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Past Times

Pictures and pints – do you remember these old Dundee pubs?

Join us for a virtual pub crawl back in time to the pubs of Dundee's past.
Graeme Strachan
Patrons stand at the bar in The Bush Bar in Dundee's Seagate.
The Bush Bar in 1984. Image: DC Thomson.

Charge your glasses as we take a look back at how these pubs in Dundee used to look.

They show a number of well-known watering holes.

Some are long gone, never to return, but will always evoke happy times of a misspent youth or a sense of community and belonging.

Some have stood the test of time.

The DC Thomson archives team has dug out a selection of photographs to take you on a virtual pub crawl of the city in days gone by.

Enjoy having another browse back through the ages courtesy of The Dundonian, which appears in the Evening Telegraph every Wednesday.

Some of these photographs have not been seen for years.

How many of these bygone boozers do you remember?


The Anchor Bar

A woman outside The Anchor Bar in Dundee in December 1953.
The Anchor Bar in December 1953. Image: DC Thomson.

The Anchor Bar, wine and spirit merchant, on the corner of Watson Street in 1953.

The price of a pint was less than 10p, the average house price was around £1,800, and the average salary was £10 a week.

The Celtic Bar

The Celtic bar, beside some Hilltown tenements which are to be demolished.
The Celtic Bar in November 1960 beside Hilltown tenements. Image: DC Thomson.

The Celtic Bar in November 1960 beside Hilltown tenements which were being demolished to make way for multi-storey blocks.

At the time, these new plans for the foot of Hilltown, were to have 376 houses and a day nursery on site.

The Volunteer Arms

Cars parked on the street outside The Volunteer Arms licensed premises and the City Mission.
The Volunteer Arms licensed premises and the City Mission. Image: DC Thomson.

The Volunteer Arms on the corner of Bell Street and Constitution Road in March 1961.

Across the road from the pub was the cemetery that was bulldozed to allow the construction of the multi-storey car park.

Some 10,000 bodies from the New Howff were dug up amid howls of opposition.

Hansom Cab

Pedestrians and traffic in this shot of The Hansom Cab in Seagate in 1971
The Hansom Cab in Seagate in 1971. Image: DC Thomson.

The Hansom Cab, on the corner of Seagate and Commercial Street, had a reputation for being a haven for underage drinking in the 1970s.

The ABC was still going strong as a cinema across the road where film fans would often watch a movie after a meal at the Hong Kong restaurant.

The pub is still there today as the rebranded Tickety Boo’s, which opened in 1997.

The Bush

The exterior and sign of The Bush pub in the Seagate, Dundee.
The Bush in the Seagate. Image: DC Thomson.

The Bush Bar in Seagate first opened for business in the 1800s.

In fact, the pub’s name harks back to an old tradition of hanging a freshly cut bush outside the door to let everyone know that fresh beer had just been brewed and was now available.

The pub is still going strong today.

McQuillan’s Bar

Chess fanatics McQuillan's Bar on Arbroath Road sitting outside
Chess fanatics from the pub in 1981. Image: DC Thomson.

Do you remember McQuillan’s Bar on Arbroath Road?

The heat drove these chess fanatics, who were aiming to break a world record, out into the street in August 1981.

The lads were three days into the marathon and moved to the waste ground at the top of Robertson Street, opposite the pub.

The Admiral Bar

Margaret Hibbert stands beside the till in the  Admiral Bar.
Margaret Hibbert in the  Admiral Bar. Image: DC Thomson.

Barmaid Margaret Hibbert in the Admiral Bar in Camperdown Road in August 1983.

The 1980s introduced several transformative inventions.

Margaret was showing off a new “super till” that would keep a check of stock while displaying the order being charged to customers.

Floating pub

An aerial shot showing the River Tay, the harbour and Dundee’s floating pub, the Inn At The Quay.
The Balmoral at Craig Pier in 1982. Image: DC Thomson.

Dundee once had a lively nightlife on the waterfront.

Back in the 1980s, people flocked to Dundee’s floating pub, the Inn At The Quay.

Formerly called The Balmoral, the venture didn’t last too long.

Angels

United fans hold up their glasses to celebrate at Angels.
United fans celebrate at Angels. Image: DC Thomson.

Moustache, white socks, slip on shoes?

Check.

Dundee United fans celebrate at Angels in Ward Road after Dundee United’s Uefa Cup win against the mighty Barcelona in March 1987.

A bar called Heaven’s Above was, ironically, in the basement.

The Bread

The dilapidated exterior of the Breadalbane Arms pub on Constitution Road, Dundee, which has since been knocked down.
The building on Constitution Road has since been knocked down. Image: DC Thomson.

Dundee College students will remember the Breadalbane Arms, although most locals referred to it as the Bread, the Bothy or the Howff.

The climb up the hill to the college, plus all the steps, definitely kept you fit before undoing that good work by having a few pints in The Bread at lunchtime.

The Royal Oak

The outside of The Royal Oak in August 1988.
The Royal Oak in August 1988. Image: DC Thomson.

The Royal Oak on Brook Street was a popular pub serving a range of real ales.

The pub stood opposite Urquhart Street and became a curry house that was owned by Jacob and Audrey Chacko until 2003.

Do you have any memories of the boozer?

Scott’s Bar

Contestants getting ready to answer questions in 1991. Image: DC Thomson.

Dundee Quiz League’s octocentenary quiz taking place at Scott’s Bar in Union Street.

Mine host in 1991 was Billy Gibson, who was a well known Dundee United supporter.

Back in 1991 a pint would have set you back £1.29.

Brannigans

Scotland fans watching the 1998 World Cup in Brannigans. Image: DC Thomson.

Anyone remember Brannigans?

It was the old Odeon cinema at the corner of Cowgate and St Andrews Street.

The cinema closed in 1984 and was used for bingo until 1994 when it became Brannigans in 1998 featuring concerts by the likes of Big Country.

It proved to be yet another short-lived venture.

The 900-capacity Deja Vu, in Cowgate, opened in August 2000, after owners First Leisure transformed the former Brannigans site.

It is the final image in our picture gallery of old city pubs.

Cheers!

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