Drum, Bentley, Doncaster

Drum Pub Reviews

It's not just any old pub

To some, it might just look like another pub tucked away in the corner of a sprawling mining village. But to others The Drum in Bentley has shaped lives.

It was built almost a century ago in the style of the time, a vast, sprawling cavernous type of place, quite plain, even ugly in its outward appearance.

To generations of us growing up in and around Bentley, the building barely warranted a second glance. It was something that was always there, an immovable landmark, a beacon for homeward bound travellers.

The Bentley Hotel it was rather grandly called when it opened in 1913, but soon it was known to all as either the Big Drum, or simply The Drum, named, rumour had it, after a popular local drummer who entertained in the pub concert room.

Years later, after a brewery make-over, the Bentley Hotel sign disappeared and The Drum it remained thereafter.

It survived two world wars, was the gathering place for Bentley's births, marriages and deaths, saw the rise and fall of one of the country's finest pits and watched over the death of the community which grew up round it.

The Drum was many things to many people, an Aladdin's cave of countless attics and cellars, a warren of corridors and stairs, dining areas and bars, store rooms and kitchens. Outside there were vast gardens and bowling greens and overgrown orchards to be explored.

Meet the eclectic mix of customers who stood in their designated areas in The Drum's bars; the butchers and bakers, doctors and dentists and the steady stream of miners with their unquenchable thirsts.

Life in those days was simple and uncomplicated, black or white, where children could play safely in the streets and where entertainment was home made.

Today it's still a thriving community pub run by Gary and Karen, ever keen to welcome new customers, from local and far, offering entertainment, and quality menu to drool over.

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