Crown & Anchor Finds Temporary Home in Adelaide’s West End
The Crown & Anchor is taking over the Ed Castle from mid-July.
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Historic pub the Crown & Anchor has found a temporary home in Adelaide’s West End.
With the construction of student accommodation due to start on the site adjacent to the Cranker in July, the famous watering hole is relocating to the vacant Ed Castle on Currie Street.
The Ed, which has a rich history as a live music venue, has been closed for the past year after the previous owners were forced to shut the pub’s doors after only two months of operation.
Publican Tom Skipper released a statement about the temporary home on the Cranker’s Instagram, detailing how the choice of venue came about.
“After months of searching, fighting and pushing to keep live music alive, we finally have a new home — The Ed Castle,” the statement reads.
“We’re taking everything you love about the Cranker — the music, the people, the chaos, the Wednesday night specials — and moving it to a venue with just as much history and soul.
“With the support of the South Australian Government, we’re making sure live music stays in the heart of the city while our original site is redeveloped.”
Established in 1837, the Ed is the longest continuously licensed watering hole in the city, with the Cranker team intent on “bringing it back to life with everything that makes the Cranker special — and this time, we’ve got a full pub kitchen to add to the experience.”
“We know change is big, but what makes the Cranker isn’t just a building — it’s all of you. Our staff, our musicians, our loyal punters. We’re not closing. We’re just temporarily moving… from the #Cranker to the #Crastle,” says the statement.
“We’ll be shutting the doors at Grenfell Street in late July and reopening the following Wednesday at Ed Castle as to not miss a beat. This is the next chapter. Let’s make it legendary.”
The temporary move is set to last no more than two years, with the Cranker having the first right of return to its original home on Grenfell Street upon the completion of the student accommodation.
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For those who have been living under a rock for the past 12 months, the Crown & Anchor was under threat of closure after Singaporean developer Wee Hur Holdings applied for planning permission to construct student accommodation on the site of the 170-year-old pub.
As expected, this caused an uproar amongst locals, resulting in the creation of the Save the Cranker group. Several protest marches were held and thousands of people signed petitions to stop the construction.
Eventually the State Government stepped in, with Premier Peter Malinauskas drafting new legislation to save the Cranker and keep the heritage-listed building as a live music venue forever. Sadly, the construction of student accommodation is still going ahead, with the adjacent venues Roxie’s, Midnight Spaghetti and Chateau Apollo forced to close and unlikely to return.
Malinauskas took to Instagram to praise the new venue, writing the “new temporary home for the Cranker is another excellent outcome” for the city’s live music scene.
Instrumental in securing the Cranker’s future, Malinauskas continued: “Saving the Cranker was an example of what can be achieved when government, the private sector and the community work together in a spirit of compromise to achieve something.
“The Cranker will move to its temporary new home later this year. We look forward to seeing the Cranker return to its rightful home in the East End as soon as the much-needed student accommodation is delivered.”
Fingers crossed the temporary relocation of the Cranker is a success and can help return the Ed Castle to its former glory as one of SA’s top live music destinations.
