The Perch (Binsey)

The Perch is a historic public house in the village of Binsey, Oxfordshire, England, northwest of Oxford and close to the River Thames, overlooking Port Meadow.

The Perch, January 2017

The Perch Inn
The Perch at Binsey from the car park, October 2009
General information
Town or cityBinsey, Oxfordshire
CountryEngland
Construction started17th Century
Completed18th Century
Technical details
Structural systemPlastered rubble w. thatch roof
Red brick w. tile or slate roof (additions)

History

The Perch dates back 800 years, and the current building, a Grade II listed building,[1] to at least the 17th century. It is said to be haunted by a sailor.[2] The Perch, together with most of the other buildings in Binsey, is owned by Christ Church in nearby Oxford.[3] The Perch was extensively damaged by fire in 1977 and again in 2007.[4][5] The Perch re-opened in September 2008.[6]

Literary connections

The Perch is close to an avenue of poplars made famous by Gerard Manley Hopkins in his poem Binsey Poplars, written when he found the riverside trees felled. The replacements for these trees, which stretch from Binsey to Godstow, lasted until 2004, when the present replantings began.[2] The Perch was frequented by author Lewis Carroll and is noted as one of the first places that he gave public readings of Alice in Wonderland. It was also a favorite of C. S. Lewis and fictional character Inspector Morse.[7]

Historic jazz venue

From 1928 to 1948, the Perch was popular among Oxford University students as a venue to hear the latest jazz. Although it ceased to be a jazz venue after 1949, in 2009 the Perch was named by the Brecon Jazz Festival as one of 12 venues which had made the most important contributions to jazz music in the United Kingdom.[8]

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See also

References
  1. Historic England. "The Perch Inn  (Grade II) (1185191)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
  2. Hatts, Leigh, The Thames Path Cicerone Press Limited (2005) ISBN 1-85284-436-1, ISBN 978-1-85284-436-3
  3. "U-Turn over pub pleases villagers", Oxford Times, 10 October 2002 Archived 7 March 2010 at the Wayback Machine
  4. "Fire in 17th century thatched pub", BBC News 8 May 2007
  5. "Perch may be closed for 18 months", Oxford Times, 28 June 2007 Archived 31 January 2009 at Wikiwix
  6. Ffrench, Andrew, "Perch reopens after blaze", Oxford Mail, 18 September 2008
  7. Bramlett, Percy and Higdon, Ronald, Touring C.S. Lewis' Ireland and England, Smyth & Helwys Publishing (1998) ISBN 1-57312-191-6 ISBN 978-1-57312-191-0
  8. "Buckingham Palace hits right note with jazz fans", London Evening Standard (3 August 2009) Archived 26 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine

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