Plans are in for The Gunners pub

A POPULAR Arsenal bar that has served generations of Gooners is set for a multi-million-pound revamp.

Plans have been submitted to the council to redevelop The Gunners Pub in Blackstock Road with a four-storey block set to be built on the side. This will contain flats and a shop, as well as an expanded underground live music area for the pub.

The Gunners has a long historical connection with Arsenal Football Club, with fans going there before and after games at the old Highbury Stadium.

Leaseholder Andy Hoyle, who has run the pub for the past 15 years, told the Tribune: “It’s not going to be gentrified, it’s not going to become a posh sort of ale bar with a big kitchen. It’s very much going to remain The Gunners and it will retain its Arsenal credentials.

“The architect is based in Clerkenwell and he is also a life-long Gooner, so the plans have been very sympathetically drawn and they have been tailored to the aspect of it as a football destination pub.”

It is understood that the building dates back to 1840, but it hasn’t received significant investment for the best part of the past 30 years.

Mr Hoyle said: “These plans have been in the making for several years and the regeneration is being carried out with love to save the Gunners from dilapidation.”

Council planners are currently reviewing the scheme.

If the work is given the green light it would see the demolition of a rear extension and erection of a new four-storey building with a basement containing nine flats in total.