The High Cross

The High Cross is a pub in Leicester, England, operated by the national pub company J D Wetherspoon plc. It stands at 103–105 High Street, Leicester, Leicestershire, LE1 4JB, at the junction where Highcross Street meets High Street — a spot that was the centre of medieval Leicester. The pub takes its name from the High Cross, the last surviving pillar of the town's old Market House, whose site is marked today by granite setts laid into the roadway in the shape of a cross just outside the building. As a Wetherspoon house, The High Cross follows the chain's familiar formula: a large, open-plan, food-led pub offering a broad menu of breakfasts, main meals, snacks and desserts alongside a wide range of cask ales, craft beers, wines, spirits and soft drinks, all at value pricing. The pub opens from 8:00am daily, closing at midnight Sunday to Thursday and at 1:00am on Friday and Saturday. Children under 18 are admitted only between 8:00am and 9:00pm. Facilities include Wi-Fi, TV screens, a licensed outside area and step-free access, and customers can order food and drink to their table through the Wetherspoon app. The High Cross participates in Wetherspoon's national promotional calendar, including the twice-yearly real-ale festivals — the autumn festival features around 30 real ales over 12 days, including beers from international brewers — as well as the chain's Christmas menu and its spritz cocktail range. Its pub history, published by Wetherspoon, explains the local heritage behind the name: the High Cross was originally the shaft of one of eight pillars set in a circle and roofed to form a shelter for market traders, built at a cost of nearly £100 in 1577. A market was held at this junction on Wednesdays from at least the 13th century until 1884. When the shelter became unstable in the 1770s it was demolished, and all the pillars but one — the High Cross — were sold and removed. The pub is one of many Wetherspoon outlets across the United Kingdom. J D Wetherspoon plc, founded by Tim Martin, opened its first pub in Muswell Hill, north London, in 1979 and was floated on the Stock Exchange in 1992. Individual Wetherspoon pubs such as The High Cross are branded and marketed under the parent company's name and are not separately owned or listed.

The High Cross is a pub operated by J D Wetherspoon plc at 103–105 High Street, Leicester, Leicestershire, LE1 4JB. Its name and identity are tied to the site on which it stands. According to Wetherspoon's own pub history, the junction of Highcross Street and High Street was the centre of medieval Leicester, and a market was held there on Wednesdays from at least the 13th century until 1884. The High Cross itself was the shaft of one of eight pillars, set in a circle and roofed to form a shelter for market traders; the structure cost nearly £100 to build in 1577. The shelter left little room for carts and carriages to pass, and when it became unstable in the 1770s it was demolished. All the pillars bar one — the High Cross — were sold and removed. The surviving cross, also known as the Townsmen's Market, later caused traffic congestion and was eventually merged with the Earl's Market. Today, granite setts laid into the roadway in the shape of a cross outside the pub mark the site of the old High Cross. The pub is part of J D Wetherspoon, one of the United Kingdom's largest pub companies. Wetherspoon's first pub opened in Colney Hatch Lane, Muswell Hill, north London, on 9 December 1979; for its first month it was called Martin's Free House before being renamed Wetherspoons in early 1980. The company was founded by Tim Martin and for its early years operated pubs in north London, with its head office above The Dog in Archway. In 1990 Wetherspoon's pubs hosted their first real-ale festival, a four-day event featuring six beers; the festivals later became a twice-yearly fixture across the estate. In 1991 the company opened The Tally Ho in North Finchley with a dedicated non-smoking bar upstairs, introduced its CBS (cleanliness, beer, service) inspection scheme, launched the free Wetherspoon News magazine, and opened Hamilton Hall at Liverpool Street station — its first central London and first railway-station pub. In 1992 Wetherspoon opened its first airport pubs at Heathrow Terminal 4 and floated on the Stock Exchange as J D Wetherspoon plc, with shares issued at £1.60. Individual Wetherspoon pubs such as The High Cross are named for local history, landmarks or former buildings, and each carries its own printed and online pub history. The High Cross follows the chain's standard operating model: long opening hours from 8:00am daily, a broad all-day menu, an extensive drinks range with an emphasis on cask ale, and value pricing. It takes part in the company-wide promotional calendar, including the autumn real-ale festival — a 12-day event in October offering around 30 real ales, five of them from international brewers in China, Denmark, Singapore, Ukraine and the USA — the Christmas menu, and the spritz cocktail range. The pub offers Wi-Fi, TV screens, a licensed outside area and step-free access, and supports table ordering via the Wetherspoon app. Children under 18 are permitted on the premises only between 8:00am and 9:00pm.

• 1992

  J D Wetherspoon floats on the Stock Exchange as J D Wetherspoon plc, with shares issued at £1.60.

• 1990

  Wetherspoon's pubs host their first real-ale festival.

• 1979

  J D Wetherspoon opens its first pub in Muswell Hill, north London, on 9 December.

• 1884

  The Wednesday market at the Highcross Street and High Street junction, held since at least the 13th century, ends.

• 1770

  The unstable market shelter is demolished; all pillars except the High Cross are sold and removed.

• 1577

  The market shelter at the High Cross site in Leicester is built at a cost of nearly £100.

Value-priced, food-led community pub within the national J D Wetherspoon chain, located on a historic Leicester site.

• Cask ales and guest beers

• Breakfast and all-day food menu

• Spritz cocktail range

• Christmas menu

• Hot honey Chicken Bowl

1. 1The High Cross - J D Wetherspoonjdwetherspoon.com
2. 2History - J D Wetherspoonjdwetherspoon.com
3. 3The High Cross - J D Wetherspoon (pub history)jdwetherspoon.com
4. 4About us - J D Wetherspoonjdwetherspoon.com
5. 5The High Cross - Wikidatawikidata.org