THE chimney which had stood proudly at the Lion Brewery in Little Harwood for almost a century comes crashing down to earth in 1971.

Originally built for the Little Harwood Brewery Company around 1875, for the first few years it was owned by Messrs Beardsworth and Whalley who, in 1892 sold it to Alfred Nuttall who renamed it the Lion Brewery.

The pub close to the brewery - the Seven Trees - had distinctive stonework featuring a carved lion, the same lion was embossed on to many of Nuttall’s beer bottles and was effectively the brewery’s trademark.

In 1927 the brewery was sold to Preston-based brewers Matthew Brown who ran it successfully until the mid 1980s when giants of the industry Scottish and Newcastle launched a takeover bid, valuing the Lion Brewery at around £100 million.

Matthew Brown fought off the initial bid, such was the local support that a Matthew Brown Preservation Society was formed, but Scottish and Newcastle were not to be denied.

In 1987 an offer of £186 million was accepted and four years later Matthew Brown ceased brewing with the loss of several hundred jobs around the UK.