You may have cruised the BCN passed the old Fiddle & Bone pub by Sheepcote Street bridge near Brindley Place in central Birmingham and felt what a pity that such a lovely canal side pub no longer operates. In fact it was closed in 2002 due to complaints about noise from it.

It is owned by the C&RT who were unable to find new tenants for the building since closure.

But now the owners of Sherborne Wharf, which is round the corner on the Ouzells Street Loup of the BCN, are working with the C&RT to bring the old pub to life as a bar/restaurant with chandlery, pump outs, diesel and repair services.

They obtained licenses for music, alcohol, etc in October 2012 and on Thursday 18 September 2013 were granted planning permission for change of usage and installation of the boat services.

This is great news for local residents (I am one) and for the boating community for whom the business should make staying over around Brindley Place and Gas Street Basin a whole better experience. A canal side pub and bistro with boat services are much needed in the area and have been a long time coming!

This is a joint project between the C&RT and Sherborne Wharf Ltd so the results should very much enhance the experience of visiting boaters.

The project is planned to be completed in June 2014 and work seems to have started already!

The relevant planning applications are 2013/05752/PA and 2013/05753/PA. Linking to these shows related documents showing what is planned.