The Puzzle Hall, A pub close to the hearts of many

A famous Calderdale music venue left a gaping hole in Sowerby Bridge when it locked its doors for the last time earlier this year.

The Puzzle Hall Inn was a tiny pub hidden down a narrow back street but for decades has been famous not only in Halifax but all over the North of England for its gigs, locally brewed beer and fantastic atmosphere.

Dating back to the first half of the 17th Century and originally built as a house the Inn opened for the sale of locally brewed ales 100 years later even having its own brew tower built in 1905 from which the landlords produced their own stout for almost 30 years.

But in the last 50 years the Puzzle has made it’s name locally for showcasing talent from all over the country with fantastic open mic nights and gigs for both new and established artists.

Perhaps the most infamous involvement the Puzzle Hall had with music was the 1970 music festival disaster of the Yorkshire Folk, Blues and Jazz Festival. Acting as a promoter the Pub is now eternally linked to what has become known as the worst organised music festival in history.
To give it some credit for a small Yorkshire town a festival with a line up featuring Pink Floyd, The Who, The Kinks and Elton John is nothing short of a miracle and it would have been amazing had most of the bands actually played!

The festival was a complete washout, with hundreds of fans having to be treated for exposure and most bands not turning up thanks to rumours of financial problems and the risk that they wouldn’t get paid. By the end of the weekend only the stage was left standing after tents and marquees had been literally washed away.

But not a place to deny its heritage one wall of the puzzle was papered with posters and news paper reports from the time as a lasting legacy of the amazing weekend that never was, a weekend which left the organisers £30,000 in debt and declaring bankruptcy.

More recently the Puzzle has featured more than 800 bands in the last four years and been the starting point for many local bands made big. Jonjo Feather a young singer/songwriter from nearby Hebden Bridge had one of his first gigs at the Puzzle and is now an artist to look out for according to NME magazine.

Jenny Bromley another local singer/songwriter and seasoned regular at the Puzzle as a solo performer and open mic artist will be performing at this summers Wychwood festival alongside The Proclaimers and Duffy. She Said "The Puzzle was an amazing training ground for me. The locals were a tough crowd and told the truth about what they heard, you had to sing over the crowds talking and jostling for room but if you impressed them there was no better feeling!"

The night of the closure in January was a tearful one as landlord Nigel Mount, 43 admitted to the regulars that he had simply "run out of money." Punch Taverns, who own the pub have vowed not to sell it and to try and find the best person to carry on the legacy of this unique venue which for many way a home from home.

In the past the Puzzle has had its own cricket team, and run various trips to the races and other sporting events. Regulars at the pub were almost a family, with events every night to entertain all tastes from games night, to blues night and quizzes. Perhaps the most telling event was the Christmas day meal. Every year the owners put on a huge feast for regulars who didn’t have any family other than the one they made in an evening over a pint.

Lets hope that we see it returned to it’s glory days with a landlord who is willing to revive the long standing traditions of the small pub with a big attitude.