The Royal Clarence, ten years on
Ten years after the fire, the Royal Clarence is rising again, and it will look the way Exeter remembers it.
Photo: Todd Gray
In the early hours of 28 October 2016, fire spread from a neighbouring building on Cathedral Yard into the Royal Clarence. It was the largest fire Exeter had seen since the Second World War, and crews were on the scene for more than a week. A building that had stood on Cathedral Green since 1769, often described as the first in England to call itself a hotel, was left a shell.
Almost everyone in the city has a memory of the Clarence: a wedding, a first job, a night out. Ten years on, we want to mark the day with Exeter and share how far the building has come.
Where things stand
NooKo took on the Royal Clarence in April 2025. Preparatory work to make the site safe began in January 2026, and with the final planning approvals granted this month the rebuild is now fully under way.
This has been the year the Clarence started to rise again. In June we poured the first new floor, the first concrete to go into the building since the fire. In September a tower crane arrived on site, ready for the new structure to go up behind the old walls.
The restoration will create 25 apartments above new commercial space on the ground floor, with completion planned for the end of 2027.
Keeping the face Exeter knows
The whole front of the building is being kept. The top section that had to come down after the fire will be rebuilt, and the coat of arms that sat above it will be recreated by Rod Hare from the surviving pieces of the original mould. The Royal Clarence name will be painted back across the front, exactly as it was.
Inside, a new staircase and light well will wrap around timbers still marked by the fire. We decided early on not to hide what happened here. It is part of the building’s story now.
Join us on 28 October
On Wednesday 28 October, ten years to the day, historian Dr Todd Gray and Max Sayers of NooKo will talk about the fire and the rebuild at The Mint Methodist Church Centre, Fore Street, from 2pm to 4pm (doors open at 1.30pm). Tickets are £7 including booking fee from Exeter Corn Exchange. Book tickets.
To follow the restoration and hear first about the apartments, register your interest at theroyalclarence.com.
Photos of the fire courtesy of Todd Gray. Site photos NooKo.
