It’s barely 4pm on a Monday and Brownlows Inn on Mount Pleasant is already packed.
The first tinny strains of Dean Martin’s ‘Everybody Loves somebody’ are blaring out of the pub’s speakers as the people from inside spill out onto the street in the August sunshine. Propping up the bar is ‘Geordie Peter’- who considers himself an “adopted scouser” after living in the city for 11 years.
Tapping their feet along to the singer on karaoke is married couple Duncan and Joyce, who’ve spent years coming here on their twice-weekly jaunts from Southport. Nursing his pint of Guinness in the corner is 80-year-old Les Little - or ‘Little Les the boxer’ as he was better known during his time as a trader in St John’s Market - who tells the ECHO the pub is a “way of life” for many of the regulars who frequent it.
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In many ways, Brownlows Inn is emblematic of the street it sits on. Proud and historic, Mount Pleasant is a microcosm of the city’s colourful past and diverse culture. Famed for both its cathedral and its car park, the street connects the bustling Georgian and Knowledge quarters with the city centre.
Built on one of the hills that surrounded the village of Liverpool before it expanded to become the thriving metropolis it is today, the street has a rich history, with links with pioneering abolitionist, William Roscoe, whose 18th-century poem, ‘Mount Pleasant’, laments Liverpool’s murky connections with the slave trade.
In 1846, the street became home to the first purpose-built YMCA facility in the world, established to tackle the high levels of alcoholism and homelessness that plagued the city. And more than a century later, in the registry office at number 64, John Lennon married his first wife, Cynthia - an anecdote that can regularly be heard drifting from the open-top sightseeing buses that beetle up and down the street.
Toward the top of the hill sits Mount Pleasant stalwarts like the quirky Cuthbert’s bakehouse, renowned for its American-inspired afternoon teas, and antiquarian bookshop, Reid of Liverpool, the oldest surviving Georgian retail premises in the city.
Liverpool Science Park, which opened in 2005, is home to some of the region’s most innovative science and technology companies while the neighbouring Metropolitan Cathedral, the largest catholic cathedral in England, is one of the jewels in the city’s crown.
But there is a sense that Mount Pleasant is a place with a conflicted identity; caught between two of the city’s busiest hubs. A place to park and pass through, rather than a destination in its own right.
Gerarda is a waitress at Kimos Global Kitchen, a family-run Mediterranean restaurant which established itself as a Mount Pleasant staple more than two decades ago.
“We’ve been here for about 20 years, so a long time,” Gerarda told the ECHO.
“We used to own a shop across the road because we were really busy. We had a whole downstairs hall which used to be open to customers too, but we’ve had to close that. We have busy days on weekends but in the week it depends, you never know if you’re going to be busy or not busy.”
The restaurant’s location, in the shadow of the brutalist-style multi-storey, perhaps lacks the draw of some of the city centre’s vast roster of eateries.
Gerarda said: “When I finish my shift, I walk into town and it’s full, but here it’s really quiet, especially of an evening.”
Across the road, in Al Shareef supermarket, owner Tony Saleh has also felt the pinch of a lack of regular custom in recent years. He said: “In the last year, trade has been close to normal but the previous two years it was zero, literally zero. Covid had a big impact, if it wasn’t for the loan we had from the bank we would have had to close.
“Obviously we’re worried about prices going up now as well, because people are going to cut down and stop buying things. I guess we’re a little bit on the outskirts here but it is what it is.”
While the escalating cost of living crisis looms large over many of the businesses on Mount Pleasant, the arrival of another financial crisis hot on the heels of the pandemic is a particularly significant body blow for Givara Salih.
Givara runs the Vooo Lounge, a shisha bar based in one of the city’s oldest listed buildings. A lawyer in his native Syria, Givara fled to the UK before taking over the running of the Vooo Lounge in 2018.
“After covid, there were many changes,” he said. “I only have one customer in at the moment, but, with shisha bars, at least 50% of the building must be permanently open air, so it’s expensive to heat the whole outside area.
“Two months ago, I had to close the restaurant inside down and let my staff go just as a sacrifice so I could keep the place open for another few months. I’m learning to be a driving instructor now. For five years, I’ve given everything here but I have to find a way to support my family.”
With a number of business owners fearing for their future, the need for regeneration on Mount Pleasant has perhaps never been more pressing. The ECHO understands Liverpool City Council is currently reviewing the Spatial Regeneration Framework (SRF) for the city’s Upper Central area, which encompasses the Lime Street region, as well as the space around the Adelphi Hotel and Central Station, and Mount Pleasant.
The SRF sets out a masterplan for the area, with a view to making Upper Central a destination in its own right and a key part of the Knowledge Quarter Liverpool (KQ) Mayoral Development Zone, the city’s thriving, £2bn Innovation District. The vision for Upper Central is for the area to become an international gateway site to the KQ, which currently employs 7% of the city’s workforce.
The plan aims to improve pedestrian links to the rest of the city centre and create a sense of identity while still preserving and enhancing heritage assets.
“It’s a really exciting area,” said ward councillor Nick Small. “If you look at the upper central plans from the council it looks really good and it’s going to be one of the next pieces of the jigsaw.
"I think what’s absolutely crucial is that something happens with the rest of the site behind the Adelphi and the 051 building, that’s the real missing piece of the jigsaw.”
The derelict 051 building, once home to an iconic 90s nightclub, has fallen victim to a spate of fires since it closed in 2016, and is one of the clearest physical evidences of Mount Pleasant’s relegation to a supporting role in the regeneration of the city centre.
“Once that site gets redeveloped, you’re going to have better connectivity along Lime Street and into the city centre,” said councillor Small. “What’s important is that there’s a good sustainable use in there that brings some value to the area and works from a regeneration point of view.
"I think there’s a lot more that can be done around that area to drive footfall and bring in a bit more activity.”
He added: “There’s lots of new businesses opening up around Mount Pleasant and a bit further along on Renshaw street. It’s becoming a bit of a destination as well which again is a good thing to bring people to the area. There is quite a lot of footfall between the city centre and the university but I think you need some of those small businesses to be a destination as well.”
One small business looking to make a big impact on Mount Pleasant is 16 Swirls, a D.I.Y. frozen yoghurt and dessert shop that opened its doors last year.
Part owner, Aziz Farhat, told the ECHO. “To be honest, business is up and down. It’s gone quiet now which is probably because the students have left but hopefully in September it will pick up again.
“We were looking to open a bit closer to town, but the rent isn’t as expensive here, plus we’re close to the universities as well. Opening after covid has definitely had an impact, everything is harder but it’s affected everyone. Rent, bills, gas, electricity have all gone up which is a worry, but what can you do?”
Despite rising costs, the public response to 16 Swirls has been overwhelmingly positive, with Aziz looking at opening up another shop nearby in the future. He said: “We’ve had a really positive reaction since we opened. Kids love it too because it’s self-service so they can help themselves.”
And as new businesses start to establish themselves on Mount Pleasant, residents are also keen to preserve the historic landmarks which are so integral to the character of the street. Roscoe Gardens, which sits near the foot of the hill, is the home of a memorial to William Roscoe as well as a Unitarian burial ground.
Its modest size and location, sandwiched between highrise buildings, means it’s a space that could easily fall by the wayside, but John Maguire from the Friends of Roscoe Garden’s group is keen to establish the space as a key player in Mount Pleasant’s future.
John said: “We’re gathering together a group to help maintain and litter pick. These groups are often integral to securing the funding to sort out getting parks tidied up a bit. It could be a complete oasis, if you think about Falkner Square and Abercromby Square and all those areas in the city centre.
“We’ve had two meetings already and are starting again in September. I think a lot of the residents want a green space that they can work on which is really good.
"It’s so sad because there are so many assets in the city and there isn’t the money available to be able to look after all those assets so I think friends of groups are so important. It's basically people in the community coming together to help maintain the space.”
Back in Brownlows Inn, that sense of community is palpable. Claire Dale first started working behind the bar here five years ago, and describes the relationship between staff and customers and like a “family”
“The regulars have been coming for years,” she said. “Most of them have lost their wives so they’re on their own which is really sad but that’s why we look after them so much.
"During lockdown, they must have been so lonely because this is one of their getaways. We’re all really close to them and I start making their drinks as soon as they walk through the door - they’re that regular. They all end up being like family.”
Claire added: “After covid, things started off a bit slow but we’ve had a refurb the past couple of months so we’ve been doing well. The regulars get a cob on when the price goes up by 5p but, even though we’re pretty cheap in here, the cost of living is going up for everyone.
“I have noticed with the buses and trains striking we’ve been quieter than usual, but we’re still thriving.”
There’s a cheer as someone strikes up a rendition of Ewan MacColl’s ‘Dirty Old Town’ on the karaoke. Outside, a group of students - laden down with Lidl bags from their big shop- make their way towards one of the student accommodation blocks further up the street.
Looking at this melting pot of ages, backgrounds and cultures, it’s abundantly clear that, while Mount Pleasant may have a reputation for being ‘a bit out the way’, it is right at the beating heart of the city.
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