The positive and negative impacts of gentrification on inner-residential London is a hotly debated topic at the bar of many East London hostelries.

London and its poorer districts have seen massive constantly evolving social change since the arrival of the railways and the industrial revolution and nowhere stays the same. In fact Leyton, then in the county of Essex, actually saw reverse gentrification when in Victorian times it was a retreat, with cleaner air, for wealthy merchants in grand houses to live in the country away from the teaming streets of the city. Once the train station opened in Leyton on 22 August 1856 the area became more densly populated, demographics changed and the Barclay family and others of their ilk moved to more refined areas. Leyton then became staunchly working class for close to 150 years (arguably going into decline in the later part of the twentieth century) before, on the coat tails of Hackney, started to witness the beginnings of a new middle class, mostly off the back of the lead up to the 2012 London Olympics.

Whatever the merits and pitfalls of gentrification what is widely accepted is that it means pubs have a better chance of survival. After canny operators who market to a new clientele reboot a pub it has a genuine chance of being a profitable business. Sadly it can be at a cost as it often becomes unrecognisable to older punters who kept it going for decades and some feel discarded or priced out. However, pubs can’t stay the same and survive by catering to just one ageing demographic and the same dozen or so punters each night that haunt the bar,. Things have to change for a business to turnover a profit and old faces have to be mindful of this if they still want their pub to exist. In a city such as London diversity really is the name of the game and as long as pubs still cater to the old boys with £4 pints of Carling rapid change is more palatable.

The King Harold was a textbook example of lingering in the past and I feared when it closed in 2015 that it would never reopen as a pub. Locally there was little love for the pub and it only ever saw more than the aforementioned dozen punters unless Leyton Orient were at home. Even then there was a negative atmosphere, the staff were surly, and the place had a reputation as a drugs pub. The was a heavy stench of misery that hung in the air and sitting in here was more of a penance than a pleasure. Anyone wanting a more convivial and friendly atmosphere would head to arguably the genesis of Leyton’s gentrification, The Technical, or the excellent Birkbeck Tavern or Northcote Arms. It was an easy choice between a warm inviting pub versus taking your chance at the bar in the Twlight Zone.

Luckily the pub didn’t stay vacant for long as pub retainer Rob Star and friends from Electric Star pubs recognised the potential in an improving area. With three excellent pubs already under their belt that combine elements of the old Cockney party-type pubs of the 1980s and the new with live sports, burgers and craft beer the Harold, now Leyton star, was in good hands.

An extensive refurbishment was completed in early Summer 2016 which transformed the old gent into a welcoming aesthetically warm new East London hostelry. The old bar remains along with a plush carpet and roaring log fire as nods to the past but otherwise the interior has a modern twist that feels comfortable and inviting. Its biggest assets are the upstairs function room which is used for parties and theme nights that bring the community together and the remodelled garden.  Calling the barren outside space (read Guv’nor car port) prior to transition to the Star a garden could have had you up before Trading Standards but its now a contemporary large space with booths and long benches. Hot summer nights here, or winter ones with the heaters, are now a part of Leyton’s culture and its fantastic to see the pub perpetually busy.

Since 2013 Leyton has had five pubs that have either seen a full refurbishment or new owners come in with big ambition to shake a pub up and gives the thirsty residents of E10 the pubs they deserve. The Leyton Star is an excellent addition to that number.