| The Deramore Arms | |
| Former Names: | The Ship The Fox The Yarbrugh Arms |
| Status: | Open |
| Address: | Main Street, Heslington, York, YO10 5EA |
The Deramore Arms, commonly referred to as The Derry, is a pub in Heslington, York, England.
There were three alehouses in Heslington, but by 1823 there were only two. At this time the pub was called The Ship. In 1840, it was called The Fox. By 1872 it was called The Yarburgh Arms, which in 1967 was updated to The Deramore Arms.[1]
During the Second World War, the pub was popular with Royal Air Force Bomber Command personnel stationed near by. On some occasions, the personnel held races between the Charles and the Deramore on top of a stuffed rhinoceros.[2]
When the University of York opened in 1963, the pub proved popular with students. It was initially the haunt of athletic students.[3] In more recent years, the Deramore has been seen as the 'local' pub, while the Charles caters to the students, although there is considerable crossover between them.[4] [5] The popularity with sports teams university sports teams has remained, with Heslington Parish Council celebrating it as the traditional location for teams to congregate after matches, and for their pub crawls to begin from.[6] The pub has also proved to be a popular location for attendees of conferences at the university,[7] and an important location for academics at the university to develop their work.[8] [9] [10]
The pub has seen friction between students and locals. An attempt by The Spirit Group, the then-owner of the pub, to extend opening hours in 2005 was successfully challenged by the local community.[11]
The pub was the site of the sort-lived Four Thorns Brewery, but this turned out to be unsustainable.[12] [13]
The pub closed in August 2016 when the licensees claimed that it was financially inviable to remain open. It then reopened in May 2017.[14]
In recognition of the pub's value to the local community, in 2017 Heslington Parish Council got it listed as an Asset of Community Value by City of York Council.
In November 2023 the pub again had to close. It reopened shortly after Christmas, securing Shaun Wallace for one of their regular quizzes in May 2024.[15]
The pub is named after the last family to live in Heslington Hall, the village's county manor. The Deramore baronetcy had a close connection with the village, but after selling the hall in 1956 they ceased to be as core a part of the local community. The family name of 'de Yarburgh-Bateson' was the origin of the precursor name of 'The Yarburgh Arms', but in 1967 the name was changed to the family title.[16]