Lion Inn

The Lion Inn is a public house at Blakey Ridge, near Kirkbymoorside, in North Yorkshire, England. The building was completed between 1553 and 1558 (dates vary), and has been used as an inn for four centuries, sitting adjacent to a road across the moors between Castleton and Hutton-le-Hole. During the ironstone industry boom in Rosedale, it catered mainly for those engaged in the mining industry. The inn is known for being subjected to extremes of weather, like Tan Hill Inn, also in North Yorkshire.

Lion Inn
The Lion Inn, Blakey
Former namesThe Black Lion Inn
General information
LocationBlakey Ridge
Town or cityKirkbymoorside, North Yorkshire
CountryEngland
Coordinates54.388°N 0.956°W / 54.388; -0.956
Elevation1,325 ft (404 m)
Completedc. 1553
References
[1]

At 1,325 ft (404 m) above sea level, it is often referred to as the fourth highest pub in England, and the second highest in Yorkshire (after Tan Hill).

History

The Lion Inn is at 1,325 ft (404 m) above sea level on Blakey Ridge (Blakey means Black),[1][2][3] on the road between Castleton and Hutton-le-Hole.[4] The pub is known for being the fourth highest in England, and the second highest in Yorkshire, after the Tan Hill Inn, which like the Lion, used to serve miners.[5][6] The pub lies on the watershed between several valleys (Eskdale, Farndale, Rosedale, Westerdale), and was located at the site of what is believed to be an ancient hostelry.[7][8] It is believed that monks built the pub between 1553 and 1558, using it as a rest stop when carrying coffins over the moors.[9]

In the 18th century, the Inn was known for the cockfighting on the moors behind the pub, and for being a trading point in corn and fish.[10] Surplus corn from Danby, Commondale and the Fryup's, was sold to the horse-breeders and stable owners of Ryedale.[11] Later, many of those who were patrons at the pub worked in the coal-mining industry, with many pits still visible on Blakey Moor.[12] Then in the 1850s, the ironstone mining industry and its associated railway, brought an enhanced trade to the pub.[13] In the 19th century, the pub was called The Black Lion Inn, or Blakey House.[14][15]

The Lion Inn with snowdrifts

In December 2010, two customers and five staff were trapped in the pub for eight days during a period of heavy snowfall. Drifts of snow 20 ft (6.1 m) were layered against the pub.[1]

In the 1970s and 1980s, the pub hosted various musical acts such as Chris Rea, Slade, Sandie Shaw, Gene Pitney, Neil Sedaka, Helen Shapiro and Sting.[8]

The jazz trio Back Door, formed and played a residency at the pub in the 1970s, with the landlord at the time (Brian Jones), even financing one of their albums.[16] They returned to the pub in 2006 for a sell-out two nights re-union concert.[17][18] The rock band, Mostly Autumn have alos used the Lion Inn as a residency,inserting a small proviso in a 2001 recording contract that allowed them to play live there.[19]

In 2019, segments of the BBC series Top Gear were filmed on the Moors using the pub as a base.[20]

Recreation

The Lion Inn is a waypoint on the Coast to Coast and the Lyke Wake Walk.[21] The pub is also often used as a starting/finishing point for walkers on short ventures out on the moors.[22]

The road past the pub was used in 2016 for the stage three event of the Tour de Yorkshire, known as Cote de Blakey Ridge.[23]

References
  1. "Snow forces eight-day lock-in at Kirkbymoorside pub". BBC News. 5 December 2010. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  2. Bryant, Phil, ed. (2005). "North of England". 1001 great family pubs. Farnborough: AA. p. 100. ISBN 0749542659.
  3. Ekwall, Eilert (1960). The concise Oxford dictionary of English place-names (4 ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 47. ISBN 0-19-869103-3.
  4. Heselden, Jean; Snelling, Rebecca, eds. (1987). North York Moors. Basingstoke: Publishing Division of the Automobile Association. p. 34. ISBN 0-86145-269-0.
  5. Bell, Joe (26 December 2014). "Experience: I was snowed in inside a pub for nine days". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 January 2021.
  6. Bagshaw, Mike (2018). North York Moors & Yorkshire Wolds : local, characterful guides to Britain's special places (2 ed.). Chalfont St. Peter, Bucks: Bradt. p. 51. ISBN 9781784770754.
  7. Reid, Mark (29 October 2015). "Blakey Ridge & Farndale" (PDF). The Northern Echo. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  8. "Hear the music roar". Gazette & Herald. 7 February 2002. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  9. Jowsey, Ed (19 June 2015). "The Lion Inn, N Yorks, pub review". The Telegraph. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
  10. Cowley, Bill (1983). Lyke Wake walk and the Lyke Wake Way : forty miles across the North York Moors in 24 hours or 50 miles in as long as you like! : with in addition the Shepherd's Round the Monk's Trod and the Rail Trail thrown in for good measure. Clapham: Dalesman. p. 32. ISBN 0852067119.
  11. Chrystal, Paul (2017). The Place Names of Yorkshire; Cities, Towns, Villages, Rivers and Dales, some Pubs too, in Praise of Yorkshire Ales (1 ed.). Catrine: Stenlake. p. 133. ISBN 9781840337532.
  12. Knight, David; Bax, Samantha (2013). North York Moors NMP 2 Aerial Survey Mapping Summary Report (PDF). research.historicengland.org.uk (Report). English Heritage. p. 33. Retrieved 18 January 2021.
  13. "The Lion Inn, Blakey Ridge, North Yorkshire Moors". infoweb.newsbank.com. 24 April 2015. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  14. "A day's hunting at Lord Feversham's estate in Farndale". The York Herald (4, 386). Column E. 29 November 1856. p. 12.
  15. "Notes and Queries". The York Herald (12, 530). Column C. 1 August 1891. p. 12.
  16. "Cult classics - 'Back Door', Back Door (1972)". infoweb.newsbank.com. 21 December 2007. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  17. Fordham, John (3 January 2004). "Obituary: Ron Aspery". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  18. "Ron Aspery". The Times. 16 February 2004. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
  19. Sanders, Hilary (7 February 2007). "Hear the music roar". infoweb.newsbank.com. Retrieved 19 January 2021.
  20. Scott, Jim (11 September 2019). "Top Gear stars drop into pub for filming ahead of next series". The Northern Echo. Retrieved 16 January 2021.
  21. Wainwright, Alfred (1987). Wainwright's coast to coast walk. London: M. Joseph. p. 176. ISBN 071812622X.
  22. Owen-Jones, Peter (1 January 2012). "In the tracks of the railway men". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
  23. Murphy, Robert (6 April 2016). "Saddle up and follow in the tracks of Tour de Yorkshire". Gazette & Herald. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
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