Southsea pub The Lawrence Arms to stay closed for three months after car crashed into building

By Joe Buncle
Published 3rd Mar 2023, 17:11 BST
Updated 3rd Mar 2023, 17:11 BST
Watch more of our videos on Shots! 
and live on Freeview channel 276
Visit Shots! now
Damage caused when a car crashed through the wall of The Lawrence Arms has forced its owners to shut the pub for three months.

Landlady Alison Wearn – who runs the popular tavern on Lawrence Road with husband Dev Wearn – shared her frustration that the ‘moment of madness’ has meant months of lost custom. She is currently focused on ensuring the pub’s employees are paid and is in talks with insurance companies.

Alison said: ‘It's because there's so much work. The problem is, as the building is so old, it's not just building a brick wall. If you look at the outside of the building, there's coloured tiles that were there and they were original.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

NOW READ: Phil's Sausages in Lee-on-the-Solent to close this April as owner Phil Groth retires after 58 years as a butcher

The Lawrence Arms in Southsea will remain shut for three months after a car smashed a hole through a wallThe Lawrence Arms in Southsea will remain shut for three months after a car smashed a hole through a wall
The Lawrence Arms in Southsea will remain shut for three months after a car smashed a hole through a wall

‘It's not just a straight wall, it’s got mouldings around the windows and things like that. They’ve got to put it back to how it was and there's a lot of damage that you can’t see. The biggest pain for us - despite the obvious hole in the wall - was that the radiator was on that wall so it flooded the whole bar area. That went through to cellar and brought some of the ceiling down. The cellar was flooded in about a foot of water.

‘We’ve tried to stay really positive but we did have a little wobble. We’ve done Covid but the difference is that everyone has done Covid – whereas now it's just us.’

The process of removing barrels from the cellar and organising their collection by breweries will also factor into the delay. On weekends during their closure period, staff will help Alison and Dev renovate the pub’s garden and kitchen ahead of their scheduled reopening in May. The couple are planning a week-long beer festival style celebration for the occasion with different activities each day.

NOW READ: Upside-down house Southsea: Clarence Pier opens new attraction on Saturday, March 4

Repairs are currently under way at The Lawrence Arms on Lawrence Road, Southsea. A car tore a hole in the building last month and landlady Alison Wearn has confirmed the pub will remain closed for three months. Picture: Sarah StandingRepairs are currently under way at The Lawrence Arms on Lawrence Road, Southsea. A car tore a hole in the building last month and landlady Alison Wearn has confirmed the pub will remain closed for three months. Picture: Sarah Standing
Repairs are currently under way at The Lawrence Arms on Lawrence Road, Southsea. A car tore a hole in the building last month and landlady Alison Wearn has confirmed the pub will remain closed for three months. Picture: Sarah Standing

Alison and Dev were sleeping upstairs when a black Mini Cooper hit the 135-year-old pub on Saturday, February 18. The 3am crash left a large hole in the building and the driver fled shortly afterwards.

Speaking just hours after the incident, Alison said: ‘We woke up to a massive bang and the whole pub shook. There was literally a car parked in the front of the pub.’

Related topics:Southsea