Red

An otherwise bright spot on a very grey day.

Camel

Huh? Why is that golden camel perched on that building?   Turns out this is the back view of the Camel and Artichoke pub.

Centuries Apart

The modern man and the 200 year old pub corner.

The Pool Champ

The master of the table, well for this game at least.  

The Pub's in Flower

Not just a green wall, the pub's walls are bursting with flowers.  I was only passing by.  Honest.  

A Really Old Pub

It is essential to visit a pub when visiting London, preferably one steeped in history.

Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese certainly fits the bill.  The original pub was burnt down in the Great Fire, but a new one quickly replaced it just one year later.

When we popped in yesterday a coal fire was smouldering in the hearth adding to the atmosphere.  You half expected to see Dickens sitting in the corner as he often did and he alluded to in "A tale of Two Cities".  He was just one of many great literary figures who frequented this pub, Twain, Goldsmith, Tennyson and Dr Johnson were some of the others who took a tipple at this establishment.

As with many of London's old establishments this one has its ghost story too.  In a tale told in 1680 a midwife haunted the house until the new residents were induced to dig up the bones of the illegtiimate children she had "done away with" and buried in the cellar.  Probably just a fantastical story, but gets better after a couple of beers. 

Ketchup & Hotdog

Ketchup and Hotdog, not much more one can say about them really is there.

Ye Old Coffee House

London is unique in offering places that can give you a sense of stepping back in time.  Ye Old Coffee House in Soho is a pub that gives you that sense of stepping back a few decades.  You might even believe the war hasn't finished given all the memorabilia adorning the walls.

End of the Week

Friday after work.  Let the weekend begin.

Take a tipple at the Shakespeare's Head

Pub's name's are always accompanied with a picture or icon to help you find your way there.  This was particularly useful a couple of centuries ago when many of the patron's could not read.  The Shakespeare's Head was built in 1735.
The surrounding fields were the site of the Foubert Military Academy, a school that trained in the military arts, and was renown for their horsemanship skills.  Major Foubert was a fencing master in Paris before fleeing the persecution of the Huguenots arriving in London in 1679.  The Academy survived until 1820 when the area was redeveloped.


This included the now famous Carnaby street, which was originally a street market, until the designers, mods, and hippies arrived in the 1960's.

If the walls of the Shakespeare's Head could talk, what tales it could tell.  It is reputed the missing hands of the bust leaning out of the window were lost as a result of a bomb that dropped nearby during WWII.

A Little Bit Gothic

On the edge of Soho you'll find this pub with its Gothic clientele.

Good-bye

The Crown and Goose is a perfect place for Sunday lunch, and for twenty years has been a lovely cosy place to have a drink and chat with your mates.  Sadly this will only last for a few more weeks. 
The locals and the Camden Council have been battling to save their pub from the wrecking ball of the developers.
The battle is lost. The building  owners Barclay's Discretionary Trust have won the court battle which will see the Crown and Goose demolished to make way for the property developers.

The management and staff of the pub welcome you for a last tipple before the doors close for the last time.

Beer Glasses

I spotted this unique light  of a bunch of beer handles in a pub the other day.

A nice wee pub to stop by to catch the last of the afternoon sun.

Interesting Loos - #1

Public loos can be a bit of a hit and miss affair, ranging from the "I think I'll hang on" to the "wow what a cool loo". I thought I'd start a wee series (pun intended) on some of London's quirkier loos.
This one in the Abbey Tavern in Kentish Town, not only had a fun little room but the stairs leading to it were equally fun, decorated as a rain forest.

The Outside

You liked the inside of BlackFriars pub so much I thought today I'd show you the outside. Hopefully they'll finish the work in the courtyard in time for summer.

Black Friars Pub

The narrow wedge shaped ornate art nouveau, Black Friars Pub is found in the area of the same name. Just across from the newly refurbished Black Friars Station. Built around 1875 it overflows with the work by sculptors Nathaniel Hitch, Frederick T. Callcott and Henry Poole. The exterior is equally elaborate.
In the 1960's Sir John Betjeman led a campaign to save the building from demolition.
Not bad for a pint, pie and picture.

Fancy a Pint

You've come to London and you want to experience a "real English Pub".  The Victorian Albert fits the bill. Serving a traditional carvery (roast meat and veg), fish and chips and a range bitters on pump (that's beer on tap). The decor is traditional despite its 1960's makeover. Of particular note are the Victorian features such as the highly polished mahogany bar,the ornate staircase and the etched and cut glass windows. Situated in Victoria Street, Westminster, pop down for a well earned rest after you've traipsed around the houses of parliament.