street from redevelopment.
The Crown, known as “the birthplace of heavy metal”, was one of the buildings at risk on Station Street, also home to the UK’s oldest working cinema, the Electric, which closed last week.
The pub has been listed at Grade II by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport on the advice of Historic England, after more than 15,000 people signed a petition calling for the street to be saved and designated as “a site of civic pride, cultural value and historic asset”.
Birmingham Open Media had planned to buy and restore the pub, which has been sitting empty since 2014. However, amid Birmingham council’s funding crisis, the arts organisation lost its funding and reportedly faced competition from a developer wanting to use the site for housing.
Listed status will give the venue greater protection from redevelopment, much like its Station Street neighbour, the Old Rep theatre, the UK’s first purpose-built repertory theatre, established in 1913.
The Crown, built in 1881, hosted a litany of musical royalty including the Who, Status Quo, UB40, Duran Duran, Thin Lizzy, Marc Bolan, Supertramp, Judas Priest and a number of Robert Plant’s pre-Led Zeppelin bands. It is often compared to the Cavern Club in Liverpool, which helped launch the Beatles.
The Black Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi, whose band played many of their first gigs at the Crown, said: “Cities all over the UK are protecting their musical heritage, Birmingham shouldn’t be left behind. The Crown has huge significance to us and many other successful acts. It was one of very few venues that supported the emerging rock scene with a blues club and was home to our first ever gig.”
Louise Brennan, the Historic England regional director for the Midlands, said: “The Crown is a one-of-a-kind building with history written in its walls. Heavy metal is a gift Birmingham gave to the world and the Crown is an integral part of that story.”
Jez Collins, a music historian and founder of the Birmingham Music Archive, said the Crown “holds a special place internationally for the music industry”. He added: “But we need more. We need to ensure the Crown reopens, we need to bring it back to life as a cultural venue, a music venue and a place people will want to visit.”
