The Nook, 7 Nelson Street, Liverpool L1, 2003 • Blimey, there’s a light on in there. Once renowned as Britain’s only ‘Chinese’ pub (interesting memoir by a 1960s bartender here), this scary-looking boozer was on its last legs when I took this. It was done up a bit in 2008 but clearly not to much effect; in 2009 it was temporarily closed for allegedly trading in dodgy booze and fags. One contemporary reviewer reckoned that “In a few years time this may be cherished as an unspoilt example of a down at heel 1960s Liverpool boozer including a genuine Formica topped bar”, while another found it “about as Chinese as Desmond Tutu”. By 2013 it closed for good; here’s how it looks now. Liverpool has the UK’s oldest Chinatown, and there’s a plucky plan to turn this into a museum of the area.
Shopfront Elegy 