In addition to cheap food and drink, Wetherspoons is well known for taking old buildings and giving them a new lease of life as pubs and nightlife spots.
With so many of the chain’s pubs in the North East, these are the stories behind each of the region’s pubs and how they turned into boozers after, in some cases, a long history.
5. The Keel Row
The Keel Row in The Gate complex has its name based on the region's nautical past. The Gate has a stylised boat inside recalling the keel boats which once carried coal out to collier boats waiting on the Tyne. | Google
6. The Quayside
The Quayside Wetherspoons pub is, of course, simply named after its riverside location. | Google
7. The Wouldhave, South Shields
The only Wetherspoons in South Tyneside is named after one of two men believed to have played a role in the development of the South Shields lifeboat. William Wouldhave, who spent much of his time in South Shields, was not considered to have invented the vessel at the time due to his working class mannerisms but is now considered one of the key names behind saving lives at sea. | Google
8. The Job Bulman
Up in Gosforth, the Job Bulman is a former post office while the title comes from a doctor of the same name. He also sold plots of land along the local High Street to build the cottages which were locally known as Bulman Village. | Google