Get all your news in one place.

100’s of premium titles.
One app.

Start reading

Get all your news in one place.

100’s of premium titles. One news app.

Start reading

Liverpool Echo

National

Lee Grimsditch

Good times at lost 'rough' pub with chance to 'win a monkey in a raffle'

Echo Eagle (Facility) Earth

Having gained a reputation as a 'rough' pub, it seems one of the city's most notorious alehouses also had many regular drinkers who loved to stop off for a pint or two.

Last week, the ECHO ran a story which included memories of the Eagle and Child pub in Huyton. It had gained a reputation as a bit of a hard man's pub in its day, staging 'mouse races' and one retired detective even described it as a "criminals' sanctuary".

The beginning of the end for the Eagle and Child came in 1996, when an arrest at the pub and the recovery of a pistol and ammunition sparked a major disturbance. The rain reportedly led to police being pelted with bricks and eggs by a large crowd.

Five months later, the pub was targeted by arsonists three times in one week. Following the last blaze, the pub was gutted and demolished soon after.

However, despite its fearsome reputation, many readers commenting on the ECHO Facebook page and website had a different opinion on the pub. Although, the Eagle and Child did appear to have been known locally as the less than flattering - or endearingly, depending on which side of the fence you stand - as the "Bird and B*****d".

Commenting on the story on the ECHO website, Hello Hartley said: "I went there loads of times in the '80s as it was my grandparents' local. They told me how great it was in years gone by, as it was a bit shabby.

"I met a lot of nice people. All I have of the Eagle and Child are good memories."

For more nostalgia stories, sign up to our Liverpool Echo newsletter here.

Sofaspud said: "Many of the pubs in that area were labelled as being rough - The Eagle, Farmers Arms, Oak Tree, Bow and Arrow, and Yew Tree. Whether they were really rough depended on which 'tribe' you belonged to. Some I felt perfectly comfortable in and others I never ventured into more than once."

On the ECHO Facebook page, Joe Caine commented: "My formative history and just like many working class pubs, I never felt threatened there! Salt of the earth people!"

Janine Berkley said: "My nan and grandad ran this pub for years during '50s and '60s. My mum was married from there in 1957, I was born there in 1959 and then my sister was born in 1961 - it was a lovely pub then and we have such great memories x".

Join our Liverpool memories and history Facebook group here.

And it appears the Eagle and Child's Sunday team league had built a reputation of their own. Commenting on the ECHO website, Gazgoolied said: "They had a great footy team in the '70s - won everything," adding: "They had a right winger, he was brilliant, I think his name was Duncan. Whenever I played against him I thought my shirt was on back to front."

Many agreed, the Eagle and Child are remembered as having one of the best local teams around. Others chose to comment on some of the big characters that used to drink at the pub.

Salster said: "My dad drank here, he use to be linesman for the Eagle and Child footy team up Hillside Avenue - I was brought up in and around that pub. I remember once this huge mountain of a man saying to me dad, once in all the years I went, 'take her in the back Peter.' Next thing I knew the whole place went crazy."

The Eagle and Child following a police incident in March, 1996 (Trinity Mirror)

Salster added: "Some really good old fashioned proper blokes frequented the Eagle and Child. Only people [who] found it rough were outsiders."

Joby had a hilarious tale to tell about one particular character. He said: "Lad I knew used to raffle a joint of meat in there every Sunday afternoon using the old spot-the-ball tickets with 30 numbers on, charging a quid a go, so total 30 quid. He would call the number of the winner out then offer them 10 quid to buy it back. [He would] then move on to the Bluebell and Farmers, The Bow, and The Yew tree and do exactly the same - made himself a fortune every week, lol."

Do these awaken any memories for you? Let us know in the comments section below.

It also appears it wasn't just joints of meat that you could win at an Eagle and Child raffle. Some people remembered one time in the 1980s, the raffle's big prize was a monkey.

Thisisme1 posted: "The monkey was raffled off in the '80s. My grandad brought it home as a present for me and my brother, it was called Tommy.

"My mum got rid of it cos it smelled but I’ve still got the pics somewhere. My gramps was a regular in there from the '50s through until it was burned down in the late '90s. I collected him from there many a time and it was never like it’s being pictured here. As a young female, I was always safe and treated with respect by the men in there."

READ NEXT: