Fresh attempt to reopen Sam Smith pub Trafalgar Bay in York

Signage was installed outside the Trafalgar Bay in Nunnery Lane on Friday morning (July 10) advertising the chance to run the pub.

The banner encouraged applicants to “put this pub back at the heart of the community” by applying to manage the venue via runapub.co.uk – Sam Smith’s recruitment arm.

A salaried position and free accommodation are offered with the job, but no further details have yet been released.

Former Trafalgar Bay managers Sarah Walmsley and Phil Roper called time at the pub for the last time on August 15, 2022, after four and a half years in charge.

Sarah Walmsley and Phil Roper who called time at the Trafalgar Bay for the last time in 2022 (Image: Clements Hall Local History Group)

Locals praised Sarah and Phil after the pub closed with one regular, who gave his name only as Pete, saying the pair had “been brilliant” and created a “fabulous community pub”.

The Clements Hall Local History Group also praised Sarah and Phil after the closure in 2022, writing in a statement: “Their hard work and diligence over the last few years have created a wonderful community pub, which is valued by many.”

Meanwhile, signs have also been spotted outside the closed Brown Cow in Hope Street, off Walmgate, as well as other Sam Smith’s pubs in the area in a bid to reopen the venues.

The Brown Cow in Hope Street where a sign has also been installed to reopen the pub (Image: Alice Kavanagh)

York CAMRA said it is hopeful that more Sam Smith’s pubs could reopen following the death of the brewery’s chairman, Humphrey Smith, last week.

Fiercely traditional, Mr Smith resisted modernisation and his pubs hit the headlines for their strict rules: no music, no children, no televisions, no mobile phones – and strictly no swearing.

In an age of constant noise and digital distraction, his establishments offered something closer to a bygone era.

Humphrey Smith, of Sam Smith’s Brewery at Tadcaster (Image: Newsquest)

Famously reclusive, Mr Smith rarely gave interviews or had his photograph taken. Images of him from The Press archive date back to the 1980s and 1970s.

Nick Love, pub protection officer for York CAMRA, said he has no inside knowledge of goings on at the brewery, which does not speak to the media, after Mr Smith’s death.

Nick said he can only judge matters by the performance of the brewery’s London pubs, which have for several years been run by Mr Smith’s son, Samuel Smith

“There are definite indications that there has been a significant increase in activity regarding re-opening their closed pubs,” Nick said, “and also widespread optimism that some of the outdated rules imposed by Humphrey will be relaxed under the tenure of his son Samuel Smith – evidenced by the removal of rules signs in the Royal Oak in Tadcaster recently.”

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At present around half of the 300 or so pubs Sam Smith’s brewery owns are said to be empty, according to a list compiled by Tom Taverner from Malton.

There have been reports of the brewery disposing of empty pubs, with the Corporation Brewery Tap in Doncaster the Old Brown Cow pub in Bradford both recently sold at auction.

Nick said the brewery’s approach of doing business “out of the public eye” means “I don’t think we’ll get much transparency on how many pubs they choose to dispose of”.

“All we would hope and urge them to do is make sure that any pubs they deem surplus to their estate are then offered to local independent breweries and operators rather than large pub companies and, God forbid, property developers,” he added.