When Basildon Development Corporation created new housing estates after 1949, pubs were planned as part of neighbourhood life alongside shops and community facilities. These were not accidental additions: several were specifically built to give the thousands of incoming residents a recognisable local meeting place.
Denys Drive, Fryerns
The Crane opened on 13 April 1954 and was the first completely new public house built after Basildon's designation as a New Town. Whitbread architect P. H. Banks was asked to design a pub that was clearly recognisable as a public house while still fitting comfortably among the surrounding houses. Its tucked-away neighbourhood position was unusual compared with the more prominent roadside pubs of the past.
Inside were separate public and saloon bars, each with a fireplace, an off-licence and living accommodation above for the landlord. Beer and ale were central to the original Whitbread operation, while the different bars reflected the social conventions of 1950s pub life. George and Elizabeth Walker, who moved from a Whitbread pub at Elephant & Castle in London, were the first landlord and landlady.
At the opening, Development Corporation representative E. L. Protheroe unveiled the sign and expressed the hope that the pub would become a place of good fellowship and good ale. That summed up exactly why the Crane had been built: it was intended as a social centre for a brand-new community.
Whitmore Way, Fryerns
The Jolly Friar followed in 1955, becoming Fryerns' second New Town pub. It was built beside the neighbourhood shopping centre to serve the expanding estates on either side of Whitmore Way. Architects Stewart and Hendry designed it with a private clubroom, living accommodation and its own off-licence.
Mann, Crossman & Paulin supplied the ale and a large Manns sign was once a familiar feature of the exterior. In 1972 the saloon and lounge bars were joined to create a larger lounge. The pub was not principally famous as a music venue, although local bands and solo performers did appear there over the years.
Luncies Road, Barstable
The Winged Horse opened on 19 December 1957 to serve the new Barstable housing estates. Its construction followed the Development Corporation's neighbourhood principle: substantial new housing areas were to be supported by shops, community facilities and a pub rather than functioning simply as dormitory estates.
The pub originally operated under Taylor Walker and later came under Ind Coope. With living accommodation for the publican, it followed the traditional model of the resident landlord while serving an entirely modern post-war estate.
301 Long Riding, Barstable
The Long Riding opened in 1959, with Stanley and Margaret Green recorded as its first publicans. It was another purpose-built neighbourhood pub and at one time included its own off-licence. Generations of Barstable residents used it as their local until changing drinking habits and the decline of many large estate pubs caught up with it.
It closed on 17 March 2010. A special afternoon and evening disco was held on its final Sunday of trading, giving regulars a last opportunity to gather in the building.
Timberlog Lane, Barstable
The Commodore opened in 1962 as a free house and later became associated with Mann, Crossman & Paulin. It offered more than a conventional bar: an air-conditioned restaurant and Saturday dinner dances made it a leisure and entertainment venue as well as a neighbourhood pub.
In the late 1980s Stacey's Snooker Club operated from a private room with nine Riley tables. The Commodore closed around the end of 1999 and was demolished in 2000. Flats named Commodore House were built on the site, preserving the old pub name.
The Knares, Lee Chapel South
The Castle Mayne, now generally styled Castlemayne, officially opened on 26 September 1963. Architect Ernest Brander Musman designed it for the newly developed Lee Chapel South neighbourhood. Its name came from an old crenellated farmhouse and dairy that had stood nearby before New Town development.
An off-licence formed part of the original building. The lounge bar also had a stage, and live entertainment became a long-running part of the pub's identity. The Castlemayne therefore combined the Development Corporation's idea of a neighbourhood local with a venue where residents could see bands and entertainers without travelling into the town centre.
Clay Hill Road, Kingswood
The Owl and Pussycat opened in 1963 with an off-licence and was built beside the neighbourhood centre to serve Kingswood. Its name came from Edward Lear's famous nonsense poem. During the 1980s it was briefly renamed Lears before returning to its original name.
Although it was not particularly known for music in its earliest period, live bands and artists became a feature in later years. Like the Castlemayne, it illustrates how the estate pub gradually developed from a straightforward local drinking house into a broader entertainment venue.