BISLEY'S PUBS
In the 1500s and 1600s, Bisley was a much busier place - at the height of the medieval wool trade, which then accounted for half of England's wealth, it was an important link in the chain between Gloucester and the sea to the west, and Cirencester, and on south to London.
Merchants and drovers passed through daily, and there were at least nine thriving pubs and inns in the village to quench their thirst.
By 1870, with wool supplanted by more practical cloths, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales was describing Bisley as ‘a decayed small town', and most of the pubs were closing.
Today we are left with only two - The Stirrup Cup and The Bear Inn. (Four of those which closed can be seen on this website.)
The Stirrup Cup was originally known as The New Inn, and has changed outwardly very little since the 1800s, as the photograph above shows.
The Bear Inn is a sixteenth-century building which was originally the village assembly room and courthouse; it was originally recorded as a pub in 1631 and has been in service ever since.
It has a priest hole above the fireplace, and various landlords and landladies have claimed that it is haunted; on two occasions the webmaster and his wife have seen odd things in there (odd, that is, even by Bisley's standards).
One night a book flew off the bookcase above the log-burner in the middle bar and landed some feet away. (It was The History of Murder.)
On another occasion, a handled glass sitting on a hook above the bar lifted off the hook and smashed on the floor.
It's hard to explain these events without recourse to paranormal explanations, or at least the very unusual, but on the other hand, the webmaster and his wife had been drinking.
Merchants and drovers passed through daily, and there were at least nine thriving pubs and inns in the village to quench their thirst.
By 1870, with wool supplanted by more practical cloths, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales was describing Bisley as ‘a decayed small town', and most of the pubs were closing.
Today we are left with only two - The Stirrup Cup and The Bear Inn. (Four of those which closed can be seen on this website.)
The Stirrup Cup was originally known as The New Inn, and has changed outwardly very little since the 1800s, as the photograph above shows.
The Bear Inn is a sixteenth-century building which was originally the village assembly room and courthouse; it was originally recorded as a pub in 1631 and has been in service ever since.
It has a priest hole above the fireplace, and various landlords and landladies have claimed that it is haunted; on two occasions the webmaster and his wife have seen odd things in there (odd, that is, even by Bisley's standards).
One night a book flew off the bookcase above the log-burner in the middle bar and landed some feet away. (It was The History of Murder.)
On another occasion, a handled glass sitting on a hook above the bar lifted off the hook and smashed on the floor.
It's hard to explain these events without recourse to paranormal explanations, or at least the very unusual, but on the other hand, the webmaster and his wife had been drinking.
The Stirrup Cup
The Stirrup Cup is a friendly local pub serving real ales (at time of writing, Wye Valley Brewery HPA, and Butcombe Original), lagers, ciders, wines and spirits, as well as a range of good, home-cooked food.
Original paintings by local artists are exhibited in and sold from the pub, too.
There's a skittle alley-cum-function room, a thriving darts team, and a secluded beer garden which you won't find without asking.
CARPARK
OPEN FIRE
BEER GARDEN
DOGS ARE WELCOME
Landlord: Julian Partridge
Address: Cheltenham Road Bisley GL6 7BL
Telephone: 01452 770007
email: [email protected]
The Stirrup Cup's website
The Stirrup Cup's instagram page
The Stirrup Cup on TripAdvisor
The Stirrup Cup on Facebook
Original paintings by local artists are exhibited in and sold from the pub, too.
There's a skittle alley-cum-function room, a thriving darts team, and a secluded beer garden which you won't find without asking.
CARPARK
OPEN FIRE
BEER GARDEN
DOGS ARE WELCOME
Landlord: Julian Partridge
Address: Cheltenham Road Bisley GL6 7BL
Telephone: 01452 770007
email: [email protected]
The Stirrup Cup's website
The Stirrup Cup's instagram page
The Stirrup Cup on TripAdvisor
The Stirrup Cup on Facebook
The Bear Inn
The Bear Inn is the quintessential English Cotswold stone village pub. It was built hundreds of years ago, and was originally Bisley's courthouse. There was a change of tenant in March 2025 and a new website is under construction. If you google you may find excellent Tripadvisor reviews for the pub under previous tenants; unfortunately, the last pair left the village under very shady circumstances, and thus you may also come across unflattering stories.
None of these relates to the new landlady, Alice, who is a longtime Bisley resident, and took over on March 21.
At time of writing (March 25), there is no food available - Alice is working on getting the kitchen back into commission and will be serving food shortly. There is a good range of beers (currently Timothy Taylor's Landlord and Butcombe Original), lagers, and wines.
Landlady: Alice Everdine Willow
Address: George Street Bisley GL6 7BD
Telephone: 07808 656727
email: [email protected]
The Bear's instagram page
The Bear's facebook page
None of these relates to the new landlady, Alice, who is a longtime Bisley resident, and took over on March 21.
At time of writing (March 25), there is no food available - Alice is working on getting the kitchen back into commission and will be serving food shortly. There is a good range of beers (currently Timothy Taylor's Landlord and Butcombe Original), lagers, and wines.
Landlady: Alice Everdine Willow
Address: George Street Bisley GL6 7BD
Telephone: 07808 656727
email: [email protected]
The Bear's instagram page
The Bear's facebook page
Pubs near Bisley
There are lots of great pubs near Bisley - The Lamb at Eastcombe, The Butchers Arms at Oakridge, and The Woolpack at Slad are all eminently walkable in half an hour or so; The Butchers Arms at Sheepscombe, The Bell and The Daneway at Sapperton, The King's Head at France Lynch, and The Black Horse at Cranham are all around ten minutes' drive away.
You could cycle to any of them in 45 minutes, and I have, though we live in a hilly part of the world - Bisley is just about the highest point in The Cotswolds - and you'll certainly earn your shandy when you get there.
(The Daneway is pretty much all downhill, admittedly, but you have to get back up the hill, and it's very steep for a mile or two.)
Although this website is run by volunteers, the cost of hosting the site is partly borne by the parish council, which covers not just Bisley but also Eastcombe and Oakridge. So, while our focus is naturally mostly on Bisley, it's only fair that we include a little extra detail on the pubs in those two villages:
You could cycle to any of them in 45 minutes, and I have, though we live in a hilly part of the world - Bisley is just about the highest point in The Cotswolds - and you'll certainly earn your shandy when you get there.
(The Daneway is pretty much all downhill, admittedly, but you have to get back up the hill, and it's very steep for a mile or two.)
Although this website is run by volunteers, the cost of hosting the site is partly borne by the parish council, which covers not just Bisley but also Eastcombe and Oakridge. So, while our focus is naturally mostly on Bisley, it's only fair that we include a little extra detail on the pubs in those two villages:
The Butcher's Arms, Oakridge
The Butchers Arms is a nice little pub with a lovely beer garden and a function room.
It serves home-cooked food, real ales and a good selection of wines, and also has a self-contained one-bed cottage which can be rented.
It's a nice, straightforward walk by road; alternatively, you can cut across the diagonal path in the field between Hayhedge Lane and Limekiln Lane, and follow your nose for a mile or two.
Address: Oakridge Lynch, nr Stroud, Gloucestershire, GL6 7NZ
Telephone: 01452 225603
Email: [email protected]
The Butchers Arms website
The Butchers Arms on TripAdvisor
The Butchers Arms on FaceBook
It serves home-cooked food, real ales and a good selection of wines, and also has a self-contained one-bed cottage which can be rented.
It's a nice, straightforward walk by road; alternatively, you can cut across the diagonal path in the field between Hayhedge Lane and Limekiln Lane, and follow your nose for a mile or two.
Address: Oakridge Lynch, nr Stroud, Gloucestershire, GL6 7NZ
Telephone: 01452 225603
Email: [email protected]
The Butchers Arms website
The Butchers Arms on TripAdvisor
The Butchers Arms on FaceBook
The Lamb Inn, Eastcombe
You can walk to The Lamb by going down to the end of Far Wells Road, up to Nash End through the field at the bottom, and then along the ridge, or by dropping down into the Toadsmoor Valley and heading back up the other side (which is the more strenuous option).
Once there you will enjoy the outside decking area with views over the valley, and their home-cooked food and good selection of drinks.
Use the ‘What's On' page on the pub's website for special events.
The Lamb website
The Lamb on TripAdvisor
The Lamb on FaceBook
Once there you will enjoy the outside decking area with views over the valley, and their home-cooked food and good selection of drinks.
Use the ‘What's On' page on the pub's website for special events.
The Lamb website
The Lamb on TripAdvisor
The Lamb on FaceBook
