The Nutshell

For other uses, see Nutshell (disambiguation).

The Nutshell
The Nutshell in 2011
Location
General information
Location	Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk
Address	17 The Traverse, Bury St Edmunds
Coordinates	52.244754°N 0.712703°E / 52.244754; 0.712703
Website
http://www.thenutshellpub.co.uk/

The Nutshell is a pub in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England, that until 2016 claimed to be the smallest pub in Britain, although this claim was challenged by several others, including the Smiths Arms at Godmanstone (since closed) and the Lakeside Inn in Southport.^[1][2]

The pub is certainly diminutive so that no more than ten or fifteen customers can drink inside at any one time.^{[citation needed]} The pub measures 4.57 m × 2.13 m (15 ft × 7 ft).^[3] In 1984, a record number of 102 people squeezed into the pub.^[4]

The Nutshell has been trading as a pub since 1867, although the building is much older and formerly had other uses.^[5] Inside, the dried body of a black cat is displayed, It is around 400 years old and was discovered in 1935 during building work.^[6][7] In former times, the bodies of cats were often placed inside the structure of buildings to bring good luck to the building and its occupants.

The building has been Grade II listed since 1972^[8].

References

1. Siddle, John (5 September 2008). "Southport's Smallest British Pub title holder scoops big award". Southport Visiter. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011. Retrieved 7 July 2010.
2. "One of UK's smallest pubs finally reopens after lockdown". East Anglian Daily Times. 20 September 2020. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
3. Webb, David (August 2003). "Beer in a Nutshell". BBC Online. p. 1. Retrieved 7 July 2010.
4. Webb, David (August 2003). "Beer in a Nutshell". BBC Online. p. 2. Retrieved 7 July 2010.
5. "The Nutshell, Smallest Pub with an interesting history". www.thenutshellpub.co.uk. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
6. Martin, Emily (30 August 2021). "Britain's smallest pub with a mummified cat hanging above the bar". Retrieved 11 November 2022.
7. "Nutshell - Pub Heritage". pubheritage.camra.org.uk. Campaign for Real Ale. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
8. Listed building 1038277

External links

• Map sources for The Nutshell