The sign board of The Queens Hotel, 72 Bishopton Lane (Station terrace till 1944), seen during the destruction of the building by fire from the railway station. 30th January 1981. A fire engine with a hydraulic lift is being used to fight the fire. A Hillman Imp and a Ford Fiesta can be seen outside. 
Picture Stockton Archive
A Pictorial History of Stockton-on-Tees
My great grandad was a boot boy back in 1901 at the hotel.
I too have very happy memories of the Queens Hotel. We had our wedding reception there 43 years ago in November 1967. My husband’s family came down from Scotland in 2 coaches and did feel cheated as they didn’t get the ‘full Scottish’ type wedding reception they were used to – simply an afternoon lunch! The English have followed suit now by having an afternoon and an evening ‘do’.
I’m so glad I didn’t witness the fire!
Seeing the Queens Hotel brings back memories I had my wedding reception there in 1966 and it was a lovely place, I remember Luke Casey coming and taking a wedding photo which appeared in the Northern Echo and he did a write up, I never found out why.
My parents had their Silver Wedding celebrations in the Queens back in the mists of time. The restaurant with the visible grill in one corner was where I took my first serious girlfriend for dinner, pretty pretentious at 17. I earned the money for this date working Saturdays & Sundays in the 5 Minute Car Wash in Church Rd. What a way to spend your weekends!