"Sheffield city centre is growing up and it's great to be a part of that"

For James O’Hara, who recently resurrected the historic Foresters pub on the corner of Division Street and Rockingham Street, in Sheffield city centre, replacing the popular Gatsby cocktail bar which he set up there some 14 years earlier, the answer is simple.

“We’ve always done things we wanted to go to, and we’ve grown up a bit since we opened the Gatsby,” he explains.

“We’re now in our early 40s and we like the idea of a traditional pub. Sheffield’s blessed with some fantastic pubs but they’re often on the outskirts and there aren’t many in the city centre.

“With more people moving into the city centre, we wanted to make this place the city centre’s local - a warm and inviting place serving the needs of the community around it.”

James’ decision to revive The Foresters was fuelled in part by his role in rescuing another iconic Sheffield watering hole, Fagan’s.

He was one of nine people - including Arctic Monkeys drummer Matt Helders - to invest in the famous pub when landlords Tom and Barbara Boulding retired after 37 years at the helm.

“Fagan’s made us love pubs even more, and I think there’s a real thirst for proper pubs again,” says James.

The Foresters boasts a menu of pub classics like fish and chips, and Sunday roasts, all freshly made with quality ingredients.

There’s a range of beers, including Easy Rider from Kelham Island Brewery, and what’s already being acknowledged as one of the best pints of Guinness in Sheffield.

But there are some modern touches, like the cocktails and the oysters, which you might not expect to find at a traditional boozer.

The oysters may seem like a fancy addition, but, as James explains, they were once so cheap they were ‘used as filler for pies’.

“The building next door used to be an oyster shop and we learned that when they took one of the walls down in the 50s it was full of oyster shells as people would just throw them in the gap,” he says.

As for the cocktails, James concedes they are one of the ‘little modern touches’ to meet changing appetites while staying true to the character of the original Foresters.

Other things have altered - the door has moved, and the bar has shifted too - but James says those who remember drinking there in its past life ‘love’ its resurrection.

From his early days running the Threads night at the old DQ club on Fitzwilliam Street to co-founding the Tramlines festival and launching the acclaimed cocktail bar Public in the old gents’ toilets beneath Sheffield Town Hall, James has played a key role in shaping the city’s nightlife.

He’s now at the heart of Sheffield city centre’s transformation, converting the old Little Mesters’ workshops at Leah’s Yard, off Cambridge Street into a retail and arts hub set to open this summer.

A chocolate cafe, Pete McKee’s new gallery, a bookseller and a beer shop and tasting room are just some of the tenants confirmed for the lovingly-restored shrine to Sheffield’s creative heritage.

“I’m really proud of being from Sheffield,” says James, who was born in Wincobank and grew up in Shiregreen and Deepcar.

“We should be proud because there are some brilliant people here doing some amazing things, and Leah’s Yard is about showcasing that in the city centre.”

James is also one of the founders of Day Fever, the day-time club for older revellers, which has proved phenomenally popular in Sheffield and other cities around the UK.

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“It’s a privilege to be involved in something which makes people so happy,” he says.

James is excited by what’s happening in the city centre, including the huge new Cambridge Street Collective food hall which opened last month.

“It feels like Sheffield city centre’s growing up a bit, which is really encouraging,” he says.

“We’re seeing more people visiting the city centre, with great new things on the horizon, and it’s exciting to be a part of that.

“People say it will be nice when it’s finished but it will never be finished. If you go to any other UK city, there are always cranes, there are always new things happening.

“I’m just extremely confident that Sheffield is on the right track. I think when people see what’s happening, especially around Cambridge Street, they’ll be really impressed.”