This post was inspired by an idea from some members of the Facebook page, Endeavour:Inspector Morse: https://www.facebook.com/groups/2400957493/?fref=nf
I decided to split this particular subject matter into three posts due to the fact that it is a bigger undertaking than I first thought. Also, it might be easier for the reader. So, here are the first ten Morse episodes and their accompanying pubs.
I was glad of the help toward inspiration for my new post as I was struggling to come up with anything myself. However, though my other posts can take up to five or six hours to create this particular post went way above those times. It was not just the gathering of available information but then trying to do a bit of detective work myself to attempt to identify those pubs hitherto unknown to Morse fans. But all in all I am glad I undertook this endeavour (sorry) as I believe that having all this info at one location will be a boon for Morse fans, especially those planning to visit Oxford or those looking to do a major pub crawl.
I hope you all enjoy this post and remember to keep up-to-date with all the latest posts on my blog by following my blog. See appropriate buttons at the top right of the blog.
The following information will be included in each detail about the Morse episodes:
1) Time – This relates to the hour, minute and second that Morse is shown in the pub.
2) Pub – Name of pub and it’s address followed by a picture from the episode.
3) Pub today – This will be a photo of the pub as up-to-date as possible.
4) Location – This will be a map of pub’s location. Click on maps to get a larger view.
5) Info – This will be additional information relating to the pub, location or anything else of relevance.
DEAD OF JERICHO
TIME – 2m 51s and 12m 22s
PUB – The White Horse, 52 Broad Street, Oxford OX1 3BB. http://www.whitehorseoxford.co.uk/
PUB TODAY –
LOCATION –
INFO – Hours: 11:00 a.m. – 11:30 p.m.
——————-
TIME – 35m 1s and 1h 21m 5s
PUB – The Old Bookbinder’s Ale House, 17-18 Victor Street, Jericho, Oxford OX2 6BT. http://oldbookbinders.co.uk/contact-us
PUB TODAY –
LOCATION –
INFO – The Old Bookbinders was originally owned by Morrells, Oxford’s only brewery, established in 1743. After economic and environmental problems, as well as a rumoured family dispute, the brewery closed and was forced to sell its 132 pubs. Greene King, an enormous pub retailer and brewer bought 107 of the Morells’ pubs for a whopping £67 million making the Bookies part of a commercial enterprise that owns 1600 pubs across the UK.
Opening hours: Midday to 12am
THE SILENT WORLD OF NICHOLAS QUINN
Time – 29m 39s and possibly 1hr 37m 45s
PUB – The Turf Tavern, 4-5 Bath Place, Oxford OX1 3SU. http://www.turftavern-oxford.co.uk/
PUB TODAY –
LOCATION – The top picture is how one gets to The Turf Tavern.
INFO – The third pub visit at 1hr 37m 45s could be Turf Tavern but I am not 100% sure.
—————-
TIME – 32m 59s
PUB: Horse and Trumpet.
PUB TODAY – See info below.
LOCATION – see info below
INFO – I believe The Horse and Trumpet is a fictitious pub. I believe the interior shots are a set specifically built for the episode. I had to do a bit of detective work on this as it wasn’t obvious where the ‘pub’ was supposed be. Looking at the scene I noticed the road was made up of cobbles, (picture 2). So, I used Google’s street view to find cobbled streets in Oxford and I believe I found the street that was used for the external shot when Monica drives up and parks her car, (picture one). Picture 3 is how it looks today. I have circled the buildings that I believe match in pictures 2 and 3. The street is Merton Street in Oxford. As far as I am able to tell there has been no pub in the location shown in the Morse episode.
Additional info 31st May 2020- One of my subscribers, George Robertson, wrote this about this pub location, “Regarding the fictional ‘Horse & Trumpet’ pub in ‘The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn’: rather than being a purpose-built set, I think it may in fact be the student bar in Corpus Christi College, which is in Merton Street as the exterior views suggest; in fact the pink building behind the pub sign is the Corpus President’s Lodging (or at least was when I was a student there in the early ’90s). The main College buildings are on the other side of the road from that building and a little further down towards Christ Church. The ‘Horse & Trumpet’ is clearly a windowless basement location, as the Corpus bar is (or at least was when I was there), and when Morse and Monica are in the pub, you can see a brick bar with a brick arch behind it, framing a mirror. I remember that distinctive bar and mirror very clearly, or at least as clearly as the circumstances of my frequent attendances there allow …”
Thank you George.
Picture 1
Picture 2
Picture 3
———-
TIME – 1h 38m 56s
PUB – The Jericho Tavern, 56 Walton Street, Jericho, Oxford OX2 6AE. http://www.thejerichooxford.co.uk/
PUB TODAY –
LOCATION –
INFO – Opening Hours – Midday to 12am
SERVICE OF ALL THE DEAD
TIME – 36m 48s
PUB – The Green Man but it looks like it is The Turf Tavern in reality, see ‘The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn’ above for more info on The Turf tavern.
PUB TODAY – See ‘The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn’ above.
LOCATION – See ‘The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn’ above.
INFO – It looks like the exterior of The Turf Tavern but I am not 100% sure.
————
TIME – 1h 1m 55s and 1h 30m 52s
PUB – Thanks to Neil McLean for identifying this pub. It is the The Crown at Bray, High St, Bray, Maidenhead SL6 2AH
PUB TODAY –
LOCATION –
INFO – Now owned by the celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal.
THE WOLVERCOTE TONGUE
TIME – 32m 13s
PUB – Randolph Hotel Bar, Beaumont St, Oxford, OX1 2LN. http://www.macdonaldhotels.co.uk/our-hotels/macdonald-randolph-hotel/eat-drink/
PUB TODAY –
LOCATION –
INFO – The bar of the Randolph Hotel is now famously called The Morse Bar.
—————
TIME – 1hr 13m 25s
PUB – Thanks to Neil McLean for identifying this pub. It is the The Crown at Bray, High St, Bray, Maidenhead SL6 2AH
PUB TODAY –
LOCATION –
INFO – Now owned by the celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal.
LAST SEEN WEARING
TIME – 8m 19s
PUB – The White Horse, 52 Broad Street, Oxford OX1 3BB.
PUB TODAY – See Dead of Jericho above
LOCATION – See Dead of Jericho above
INFO – See Dead of Jericho above
————-
TIME – 31m 51s
PUB – Unknown
PUB TODAY – Unknown
LOCATION – Unknown
INFO – None
SETTLING OF THE SUN
TIME – 48m 15s
PUB – Turf Tavern, 4-5 Bath Place, Oxford OX1 3SU.
PUB TODAY – See The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn above
LOCATION – See The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn above
INFO – The red dircle on the above picture shows the pub’s name.
LAST BUS TO WOODSTOCK
TIME – 5m 24s
PUB – Fox and Castle, 21 Burfield Road, Old Windsor, Windsor, West Berkshire SL4 2RB. http://www.thefoxandcastle.co.uk/contact
PUB TODAY –
LOCATION –
INFO – The pub is shown a second time when Morse does his television witness appeal.
————-
TIME – 54m 57s
PUB – Thanks to Neil McLean for identifying this pub. It is the The Crown at Bray, High St, Bray, Maidenhead SL6 2AH
PUB TODAY –
LOCATION –
INFO – Now owned by the celebrity chef Heston Blumenthal.
———–
TIME – 1h 19m 11s
PUB – Unknown but the same pub as above
PUB TODAY – Unknown
LOCATION – Unknown
INFO – None
GHOST IN THE MACHINE
TIME – 42m 40s
PUB – Rose and Crown.
PUB TODAY – Yes
LOCATION – Harefield Rd, Rickmansworth WD3 1PP
INFO – Thanks to Tine Whiteside for telling of this pub and its location.
THE LAST ENEMY
TIME – 4m 40s
PUB – The Boat Inn, Canal Road, Thrupp, Kidlington, Oxfordshire, OX5 1JY. http://www.theboatinnthrupp.co.uk/
PUB TODAY –
LOCATION –
INFO – This pub has been wrongly identified by a few websites over the years as The Jolly Boatman and even The Ship Inn.
————
TIME – 24m 22s
PUB – I originally believed the pub in this scene was the The Archery Tavern, 4 Bathhurst Street, London.
However, Nick Armstrong wrote to me to point out my error as he lives just around the corner. The pub location in this scene when Morse bumps into Deboarah Burns is actually the Cleveland Arms 28 Chilworth St, London W2 6DT.
LOCATION –
Nick also pointed me in the direction of Ms Tree and Dr David Kerridge flat in Bayswater in London.
The building is in Cleveland Square, London.
Thank you Nick for the excellent info.
————
TIME – 35m 46s
PUB – Unknown. But, if one assumes that the beer mat, (see pic below) Carol Sharp has on her desk is factually correct, then there were/are two pubs in the Oxford area that are owned by Tackleys. The first is The Gardiner Arms in the village of Tackley. But looking at their beer garden (See third down) I don’t think it is the location for the pub in this episode. The second Tackley pub is Sturdy’s Castle on the Banbury Road, Tackley, (see fourth pic ).( http://sturdyscastleoxford.com/ ). It has a beer garden, (see both bottom pics) and it does look big enough to be the one used in this episode. Unfortunately, I can’t find a better picture of the Sturdys’ castle beer garden. I will go out on a limb and state that this is the pub used in the episode.
PUB TODAY – Unknown but see info above
LOCATION – If we take my recommendation as the pub being the Strudy castle then the location is:
————–
TIME – 1h 38m 34m
PUB – See above info about Sturdy Castle
PUB TODAY – See Above
LOCATION – See Above.
INFO – See above.
DECEIVED BY FLIGHT
TIME – No Pubs in this episode.
PUB – See above.
PUB TODAY – See above
LOCATION – See above
INFO – One of the few episodes of Morse where he doesn’t enter a pub.
So, that is the first ten episodes. The next post will include episodes ten, ‘The Secret of Bay 5b’ to ‘Promised land. I hope you all enjoyed the post.
(Google owns the copyright of all maps used above.)
Thank you. Perfect timing. We are heading to Oxford on June 16 for 11 days with Road Scholars.
Lucky you Fran, wish I was going to Oxford. Hopefully I will get to finish my posts about Morse and his pubs by the time you arrive in Oxford.
This is excellent. If I ever get lucky and have the chance to visit England, one of my dream excursions would be to visit some of Morse’s pubs. Your guide will come in handy. 🙂
Oh thank you so much for your kind comment Pat. Part two should be up by tomorrow.
Hi Chris, your research was crucial to planning our Inspector Morse pub crawl in November. Thank you. I’ve included a link to this post and acknowledgement in my report of the pub crawl http://kennaleague.com/2016/01/inspector-morse-oxford-pub-crawl/
Hi. I’m very flattered and happy that you found my blog post not only of interest but also helpful. A very big thank you for the mentionof my blog on your website. It looked like you all had a great time on your Morse pub crawl.
The Trout Inn in Wolvercote was used in the Wolvercote Tongue 😊
As a huge Morse fan, last September spent three days in Oxford (not long enough) and had cocktails at The Morse Bar at the Randolph Hotel. We sat to the left of the fireplace shown in your photo! Would love to return and will keep checking for more from you. Thanks.
Hi Rosalind. Like you I never get the chance to spend enough time in Oxford. As yet I have not had cocktails at the Morse Bar. I’m glad you are enjoying the blog.
Great website! We have been to Oxford a few weeks ago and saw some of the pubs. Very easy to find thanks to you! Had a drink at the Turf Tavern and sat on Morse’s place. Very small pub but lovely. It was great!
Hi Dacia. I’m very flattered you used my blog to find the pubs. I hope you had a wonderful time in Oxford.
Hi Chris I’m visiting Oxford again in April with my daughter. It’s such a fabulous place but your guide has just made it more exciting. Thank you for all your detective work in creating this sight.
Julie from Birmingham
Hi Julie. Thank you for your very kind comment. I hope you have a lovely time.
Hi I would like to just thank you for the enormous time and effort this has taken. I have visited Oxford a few times and usually stay at the Randolph. I love finding the pubs and you are my dream come true!!
You’re welcome Marianne and thank you for the lovely comment. I hope you find many posts you like.
Thanks for your research and effort you put in. I hope to use your “guide” next week when i will visit Oxford to do the Morse tour and visit a couple of the pubs.
Regards,
Karel
Have fun in Oxford.
One Pub in Old Windsor,Berks too,The Fox & Castle.
Hi Chris,
What a fantastic site! Thankyou. Big fan of Morse, Lewis and Endeavour here.
I believe the pub in ‘Ghost in the machine’ is the Rose and Crown in Rickmansworth. I spent many evenings there as a teenager, when I lived down the road in Harefield, back in the 80’s. Looking on Trip Advisor,
https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/Restaurant_Review-g1096773-d2224415-Reviews-Rose_and_Crown-Rickmansworth_Hertfordshire_England.html#photos;geo=1096773&detail=2224415&ff=131995908&albumViewMode=hero&aggregationId=101&albumid=101&baseMediaId=131995908&thumbnailMinWidth=50&cnt=30&offset=-1&filter=7&autoplay=
it looks like they have built a big conservatory on the back, since then and Morse days, but I remember thinking it was that pub when I have re-watched Morse over the years.
I hope you continue to enjoy the Morse universe,
Regards,
Tina
Thank you Tina. It is great to find another pub location. I have updated my Review of Ghost in the Machine and my post on the pubs of Inspector Morse.
Congratulations on both the quality & quantity of your research. It has certainly filed some gaps in my knowledge of Morse pubs – particularly the ones not in Oxford. I would like your view on one point. In the “Dead of Jericho” when Morse is seated & having a drink with Anne, I believe that the pub that they are in is the Wheatsheaf.
This is because for a moment you can see a plain brick wall that fills the view from the window. This does not match any view from the White Horse, but it precisely matches the view into Wheatsheaf Passage.
I suddenly remembered a conversation with the then landlord of the Bookbinders in Jericho. This was about 10 years ago. He told me that the interior footage was shot in a pub in Hinxey. Have you ever heard this?
Could ‘Last seen wearing’ 31m 51s be the Duke of Kent, Scotch Common, London W13 8DL as seen in ‘Driven to Distrraction’ ? The wood paneling and brass uprights on the bar look very similar.
DECEIVED BY FLIGHT
Is the place Morse has tea with Mrs Don not The Mitre on the High Street?
Hi Tim. Firstly, thank you for commenting. Secondly, I will have a look at your suggestion.
Thanks for this blog! I’ve been re-watching some Morse and being wistful for the days when we were allowed to go to pubs 😉
Regarding the fictional ‘Horse & Trumpet’ pub in ‘The Silent World of Nicholas Quinn’: rather than being a purpose-built set, I think it may in fact be the student bar in Corpus Christi College, which is in Merton Street as the exterior views suggest; in fact the pink building behind the pub sign is the Corpus President’s Lodging (or at least was when I was a student there in the early ’90s). The main College buildings are on the other side of the road from that building and a little further down towards Christ Church. The ‘Horse & Trumpet’ is clearly a windowless basement location, as the Corpus bar is (or at least was when I was there), and when Morse and Monica are in the pub, you can see a brick bar with a brick arch behind it, framing a mirror. I remember that distinctive bar and mirror very clearly, or at least as clearly as the circumstances of my frequent attendances there allow … 😉
Obviously you can’t put a private college bar on a Morse pub crawl, but I thought you might like to have the information anyway!
Thank you George for that great piece of information. I will add that to my post.
My wife thinks the pub in Last Seen Wearing at minute 31 is The King’s Arms on Holywell/Parks. Is that plausible?
I can see why she might think that’s a possibility! But I don’t think it’s the Kings Arms (infuriatingly, no apostrophe, as is often the case with English pubs — you’d think they’d know better in Oxford 😉 ). The on-screen view from the snug into the main bar introducing the scene is wrong, and the windows of the main bar are too big. The front windows of the Kings Arms are narrower: https://www.tripadvisor.ca/Attraction_Review-g186361-d256065-Reviews-The_Kings_Arms-Oxford_Oxfordshire_England.html#photos;aggregationId=&albumid=&filter=7&ff=273275640
Thank you so much–I see that now.
In my student days, I spent far too much time in the Kings Arms when I should have been across the street in the Bodleian 😉