30 West Midlands pubs named on Telegraph Best Pubs list - including Wolverhampton and Netherton favourites

Some of the West Midlands’ many welcoming pubs have now been named among the best in the country.

The 30 pubs, spread across Birmingham, the Black Country, Staffordshire and Shropshire, were named in the Telegraph’s The Best Pubs in the UK 2026, a guide to the best pubs across the whole country.

The guide, which was put together by a panel of experts from the national newspaper, showcases 650 pubs, with 500 in England, 75 in Scotland, 50 in Wales and 25 in Northern Ireland and is based on a criteria for inclusion of charming character, welcoming staff, rich history and award-winning beer.

Within the West Midlands, 25 of the pubs returned to the list from the 2025 guide, with The Anchor and The Prince of Wales in Birmingham, The Blood Bay in Ludlow, The Prince of Wales in Shrewsbury and The Pretty Bricks in Walsall all being added to the 2026 guide.

By region, the Black Country had the most pubs on the list with 10, while there were eight Birmingham pubs named, seven in Shropshire and five across Stafford, Cannock Chase and South Staffordshire districts plus Tamworth.

Two multi-award-winning pubs were featured in the guide in The Tamworth Tap in Tamworth, a three-time CAMRA National Pub of the Year award winner, and the Bailey Head in Oswestry, winner of CAMRA’s National Pub of the Year in 2024, with both also having won multiple regional awards.

Some of the most notable heritage pubs were also included in the guide, including The Great Western in Wolverhampton and The Olde Swan (fondly known as Ma Pardoes) in Netherton.

The Great Western was described in the guide as a “Black Country institution” and a pub with friendly staff, comfortable seating, lots of railway-themed decorations - and possibly the only place where people can try Bathams and Holdens beer.

Meanwhile, The Olde Swan is rated by the reviewer for its remarkable interior decor and enamel ceiling, which features a swan, as well as the quality of the beer brewed on site.

The local pubs named in the Telegraph’s The Best Pubs in the UK 2026 guide is as follows:

Black Country

• The Beacon Hotel - Sedgley
• The Fountain Inn - Walsall
• The Great Western - Wolverhampton
• The Manor Arms - Rushall
• The Old Swan Inn - Netherton
• The Pretty Bricks (newly added) - Walsall
• The Robin Hood Inn - Amblecote
• The Unicorn - Wollaston
• The Vine - West Bromwich
• The Vine Inn - Brierley Hill

Birmingham

• The Anchor (newly added)
• The Bull
• The Colmore
• The Craven Arms
• The Jewellers Arms
• The Old Moseley Arms
• The Prince of Wales (newly added)
• The Woodman

Shropshire

• The All Nations Inn - Telford
• The Bailey Head - Oswestry
• The Blood Bay (newly added) - Ludlow
• The Golden Lion Inn - Bridgnorth
• The Prince of Wales (newly added) - Shrewsbury
• The Railwayman’s Arms - Bridgnorth
• The Three Tuns Inn - Bishops Castle

Staffordshire

• The Anchor Inn - Stafford
• The Brushmakers Arms - Oulton
• The Red Lion - Rugeley
• The Swan Hotel - Brewood
• The Tamworth Tap - Tamworth