The Bailey Inn is on the corner of Bailey Hill and Oldcroft Road. The Bailey Mound stands on the site of a mine air shaft.

Edith Jones was the owner of the Bailey Inn in 1891 and 1903.  She ran it free from brewery tie in late Victorian times but had leased it out to the Anglo-Bavarian Brewery of Shepton Mallet in 1903. The annual rateable value of the Bailey Inn was £12.0s.0d. but the licensing books does not stipulate whether it was a beer house or an ale house. With a low rateable value of £12.0s.0d. however, it was probably a humble beer house.

In the Morris 1876 directory there is a reference to Arthur Henry Morse, carpenter, joiner and agent for Collier & Co’s Bristol Ales & Porter. I have found no other reference to Collier & Co, but the succession of brewery ownership of the Bailey Inn to Anglo-Bavarian may suggest that Collier & Co were acquired by Charles Garton, brewers of Bristol (Easton Road, Lawrence Hill), who were subsequently acquired by the Anglo-Bavarian Brewery in 1898.

In June 1974 a horse named Trigger, belonging to Mr Clifford Wayman of the Bailey Inn was rescued from a disused mineshaft near Danby Lodge. At that time the Bailey was a Whitbread pub, inherited from the licensed properties of West Country Breweries. A ‘Best in the West’ – 1760 – West Country Ales’ ceramic plaque is still in situ.

A rare West Country Breweries skittles scoreboard.

Gary and Valerie Brown bought the freehold of the Bailey Inn early in 2008. An ‘eating out’ review in the ‘Forester’ newspaper noted that Gary and Valerie were hoping that the pub became renowned for its organic food. An advertisement (July 2008) proclaimed that the Bailey Inn offered a ‘truly organic experience’. The advert read: ‘Here at the Bailey Inn we don’t serve fast food, just good food as fast as we can. We serve only British meat, mainly organic and some free range. Our vegetables are organic and locally sourced too. Our menu includes organic burgers, our own organic meatballs, and specials such as Welsh steak and ale pie and fillet steak. Vegetarians are well catered for with dishes such as spicy bean casserole, Mediterranean cous-cous salad and mushroom and red pepper Balti.’

In response to popular television talents shows such as the ‘X Factor’ and ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ the Bailey Inn created their own open-mic contest which developed into ‘Bailey’s Got Talent’. Generous cash prizes of up to £1,000 were on offer in October 2008 when six musical acts battled it out for the prize after ten weeks of heats and two semi-finals. A diverse range of music from punk, trad jazz and blues/skiffle was represented by contesting bands. Landlord Gary Brown said, “There is so much talent in the Forest and we wanted to put on a contest. We want to give them a chance to perform live and will give them plenty of support.”

The Bailey Inn 2007

Renowned First World War poet F.W. Harvey lived in Yorkley for the last 30 years of his life. His home was almost opposite the Bailey, and he spent many happy hours in the pub. In April 2010 the Bailey Inn teamed up with the F.W. Harvey Society and launched a ‘Rhymin’ Slams’ monthly event where people could read a poem or recite or sing their own words or songs. The Society’s Chair Roger Deeks said, “Will Harvey was never precious about his poetry, wanting to get across to as many people as possible his vision of the world. He would have enjoyed seeing his local pub stage an opportunity for people to get together and express themselves. Rhymin’ Slam is a great opportunity for people to perform and experience the power of words and change how we see things.”

Landlords at the Bailey Inn include:

1891,1903 Edith Jones

1974 Clifford Wayman

1999 Gordon Brown

2008 Gary and Valerie Brown

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