The Bell Hotel set to close for 16 weeks

The Bell Hotel, one of Norwich’s three Weatherspoon pubs, is set to close for 16 weeks as it undergoes refurbishment. In total £2.35 million will be spent to expand the pub which is above Santander bank opposite Primark in city centre. The refurbishment will give an additional 1,500 square foot of space in the pub. The garden is also being extended and a new kitchen, new toilets and new bar will be installed.

Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon said: “The Bell Hotel was our first pub to open in Norwich and continues to be extremely popular.

“We are committed to giving our customers the best pub possible and as a result are carrying out the extension and refurbishment.

“We apologies to our customers that the pub will be shut for a number of weeks, however, we are confident that they welcome the new-look pub.”

The Bell man

The Bell Hotel has a long and interesting history, with some parts of the pub believed to date back to the 15th century. It has been known as the Bell Hotel or the Blue Bell since at least 1696 and at one point in the 18th century was renowned for hosting cockfighting. It became a meeting point for the Hellfire Club in the 1750s and during the Second World War headquarters for the American Women’s Army Air Corps.

Its going to be a long 16 weeks, luckily Norwich isn’t exactly short of drinking establishments.