High Street

221 High Street, Glasgow. G1 1PP. Tel: 0141 572 5345.

Old College Bar. 1991.

This is the oldest pub in Glasgow. To read the full history of this historic bar click here.

The Old College Bar with the date 1810.

Note the old windows above the pub have been plastered over.

In this image the old windows can be seen and is still a two storey building. 1980s.

In this image of the Old College Bar you can see there is four storey’s above the pub.

This old painting is dated 1891. The Old College Bar on the right hand side.

In the News 1974…

The bride is pictured arriving at Netherlee Church, Glasgow, on the arm of father, Mr. O. G. Prosser. 1974.

Glasgow Licensee’s daughter weds.

Miss Louise E. Prosser, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. O. G. Prosser, who are well known in Glasgow licensed trade circles, was married recently to Mr. Colin Kerr, Bishop’s Stortford, Herts.

Mr. Prosser is a director of the Glasgow and District Licensed Trade Association and vice-president of the Royalty Burns Club. Mrs. Prosser is immediate past president of the Glasgow and West of Scotland Women’s Auxiliary Group.

The groom is the eldest son of Mr. Archibald Kerr, formerly a licensed grocer in Girvan, Ayrshire, and Mrs. Kerr.

Up-to-date NEWS 26th March 2013…

The news that the oldest pub in Glasgow is to be demolished. Owner Colin Beattie, say’s he will rebuild another Old College Bar on the site of the old one. Apart from being the oldest pub in Glasgow there is nothing of historic interest in the pub.

The pub is to be demolished despite the building is not dangerous, in fact the building is very strong and well built, the walls are over a foot deep. It will be a shame to see it go.

Up-to-date News 15th April 2014…

I phoned the secretary of the owner of the Old College Bar Colin Beattie the other day, the reason for this phone call was to see if I could get access to the closed Old College Bar. I was stunned to say the least to learn that the Old College Bar was still open.

A well-known Glasgow Newspaper reported that the Old College Bar was closed for good and will not open again after the owners who least the pub got into financial difficulty owing a lot of money to Sky for not paying for the rights to view Sky programs.

However Colin Beattie reopened the Old College Bar with a new manager.

I visited the Old College Bar the other day and got some great images of the interior and exterior. Images coming soon…..

For all you drinkers and historians out there, please take this opportunity to visit the Old College Bar before it is completely demolished. Please Please support your local.

Update 18th August 2014…

We all know that the Old College Bar is the oldest pub in Glasgow, but did you know there is an old pre Victorian Street in the cellar of this old establishment?
This antique pub was built in 1810 and had its first licence in 1812.
When John Gorevan started his search for Glasgow’s oldest pub, he was talking to the manager of the Old College Bar. John took some photos of the interior and exterior and was invited to have a look downstairs.
The trap door behind the bar, leading to the cellar adds to the fantastic aged feel to the pub.
When you come down the wooden steps, you are transported into a time before the Victorian Era.
There is a cobbled street starting at the rear wall, curving around the cellar heading towards the St Mungo’s Cathedral. You must watch your step as you might trip over the kerb while you imagine what it would have been like to walk along this street in the Napoleonic Era.
Unfortunately back then, the camera equipment available was very poor. The poor lighting in the cellar meant that we couldn’t get any proper photographs of the street.
The Old College Bar is now soon to be demolished! I couldn’t live with myself if we weren’t able to document this hidden gem for everyone else to see.
We were given permission to access the cellar again this year to document this wonderful street only to be quite disappointed.
We also tried to figure out where the room would have been for the Professor’s and Student’s for their private parties when the old Glasgow College was thriving across the Street.
The street had been given a DIY cement job to make it easier to walk on for the staff as this is where they kept their supplies. HOWEVER there was still some of the cobbles from the street visible from the surface of the cement that we documented. The kerb was also slightly visible with a very noticeable curve up to the Cathedral.

Written by John Gorevan jun.

I would like to thank the manager of the Old College Bar and would recommend popping in before it’s too late!

Here are some images of the cellars floor …

Cobbles from an old Street, most of the cobbles have been cemented over since the first time I visited the cellar over 24 years ago.

Another image of the cellar floor.

Do you have any memories of this old Pub? If so please leave a comment.

Update 04-05-2021…

The building next to the Old College Bar was suspiciously set on fire in the early hours in the morning in a very very wet night. The building and the Old College Bar is set to be demolished to make way for student accommodation. In the years I have researched Old Glasgow Pubs I have seen many of our city pubs being set on fire or the buildings surrounding the pubs mysteriously catching fire in the early hours. Most of these pubs were in the way of the developers. It’s an old trick that’s been going on for decades. Isn’t it ironic that these pubs go on fire in the middle of the night when we are fast asleep. What do you think? Please leave a comment and tell us what you think.