Iconic Queen's Royal pub in Wirral could reopen next month after six-year closure

The new owners of a Wirral pub that has been closed for six years said it could reopen as soon as next month as they reveal their plans for the iconic venue.

The Queen’s Royal, which sits on New Brighton’s waterfront, has been empty since it unexpectedly closed in March 2019. The former hotel has remained shut ever since.

However it was announced on May 8, the pub would soon be reopening as its new owners announced what they plan to do with the place. In a post announcing the news, the hotel’s new owners said it would “be reborn as a traditional pub with a modern twist.”

Owner Nicholas Demetrios told the LDRS: “Stage one is to open the downstairs which is going to be a restaurant slash bar area and to the left is going to be a function suite for weddings, christenings, and other events.

“For me, the biggest asset especially in the summer is that big terrace. We are going to be fixing the terrace up with lights and heaters and then hoping a few months after that to construct the rooms. It’s currently got 12 bedrooms but we’re going to be converting it to 20 bedrooms.

“We are going to be running it as a hotel as well. We’re hoping for the downstairs stage one to be open for June and the rooms around August to September time. It’s going to be a traditional pub.

“We are going to try and bring it back to its iconic state. We’re partnering up with Fusion Catering so they’re renting the kitchen out from us and the menu is going to be traditional pub food, roast dinners, and stuff like that.”

Asked why they’d taken the building over, Mr Demetrios said it would be a family-run restaurant, adding: “For me, it was such a shame to see such an iconic building closed. Because we own Nyx, Onyx, and the Little Gem where we’re getting functions, there is an iconic place to have your function on the seafront.

“We have got the rooms, we have the disabled access there. There’s no drinking place on the seafront, it’s all restaurants. You have got Nandos, Prezzo, Portofino.

“At least now we are going to have a pub back in the area where you can have a nice pint. There’s going to be cask ale options as well.”

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The new pub will have live entertainment on Fridays and Saturdays. The new owners will be taking over the licence currently held for the building. There are also separate plans to temporarily reopen the former JD Wetherspoon too on the seafront.

Plans were previously put forward to knock down the building in 2021 and replace it with a more modern hotel but this was later rejected by Wirral Council. A proposal to turn it into a school were also pulled after BBC Panorama ran an investigation into the Life Wirral school on Victoria Road.