Join us for the presentation night on Wednesday 21 September. Starts at 8pm, presentation at 9pm, and a promise of plentiful free food and a special live performance.
The Victoria Quays area of Sheffield had always been an interesting and historical area of the city, but lacking anything that would bring visitors on a regular basis. That all changed in 2017 when Richard Henderson and Simon Stevenson opened the Dorothy Pax bar in one of the archways. Originally a railway bridge built in 1820, and at one time a dental practice, the archway looked out on to the terminal basin of the Sheffield & Tinsley Canal and seemed the ideal spot for Richard and Simon to fulfil their long-held desire to open a bar and live music venue.
The bar’s name comes from the last ever Sheffield Keel that used to work on the Sheffield navigation, scuppered in the 1950s, part of which was used to create the distinctive bar top.
From the outset, the Dorothy Pax has been keen to offer beers from local breweries, and regularly feature the likes of Blue Bee, Abbeydale, Triple Point and Neepsend amongst others. With seven handpumps and nine keglines on the bar there’s always a decent pint on offer.
There is also a staggering amount of live music to be enjoyed, including plenty of gigs in conjunction with the Honey Bee Blues Club, brainchild of local music legend Martin Bedford. In previous years the Canal Lines festival, as part of the Tramlines fringe, has been hugely successful, branching out this year to become ‘Pax In The Park’ at Heeley People’s Park. This commitment to live music has led to them branching out further afield to organise the Shady Grove festival in Eckington.
Regular visitors will have no doubt seen the regular appearance of the Pax Disco Cape, a surprisingly heavy collection of tassles and baubles in keeping with the words ‘disco’ and ‘cape’ which apparently you are entitled to wear on your birthday! And of course, everyone’s favourite, the Pax Cat, an abandoned black cat who has been given a home by Richard and Simon, and endless amounts of affection from just about everyone who calls in.
But what really makes the Dorothy Pax somewhere special, is the overall atmosphere of the place. And that’s not just the location, unique though it is, but the vast range of music and arts events, and more importantly the people, both staff and regulars, who make it one of the most inclusive venues in the city.
If you’ve never been, do yourself a favour and come along to the presentation night to see what you’re missing. There really isn’t anywhere like it in the city.
