Plan to turn former TV pub and restaurant in Stourbridge into supermarket

A well-known pub and restaurant which was featured on a television programme starring Oz Clarke and James May could be turned into a supermarket if plans are approved.

Plans have been lodged to turn part of the former Windsor Castle at Lye Cross into a convenience store.

The pub opened in 2006 as a taphouse to a brewery launched two years earlier by John Sadler, who had previously used the building as a printing works.

The brewery quickly picked up awards for its ales, and in 2009 it had a starring role in the television series Oz and James Drink to Britain, where food-and-drink expert Clarke and Top Gear presenter May worked behind the bar.

During the series, the pair toured Britain in a Rolls-Royce taking in the hot spots for the best beer, wine and spirits, learning about how they were made. During the programme, Clarke praised the brewery for its mild ale, which he described as one of the best in the country.

Sadler’s Windsor Castle Brewery saw rapid expansion with the launch of its Peaky Blinders ales, and opened a second brewery outside Lye railway station. It was taken over by Halewood International in 2017, and brewing was transferred to Cumbria in 2020, although the Sadler family continued to run the pub and restaurant until its closure in December 2023.

The plans submitted to Dudley Council are for the ground-floor bar and restaurant areas only, and do not include the brewery at the rear of the property, or the guest accommodation on the upper floors.

A new shop front will be installed on the Stourbridge Road frontage, creating a new entrance, while a storage area on the Pedmore Road end of the building will be extended.

The plans will now be considered by Dudley Council’s planning department.