Seamus O'Donnells - Irish Pub

Situated opposite St David's Station in Red Cow Village, the two properties in whichSeamus O'Donnells is situated were newly built in 1810. They appear as Lot 1 of six lots in Red Cow Village. Lot 6 was the Red Cow Inn. The sale advert says:

The 1830 Beer Act allowed a householder to set up a beer house for the payment of a fee of 2 guineas to Customs and Excise. The purpose was to reduce the consumption of gin and other spirits by the working class. There are several references to beer retailers from the 1870's onwards in these premises in Red Cow village. The earliest resident in what became the Artful Dodger was John Roberts who was described as an innkeeper at 5 Red Cow Village in the 1861 census. Street numbering was inconsistent at this time, but this is probably the same building as the above lot, as the Red Cow Inn was listed as 1 Red Cow Village.

In March 1875 four men were fined for leaving their horse and wagon outside the John Bull unattended and were fined 1s. In October of the same year, the John Bull "suffered seriously from a rush of water, which made its way down from the field above." The Cowley Bridge Road was impassable and flooding was widespread.

In the 1889 Kelly's Directory, one James Searle was established as a beer retailer, almost certainly from the same premises which may have been the front room of a private house, or a shop. The 1895 Post Office Directory lists Searle as resident of the John Bull. By 1906, Besley's lists Mrs Mary Anne Searle as the landlady of the John Bull. The last reference to Mary Anne Searle was in the 1916 Kelly's. The 1918 Directory shows Samuel Pinnock as a beer retailer at number 24, Red Cow Village, the same address as the John Bull.

It was in 1980 that the John Bull was refurbished and reopened with the new name 'Artful Dodger'. The Grade II listed building had £150,000 spent on it, enlarging and improving the premises. The opening night was on a Dicken's theme, with customers and staff dressed in Victorian clothing based on characters from Dicken's novels.

At the end of 2009 the Artful Dodger was refurbished, and renamed Seamus O'Donnells, yet another attempt to open an Irish themed pub in the city.