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Date of photo: 1970	Picture source: Paul Smith
The Durham Castle was situated at 30 Alexander Street. This pub is now used as a restaurant.
This pub was next door to Stiff Records HQ and much frequented by Stiff artists and staff.
George Houstoun (March 2011)
Stiff started off in the basement, with the ground floor being the famous Blackhill Enterprises. The pub was considered their social centre. In the above photo, back centre on the step ladder is musician Michael Chapman, to his right musician Bridget St John, below her Ursula Smith cellist in Third Ear Band who provided the soundtrack for Roman Polanski’s ’Macbeth’ film (1971) and played at several of the free Hyde Park concerts.The other women in the front row are Blackhill staff.
Paul Smith (November 2018)
The Durham Castle was one of the favourite lunch time destinations of the staff of the Tower Records store in Whiteley’s. Buying staff would also get taken there by record labels to do the new release and back catalogue buying, which could typically be a two hour + session. There was for a while a pool table in the room upstairs.
Chris Tuft (December 2019)
My auntie and uncle Dale and Jean Olbort-Wilkins were the landlords of the Durham Castle pub in Paddington in the early 80's. I remember as a child going to visit them and staying there for a week. I slept in the room at the front with the balcony outside the window I was about 11 or 12 at the time and mad into music. My uncle informed me that several musicians and bands frequented the pub One morning I came down to a host of various goodies kindly given by some of these bands, most notably band name tee shirts Ian Dury and the blockheads and Spear of Destiny. I was well chuffed
Simon Hoffmann (February 2024)
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Contacts
Were you a customer, publican or member of staff at this pub? Display your email contact details on this page by adding them here and let past regulars get in touch with you.
Name Dates Comments Geoffrey Everett 1971/1987 I lived in Durham Terrace and was a regular customer firstly with landlord Jack Cootes before he left to a city pub, Ted and Viv Hayward took over and were there for many years and that was when Stiff Records moved in next door many fond memories of the bands that came into the pub, Ted and Viv left to manage a pub in Hammersmith then Dale and Jean took over can’t remember surname until I left to go and live in Victoria in 1987 Neil Weatheritt 1984/1985 I was barman under Joyce and Geddes Presmeg.
Other Photos
Picture source: Darkstar