Balham Bowls Club

Pub Heritage Group have recently carried out a regrading of Real Heritage Pubs - click here for full details

Greater London South West - Balham

One star - A pub interior of special national historic interest

Listed Status: Not listed

7-9 Ramsden Rd
Balham
SW12 8QX

Tel: (020) 8673 4700

Email: bbc@anticlondon.com

Website https://balhambowlsclub.com/

Facebook https://www.facebook.com/100095248419095

Real Ale: Yes

Lunchtime Meals: Yes

Evening Meals: Yes

Nearby Station: Balham

Station Distance: 350m

Public Transport: Near Railway Station (Balham) and Bus Stop

Bus: Yes

View on: Whatpub

This pub retains its original five-room layout on the ground floor, a concert room upstairs, and much fielded panelling on the walls.

Built as Balham Club, then Balham Bowls Club (bowling green sold off) this became a pub in 2006 and has a multi-roomed interior with lots of inter-war fittings. Bowls clubs artefacts, scoreboards, rolls of honour, bowls numbers etc, are displayed on walls throughout the pub. From the front door a passage to the left with fielded panelling leads into the public bar. This bar has a parquet floor, a curved fielded panelled bar counter, and the bar-back looks to be inter-war. There is an inter-war brick fireplace painted black and the walls of the room have more quality fielded panelling. Look for the bell box with the very members club-like room names such as ‘Concert Room’, ‘Billiard Room’, ‘Card Room’ and ‘Board Room’.

A wide arch at the back of the public bar leads to a rear room (which in turn leads to the garden) which also has a parquet floor and lots of quality fielded panelling on the walls apart from one bare brick wall on the right. In the middle of the building is a small room with more parquet flooring and fielded panelling to picture frame height. There is a large room at the rear right of the building with a modern servery and little of interest.

The fifth downstairs room is at the front right and was the billiards room and still retains some of the raised fixed seating in the front window area. There is an early 20th century red-glazed brick, cast iron and wood surround fireplace. Dado panelling runs all the way up the staircase to the first floor where there is a large concert room with a segmental barrel vaulted ceiling.

Built as Balham Club, then Balham Bowls Club (bowling green sold off) this became a pub in 2006 and has a multi-roomed interior with lots of inter-war fittings. From the front door a passage with fielded panelling turns to the left into the public bar. This has a parquet floor, curved fielded panelled bar counter which floor markings on the front left indicate has moved slightly. The front is painted black and the bar back fitting looks to be from the inter-war period but lower shelves lost to fridges. There is an inter-war brick fireplace painted black and the walls of the room has quality fielded panelling. Look for the bell box with the very members club-like room names such as ‘Concert Room’, ‘Billiard Room’, ‘Card Room’ and ‘Board Room’.

A wide wood panelled-lined arch at the back of the public bar leads to the rear room with a parquet floor and lots of quality fielded panelling on the walls apart from one bare brick wall on the right. Note the bowling numbers high up on the wall. In the middle of the building is a small room with parquet floor, more fielded panelling to picture frame height all around and a 1930s brick fireplace painted black. The rear right large room has a modern servery and the only items of interest are the bowls clubs artefacts, scoreboards, rolls of honour etc.

The front right room was the billiards room and still retains some of the raised fixed seating in the front window area and the lighting structure that hung over the table is now a feature on the wall. There is an early 20th century red glazed brick, cast iron and wood surround fireplace and the rear wall is full of bowls numbers in a checker-board style. Dado panelling runs all the way up the staircase to the first floor where there is a large concert room with a segmental barrel vaulted ceiling.
 

Full Description