1960s Ted Warren's Shop in Bedford Road Houghton Regis

Ted and Mary Warren's shop with the garages, in Bedford Road, Houghton Regis in the 1960s. The shop is now a chip shop but was formerly a pub.

THE STORY OF ALE BECOMING FISH SUPPERS

The COCK INN, Houghton Regis, still stands, part of it being the fish and chip shop in Bedford Road, next to the Kings Arms.

The premises (the building next to the fish & chip shop) are very old, at least 18th Century especially the upper floor and the basement cellar, which contain the original timbers. The position of this pub so close to the Kings Arms is a fine example of how the beer trade prospered, sometimes as a sideline, and pubs could make a viable living, even when there were two or more close to each other. Back in 1793, the Eames family is first mentioned in connection with the Cock and by 1854,

John Eames was trading from the Inn as a whiting manufacturer and dairyman. In 1860, an inquest into the death of a Farmer E. French was held in the pub. Mr. French who had been visiting the Inn had been thrown from his horse and cart after a steam threshing machine upset the horse. According to the following year's census, John was said to have died from an epileptic seizure. In 1915 both the Cock and the Oddfellows arms - opposite what is now the Townsend Industrial Estate - had their licenses objected to on the grounds that 'these houses are not required, having regard to the character and interests of the localities in which they were situated'. Brewer Mr. J W Green told the Bench "speaking at Edinburgh, Lord Roseberry said his country was spending £10m a week on the war, and I venture respectfully to submit that this is hardly the opportune time to deprive legitimate traders of property." He added "The present tenant has been there since October 1909 and is earning a living. "I submit to the magistrates as common sense then that this isn't the time to deprive anyone of their living. The hearing was adjourned and at the renewed hearing, the Solicitor acting for the Cock put up a strong case for its retention.

The original article was written by John Rawlings for the Dunstable Gazette. Publication Date unknown.

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