The Crown Inn, Stockport, feels just right

You know The Crown Inn: it’s the gorgeous Victorian pub beneath the wonder of the world that is the Stockport viaduct. It’s a much photographed scene because it tells a story about the grandeur of the industrial north and says: this was once a big country. We’ve been walking past The Crown for some years, on our way from the station to a friend’s house in the suburbs, but never had the chance to visit. Not least because it closed early in 2025 after a long period of uncertainty over its future. When it reopened last year under the stewardship of the people behind The Petersgate Tap, we became determined to visit, and we planned our most recent trip so that there would be time for us to do so. On Friday afternoon, we found it quiet but by no means dead. The night before there had been a celebration and the remains of a tray of sandwiches was on the counter, with a regular doing his best to help with their disposal: “Go on, have a couple more, I’m sick of the sight of them…” In the far…