The Ossington
Beastmarket Hill, Newark NG24 1BH
Update June2026
A New Chapter for The Ossington: A Building That Was Always Meant to Bring People Together
Some exciting news afoot about the next chapter of this building….
Settle in with a cuppa for this one, as its quite a long one, with a LOT of pictures (Earl Grey with Choc covered M & S Nice Biscuits, as prescribed by me). The first part is about the History, the second part about the plans.
We all know The Ossington. It’s one of those buildings that doesn’t need to shout for attention, it simply sits there, watching the town go by, with Newark Castle just across the road as if the two are having a long-running conversation across Beastmarket Hill.
And for a while now, is sat there, empty (only the ground floor, mind you, the apartments above are residential and have bene for some time,)
Well… that may be changing soon. But, before we get to what’s coming next, it’s worth remembering where it all started, because The Ossington has never just been “a building.”
THE HISTORY
The Ossington opened its doors 23 November 1882 as a coffee tavern.
It was the vision of Charlotte, Viscountess Ossington (via architects Ernest George & Peto). Lady Ossington wanted to give the people of Newark something a little different: a place to meet, socialise, and spend time together… without it revolving around alcohol.
Now, back then, in a town like Newark, that was always going to be a bold move.
But what she created was something far more than a simple coffee house. Twas a full-blown social hub, with reading rooms, a library, assembly rooms, dining spaces, billiards, bedrooms for travellers, even stabling for thirty horses. There was even a tea garden lined with lime trees, set up in the style of a continental “biergarten,” only without the beer, which feels like a very Newark compromise.
And importantly, this wasn’t a commercial venture in the modern sense. Some of the profits were set aside for Newark Hospital. The whole thing was, at its heart, about improving lives and strengthening the town.
If you take a moment to look properly at The Ossington, it’s all still there; The decorative panels wrapped around the building tell a story. Scenes of excess, chaos, and consequence sit alongside more moral imagery. Even the sundial on the wall adds its own gentle nudge:
“Delay not, time flies.”
Still good advice, to be fair.
And then there’s the slightly more curious story… the one Newark quite enjoys keeping alive.
When the building eventually began to serve alcohol (as many places do over time), it’s said that the portrait of the Viscountess, which had hung there for decades, took offence and flew off the wall (three times).
This was seen as a sign of Lady Ossington’s displeasure at the serving of alcohol in the building which she had set up as a temperance house, or just maybe because it’s a bloody massive and heavy painting. Either way, its on display at the civil war centre I believe.
I know a fair few people who have worked in this building over the years have experienced peculiar things, and its reported to be one of the most haunted buildings in Newark (if you believe in that stuff)
Like a great deal of Newark’s buildings, The Ossington has adapted over the years.
The building was not a successful commercial venture as a temperance tavern and in 1889 it became a private hotel. In 1942 it was taken over by the Air Ministry to accommodate airmen from RAF Winthorpe. If you look carefully to the left of the door leading into Baxters, the interior design company, you will see the ghostly outline of the words Airmens Billet
In the 50’s it was converted to offices and in the seventies it was used as a Social Security and VAT office.
There was a time in the early 80’s when part of it served as a fish restaurant (*Mr Haddock), something still hinted at by the decorative fish panel above the arches outside. There was a steak restaurant and function room upstairs, and the stables at the rear were Eleanors ‘fun’ pub for 18-35 yr olds, it was also a hotel at the same time
Then, for a long period of time it was Zizzis, and I fondly remember many of the staff who used to finish their shift and come over to the Castle Barge (I worked there for some time from around 2001 - 2015). Then it sat empty for a stint, before being reimagined as Strays, I wont go into too much detail on that chapter, but when strays closed, it sat waiting again.
Waiting for something with a bit of purpose again………………….
And this is where things get VERY interesting.
THE PLANS
I had a good wander round and chat with Mark Enstone, Director of Contemporary Art Newark. Plans are now moving forward to bring a contemporary art gallery/space and café into the lower floor of the building.
The idea behind it feels refreshingly simple. What if art didn’t sit behind closed doors, or feel like something “for other people”? What if it was just part of the community, something you could walk into, look at, talk about, enjoy… or ignore entirely and just have a coffee.
There’s a clear intention to bring high-quality, nationally recognised contemporary artists into Newark, but without the usual sense of intimidation that sometimes comes with galleries…... No feeling like you should know what you’re looking at.
There also plans for the fantastic courtyard overlooking the river and the castle to become a vibrant contemporary garden. And what a space it’ll be, I can see myself spending quite a bit of time there
Overall, its Just the simple idea of looking, thinking, and maybe seeing something a bit differently.
They key thing here is that this isn’t just about hanging artwork on walls:
There are plans for workshops, classes, talks, and community involvement, a space where people can create as well as observe, where skills can be shared, and where something a little bit cultural starts to feel normal rather than occasional.
And when you stand back and think about it, that feels very much in keeping with what The Ossington was always meant to be. Back in 1882, it wasn’t built as a passive space. It wasn’t somewhere you simply passed through.
It was built to bring people together…………….There’s something quite nice about that.
A Victorian coffee tavern designed to improve lives, encourage connection, and give people somewhere to be… now evolving into a space that does much the same, just in a very 21st-century way.
As a lover of art, Im really looking forward to this, and as a lover of Newark and its buildings, its great to see plans to bring The Ossington back to a positive focus.
I must add that there is still a lot of work, and planning and the usual behind the scenes activity to happen. But keep your eyes peeled over the coming months, ill be posting about it again in the future near to opening.
Im so very happy that this building is going to be used again, as im sure a lot are, and for this type of venture, is bloody fantastic
Spaces like this have a proven track record of bringing new life into town centres, national figures show tens of millions of visits to galleries each year in the UK, with engagement rising sharply in recent years, and even individual cultural projects boosting footfall locally by around 10–15% (Mckinsey: Assessing the direct impact of the UK arts sector, Novrmber 20203 report)
Lets hope Lady Ossington is appeased
Below is some specific info around the building origins - extracted from Wikipedia
The foundation stone of the building was laid on 10 November 1881. On that occasion, Harold Peto, representing the firm of architects, placed a sealed bottle within the stone. This bottle contained the current coins of the realm, along with a commemorative inscription which read:
This building was erected and endowed in the year 1882 by Charlotte, Viscountess Ossington, third daughter of William Henry Cavendish, fourth Duke of Portland, and widow of the first Viscount Ossington, late Speaker of the House of Commons. It was given by her to the town of Newark-upon-Trent as a token of her interest in the prosperity of the town, near which she had resided for more than half a century, and with the earnest desire to promote the cause of temperance therein.
The land upon which this Coffee Tavern was built was purchased by Viscountess Ossington from Philip Handley, Esquire, of Newark, at a cost of £4,549 for this purpose. The building itself, designed by Messrs Ernest George and Peto, architects of Argyll Street, London, W., was constructed as a Coffee Tavern and hostelry at a cost of approximately £12,000, exclusive of the site.
The ground floor accommodated a general coffee room, a boys’ room, kitchen, offices, and associated facilities. On the first floor were assembly rooms used for market dinners and other large gatherings, alongside a reading room, library, and club room intended for Masonic and other benefit societies. The second floor provided a billiard room and dormitories for travellers. In addition, the premises included stabling for 30 horses, a cart shed and related facilities for farmers attending market days, a tea garden for summer refreshment, and a bowling alley. The building work was carried out by Messrs Smith and Lunn, builders of Newark-on-Trent, with Mr C. Leach serving as clerk of the works.
The tavern officially opened on 23 November 1882 and was named in honour of Lady Ossington, widow of Evelyn Denison, 1st Viscount Ossington, who had financed its construction. The final cost of building amounted to £13,500 (equivalent to £1,404,100 in 2025), and Lady Ossington further endowed the establishment with £20,000. Including the original purchase of the land, her total contribution reached £38,049 (equivalent to £3,957,400 in 2025).
Internally, the carving of the woodwork—including ceilings and cornices—was carried out by Walker Smith of London. Externally, the riverside aspect of the tavern featured a garden planted with lime trees, designed in the style of a German Biergarten, providing a venue for outdoor musical entertainment during the summer months. This garden also included a substantial oak summerhouse and a flagstaff rising to a height of 65 feet (20 metres).
To the south-east, facing Castle Gate, a further garden was laid out and planted with acacias, enclosed by iron railings. The establishment as a whole was well equipped for its purpose, featuring stabling for up to 48 horses and a carriage house. The kitchen was fitted with the latest available facilities by Messrs Benham and Sons of London.