Meet the pub landlord who signed the lease after just 20 minutes at the Lion Tavern

The landlord of iconic pub The Lion Tavern signed the lease after just 20 minutes, and is still there to this day.

David Hardman, 63, is determined to keep the Lion's rich history alive. The traditional pub is Grade II listed, boasting an impressive curved mahogany bar, real ale hand pumps, ornate detailing and more.

Landlord David took the helm in 2016. After being a "very poorly paid civil servant" for the vast majority of his working life, he began working in pubs to "subsidise" his lifestyle.

In 2005, after following Liverpool around Europe and then to Istanbul for the UEFA Champions League Final, Dave began working at the Lion to "pay off his debts" after his exploits abroad. Prior to that, he'd only been inside the historic ale house "five or six times", but it quickly cemented itself in his heart.

Just over a decade later, he found himself becoming the pub's landlord. Speaking to the Echo, Dave, from south Liverpool, said: "It was one of those fortuitous coincidences - in 2016, I took redundancy and the Lion closed down. A couple months later, a friend of mine called me up and told me there was an open day, if I wanted to come down.

The Lion Tavern boasts ornate detailing (Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)

"I went down for a look and thought, 'while I'm here, let's see what's going on' and 20 minutes later, I found myself signing a piece of paper." That piece of paper put Dave in charge. He continued: "The thing with the Lion is, people are used to a certain style and I didn't want anyone to get in there and mess it up. You need a certain amount of ego to be a licensee and I thought I was the best person for the job, so I took over and I'm still here.

"I'd always worked and drank in town but had only been in the Lion about five or six times before I started working there. I was a very poorly paid civil servant and I always did bar work to supplement my lifestyle.

"I started working at the Lion in 2005 to pay off my debts after going all around Europe with Liverpool and then Istanbul for the UEFA Champions League Final. I needed to pay off my debt."

The pub remains a popular venue and its history is of utmost importance to Dave, and many of the punters. The atmospheric venue, based at 67 Moorfields, was built around 1865 though Dave has found earlier records.

"It's hard to predict what's going to happen." (Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)

He said: "The earliest records I can find show in 1842, there was a spirit house in the corner here and it just sold spirits and not beer, next door to it was a bit more upmarket and it was the Tithebarn Street Oyster and Refreshment Rooms.

"Sometime in the late 19th century, it was acquired by Robert Cain. He left his initials carved above the door - he just put 'C' for his surname. We're quite well known - we're in the National Pub Heritage Guide.

"It's a beautiful pub. It's Grade II listed which is great, so nobody can spoil it. The layout is quite unusual, it's a horseshoe. People come in for a chat, to socialise.

"You get the great and the good, from people who are solicitors or from the Chambers of Commerce, and you get normal people who just want to come in for a pint. We've had famous people in too - Elvis Costello has been in here.

"I think we've got the only free jukebox in Liverpool, customers bring their own CDs in so it's quite an eclectic mix - Doris Day to The Clash - we do everything except modern music. We're famous for our pie and a pint - what we call our 'all day breakfast'. In the five full years since I've been here, we've won an award every year for the quality of the beer."

The Lion Tavern is based at 67 Moorfields, Liverpool, L2 2BP (Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)

But The Lion is not without its struggles. In a post- covid world, the hospitality industry is still reeling from the effects of multiple lockdowns and restrictions.

Many workers have changed their approach to employment, with many people still working from home or blending office days with several weekdays spent at home, too. This means after work drinks are less common, while the cost of living crisis is forcing people to exercise caution with how they spend their hard earned money.

Dave has noticed a definite and palpable shift in the attitude towards pub culture. He said: "Here we are in 2022, post-covid, and a lot of my trade is workers and with people working from home, it's been hard work. Any licensee who's not worried about the current situation doesn't know what they're doing.

The 'News Room' at the Lion Tavern (Image: Colin Lane/Liverpool Echo)

"It's a change of culture for people - drinking culture has changed. There's a possibility of this having a negative effect - the energy crisis trickles down on people's disposable income. If people are only working sporadically in the office, that group who might go out drinking together, might not all be in at the same time so they won't bother going to the pub if they're on their own.

"At the moment, there's a group of licensees working together because we're all in this situation and we want to support one another and we're hoping to do something as a group in the not too distant future. Watch this space."

He added: "It's hard to predict what's going to happen. The future is so unknown, all we can do is sit down and hope."

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