We’ve got our regulars,” continues Chris. “A group of them took a
lag with ‘THE KING HARRY’ on it to the Super Cup in Istanbul –
and our fans from further aield. They’re all welcome.” Whisper it
but a band of Evertonians come here too – despite the rousing red
decor – when the Tofees are at home.
Hang a right now for the inal stretch: past the junction with
Sleepers Hill and downwards to the southwest corner of Stanley
Park. Hidden behind the high stone walls is the lovingly-restored
Isla Gladstone Conservatory, dating back to 1870, and the swish
Kemp’s Bistro where Liverpool FC hosts matchday hospitality.
Edward Kemp was the man who landscaped the 110-acre park,
which celebrates its 150th birthday in 2020. It adjoins the even
older Anield Cemetery where Alex Raisbeck is among several
former Reds laid to rest.
It’s here, in sight of Kirkdale across Walton Lane and the
Soccer Bus stop, that Anield Road ends. Make the pilgrimage on
matchday if you can. It’s about time.catching birdsong from the hedgerows and glimpsing sails down
on the Mersey. Next-door is Abbey Lawns, a care home which
used to be a school and before that the stuccoed residence of
sugar magnate and gallery founder Henry Tate. The records says
that it’s the road’s earliest surviving villa.
This is thirsty work. No55, the King Harry, heaves into view where
Anield Road follows the old ward boundary between Walton-
on-the-Hill, which included Anield (which didn’t become part of
Liverpool until 1895), and Everton township.
An English Heritage book about the wider area describes this
pub as “a fanciful evocation of Merrie England.” Publican and
Reds supporter Chris Charnock has run it for three years and
he’s currently installing ‘pods’ – ive rooms of capsule-style
accommodation – on the irst loor.
Like the Flat Iron, “you can’t move downstairs on matchdays.