What is the most famous pub in the UK?
Posted by ScotsTouristSoton@reddit | AskUK | View on Reddit | 428 comments
What do you think is the most famous pub in the UK? As in the pub the largest number of people would have heard of. Real, currently operating pubs only.
For context, I was in Jamaica Inn today and said it was "one of the most famous pubs in Britain" before thinking to myself it's probably THE most famous pub in Britain. we couldn't think of any pubs that trump it in terms of fame - can Reddit?
BenHippynet@reddit
The Nag’s Head, Peckham
jas070@reddit
Daft question but is there a Nags Head in Peckham?
bananabm@reddit
there is, at the south end of rye lane. it used to be pretty quiet, with some old boys in but then after lockdown all the gen zs discovered just how cheap a pint is there (it's still under £5 for guiness or a macro lager) and now it's generally pretty busy
jas070@reddit
That’s good to hear, thank you.
Hot_Lynx7043@reddit
If not then there’s a tourist trap opportunity for someone surely
RiotSloth@reddit
The Blind Beggar has to be up there somewhere.
Aggressive-Resort-42@reddit
Watering hole The coronation tap
Eyup_Amigo@reddit
Not sure how famous it is outside of Manchester but here would be Pevril of the Peak
carlovski99@reddit
Pev, and Britons Protection as a close follow up.
Eyup_Amigo@reddit
Yeah Britons Protection has a lot more historical value
TheRevJimJones@reddit
+1 for the Pev. Everyone in Greater Manchester will know that one
carlovski99@reddit
If we count ones that don't exist any more, surely The Angel, Islington?
Beginning-Annual-860@reddit
The Eagle - city road - immortalised in song…
Half a pound of tuppenny rice, Half a pound of treacle. That’s the way the money goes, Pop! goes the weasel. Up and down the City Road, In and out the Eagle. That’s the way the money goes, Pop! goes the weasel.
hdruk@reddit
The Red Lion
Which Red Lion? Whichever one you're thinking of. There are over 500 of them. Combined they'll be pretty famous.
VanicFanboy@reddit
Same with the Prince of Wales, or the King’s Arms
Beginning-Annual-860@reddit
Queen’s Legs - Always open
Morganx27@reddit
The one in my town is, without exaggeration, the worst place I've ever been to. It's fascinating how many cunts can be squeezed into such a small area.
skagragmcgee@reddit
Which town? I used to work at one and would be very funny if they're one and the same 😂
Morganx27@reddit
North West England. It's where all the local scumbags drink, there's a fight every single night without fail usually resulting in serious injury (either in the pub or the flats behind), everyone's on drugs, and me or someone I've been drinking with has been at least lightly sexually assaulted over 50% of the times I've been in there.
Exact-Put-6961@reddit
The Red Lion Parliament Street..
( For Politics)
Perfect_Pudding8900@reddit
What about the Black Lion?
dwhite21787@reddit
or White Hart?
VisibleOtter@reddit
Possibly The Old Trip To Jerusalem in Nottingham?
MissingBothCufflinks@reddit
Amusingly despite claiming to be a really old pub that one is almost certainly a victorian era fraud
medlebo@reddit
Never heard that, at the very least parts of the building date to the mid-1600s (the bits of the pub that are cave). The cave bits were probably the brew house to the castle and they date to 800-900 years old).
The name is on record from before the Victorians too. And two of the other three pubs that could be the oldest are a stone throw away, so there is a fair shout it's pretty darn old.
MissingBothCufflinks@reddit
Caves: medieval or earlier
Building: largely 17th century
Use as a pub: probably 17th–18th century
Claim of operation since 1189: unsupported legend originating in Victorian era
blazesboylan91@reddit
No it is not 😂
zagreus9@reddit
Coincidentally, the oldest pub in Israel is called The Day Out at Centr Parcs
Glad-Struggle-4056@reddit
*Palestine
ProXJay@reddit
The day out at centr palestine?
jools4you@reddit
Jerusalem is in Palestine
underwater-sunlight@reddit
We had a long weekend in Nottingham a few years ago and spotted this place. Never heard of it before but seen their claim as the oldest and looked into it a little
redpanda6969@reddit
Woos in midlands
lionmoose@reddit
Made out in the stairs with a girl a later married in that pub.
patchyj@reddit
This guy pubs
ChocolateHumunculous@reddit
Bowl of peas, home. Done.
oldskoollondon@reddit
Mushy, vinegar and pepper. Cockles on the side if you're feeling adventurous.
Dico80@reddit
What I was going to say
Ok_Net4562@reddit
Yeah was gonna say this
Eyup_Amigo@reddit
My first thought
cuccir@reddit
This came to my mind. It's a recognisable name in a well known place
Live_Lifeguard1267@reddit
For me it's "The Trout" in Wolvercote, Oxford.
Used in several Inspector Morse and Lewis Episodes. We went there a few years back and blow me down if the old boy wasn't there himself, Colin Dexter. No doubt on a freebie for all the free publicity he's given it over the last 30 years.
beautiful meal too.....
amenizm89@reddit
The Nags head
Noctemme@reddit
Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese
lesloid@reddit
This is the only one people have mentioned I’ve ever heard of
FlorianBellicus@reddit
A very fine boozer.
toonlass91@reddit
Never heard of Jamaica Inn if I’m honest. My opinion for famous pub would be The Tan Hill Inn
ScotsTouristSoton@reddit (OP)
Im surprised given the book, films, tv adaptations etc
coleslawontoast@reddit
Tan hill
SmokyBarnable01@reddit
Churchill Arms. Notting Hill.
SilyLavage@reddit
Besides Jamaica Inn, Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem in Nottingham, the Eagle and Child in Oxford, and the Tan Hill in Yorkshire are probably the three most famous.
SmokyBarnable01@reddit
The Eagle & Child's been shut for a few years now unfortunately.
shibbyingaway@reddit
I’d say The Eagle in Cambridge considering its connection to Watson and Crick
Perite@reddit
For biologists the Eagle in Cambridge is famous for its link to the publication of the structure of DNA
DPropish@reddit
And also for the USAF bomber boys’ names on the pub ceiling, burned on with their service-issue Zippos
DefStillAlive@reddit
Surely the discovery of the secret of life is of a passing interest even to non-biologists?
theModge@reddit
The price of Wales in Moseley would like to claim that Tolkien.
I'm not aware it's famous ourside of Birmingham, but it's not bad as pubs go
orange_lighthouse@reddit
I've never heard of the Jamaica Inn either, heard of two of the ones you've posted - trip as I live in notts, and tan hill because of the snow-in(s)
SaladImmediate972@reddit
The Eagle on City Road maybe? It's in a nursery rhyme after all
DTH2001@reddit
A lot of people only know the first verse though
DTH2001@reddit
The Eagle and Child is also where the discovery of DNA was first announced
DaddyRAS@reddit
I was going to offer Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese on Fleet Street, but you're right that it's probably only well known amongst old print journalists and some City folk.
Exact-Put-6961@reddit
The Prospect of Whitby.
Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese ( Fleet Street)..
Florence_Nightgerbil@reddit
My sister worked in the prospect when she was 18. Every pub along there tries to claim they’re the oldest pub in London.
bio_d@reddit
The Eagle in Cambridge would be a decent shout, double helix and what not
Ok-Explanation1990@reddit
Jamaica inn was made famous by Daphne Du Maurier
CEP64@reddit
I've drank in Ye Olde Trip and the Tan Hill.
spaceprinceps@reddit
I would have had to pitch a tent in the dark to do so, nice pub?
Petit-Chou_fleur@reddit
The blind beggar, prospect of Whitby or dirty dicks?
KinnyWater@reddit
The Jamaica Inn is the first one that sprung to my mind and I’m from the other side of the country to it. Only because isn’t it supposed to be one of the most haunted places in the UK?
OzzyinKernow@reddit
Blind Beggar?
SilyLavage@reddit
I can see it's been mentioned a few times in the comments, so clearly it's somewhat known, but I wouldn't have named it unprompted. Having looked it up, its main association seems to be with the Crays and that's before my time!
OzzyinKernow@reddit
No, me either, other than what I recall from hearsay growing up. They were just violent thugs, best consigned to history. But that very ordinary boozer is famous for being the site of that murder.
MercatorLondon@reddit
The George near London Bridge
SilyLavage@reddit
I can't speak for any other non-Londoners, but I've not heard of it.
MercatorLondon@reddit
That is just fine - there are many lovely pubs out there. The George was established in 1677 and it is run by National Trust. Very wonky but very popular in the busy location..
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_George_Inn,_Southwark
SilyLavage@reddit
Oh yes, now that I see The George I do recognise it. I know it for being a former neighbour to Chaucer's Tabard Inn.
FoxesTransport@reddit
the black garter
i22o@reddit
The Strawberry outside St James' Park, Newcastle.
sjw_7@reddit
I would say the Tan Hill Inn purely because it ends up on the news every year or two when guests get snowed in for a few days.
There are fictional ones that are more famous but as they don't really exist I don't think they count.
Linf_ord@reddit
Has to be the Cavern Liverpool. I would argue its the worlds most famous pub.
thefreeDaves@reddit
The Blind Beggar?
BuildingArmor@reddit
I think the other possible avenue for most famous pub, would be the high end gastro pubs, like the ones Tom Kerridge or Heston own.
Not sure if they're only famous in smaller circles though, but they'll be nationally known when most pubs won't.
roddz@reddit
Lots of joke answers and fictional pubs but a couple of serious contenders The Cabbage Patch in Twickenham right outside the train station and often the first port of call for an England rugby game and The Farmers Dog because of Clarkson's farm
Inevitable-Care@reddit
There’s The Eagle in Cambridge, famous for the RAF bar and for where Cricket & Watson discovered DNA.
DefStillAlive@reddit
Crick and Watson. And they just announced their discovery there, it's not where they did the actual discovering. Good shout though.
concretepigeon@reddit
Not many pubs have a laboratory in them.
mrb2409@reddit
The Churchill Arms maybe in Kensington always seems a tourist destinations
concretepigeon@reddit
I went to the pub outside Corfe Castle last week and it has a sign claiming to be the most photographed pub in the UK. It was a nice enough pub but not really anything special. It got me thinking which is actually the most photographed and I reckon that’s The Churchill Arms.
ArseBiscuits_@reddit
Yeah that’s what I was going to say. At least with Instagram blowing it up anyway
matherto@reddit
I've never heard of the Jamaica Inn and could only guess it's a London thing?
DTH2001@reddit
It is on Bodmin Moor in Cornwall.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamaica_Inn
Daphne du Maurier wrote a novel called Jamaica Inn after staying there.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamaica_Inn_(novel)
It has also been adapted for film and television several times, the most famous probably being the 1939 version directed by Alfred Hitchcock.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jamaica_Inn_(film)
concretepigeon@reddit
I’ve read the book and I didn’t realise it was a real pub. That’s cool.
blindio10@reddit
iirc it's the inn from Poldark so very not london
vonswamp@reddit
It’s near perranporth in Cornwall
Millsters@reddit
According to wiki, it's 4 miles from Brown Willy
vonswamp@reddit
Sorry wrong pub. I was thinking of smugglers inn. Jamaica inn is over launceston way
Voodoopulse@reddit
Olde triple to Jerusalem - Nottingham
Inevitable-Slide-104@reddit
I lived in Nottingham for years and have never heard of Bugmans!
Voodoopulse@reddit
It's the bar in warhammer world
concretepigeon@reddit
I feel like Warhammer fans have a bit of a tendency to really overestimate how much people not into it know about it.
AlabamaShrimp@reddit
Grate choice on Bugman's.
SoftwareFew9236@reddit
I’ve never heard of Jamaica inn
greenhail7@reddit
The Lamb and Flag! Round the corner from Chief Mangosuthu Buthelezi Cul-de-sac, Hammersmith. Last time I checked, Dick Head was the landlord.
Ill-Opportunity8918@reddit
The blind beggar. Jamaica inn is famous but Blind Beggar would come to my mind first
Sure-Present-3398@reddit
The Winchester.
Sea_Pomegranate8229@reddit
Not Real
tripping_yarns@reddit
Or The Slaughtered Lamb
Large-Sign-900@reddit
Came here to say exactly this but its probably the woolpack or the queen vic.
RatioMaster9468@reddit
Rovers Return as well
Large-Sign-900@reddit
For sure. I doubt anyone actually knows of the woolpack except old gits like me. The rovers return is a better choice.
RatioMaster9468@reddit
I didn't realise that the Woolpack was actually (and still is) a legit pub that they filmed in (called the Woolpack)
Ok-Explanation1990@reddit
Beware the moon.
justmoochin@reddit
There's a breville out back, John'll do you a toastie.
patchyj@reddit
Wtf is a breville?
publiusnaso@reddit
Ask talkie toaster
AgileInitial5987@reddit
Oh my sweet summer child…
patchyj@reddit
Ok its a brand of kitchenware stuff. Never heard of it
Ok-Explanation1990@reddit
The Breville Sandwich Maker. Made molten hot, burn your tongue off, super crispy triangular toasted sandwiches in a clamshell-type device. They were a must-have iconic kitchen gadget in the late 70's through to the 90's. Like a George Foreman grill - something everyone purchased that then mostly sat at the back of a cupboard when the novelty wore off.
OreoSpamBurger@reddit
Baked bean toasties kept me and my flatmates alive at uni.
We never cleaned it.
OreoSpamBurger@reddit
And some pubs that weren't registered to serve food (hygiene checks etc) would literally have one out back and sell dodgy toasties back in the day.
AgileInitial5987@reddit
A breville was THE toastie maker of choice back in the day. Elite.
Ok-Explanation1990@reddit
A brand that makes molten hot, super crispy triangular toasted sandwiches in a clamshell-type device. They were a must-have iconic kitchen gadget in the early 80's through to the end of the 90's. Like a George Foreman grill - something everyone purchased that then mostly sat at the back of a cupboard when the novelty wore off.
BigSkyFilms@reddit
Café Âû lait, pour vous 😎
jupiterspringsteen@reddit
Usual Arfur?
BocaSeniorsWsM@reddit
VV
cloud__19@reddit
Wait for it all to blow over.
DDAAVVEE123@reddit
The Blind Beggar
Industricon@reddit
What's the one that Clarkson has opened up on his farm?
ClassroomDowntown664@reddit
2 things it's not at his farm it in burford and it's called the farmers dog
Industricon@reddit
So, even with my shit description you knew what I meant... and that is why its famous!
Dethark@reddit
It's that famous, you don't know what it's called....
Industricon@reddit
I mean....I know of it. I know it exists... you all know the one Im referring too as well... so....but I live in Somerset... the most famous pub I know is The Hatchet in Bristol, but I can't imagine many others do!
Dethark@reddit
I love the Hatchet.
Best metal pub in Bristol.
Industricon@reddit
Yes, yes it is, and for that statement alone you deserve a reward! 👍🏻
Opening-Fortune4@reddit
Reddit appeared not to like it
Opening-Fortune4@reddit
Best pub in the world that possibly has a door made of human skin
Lower-Ad-2082@reddit
😂😂😂😂
Penster78@reddit
The Blind Beggar?
ReputationKind4628@reddit
The Crooked House (RIP)
L00ny-T00n@reddit
Came to say this. The only pub that made people drunk when they weren't even drinking. Bastards who knocked it down then burnt it, or was it the other way?
SpudFire@reddit
It 'self-combusted' and then the owners knocked down the ruin. They had been ordered to rebuild it but I doubt that will truly happen and how do you even rebuild it to what it was?
Krakshotz@reddit
Tan Hill Inn
SpudFire@reddit
It's got to be this. Every year it's on the news because they want to interview people that 'accidentally' got snowed in up there.
I haven't heard of many of the others mentioned here - not including TV shows or generic pub names - they might be well known if you've been to that town or city or be a very active CAMRA member, but the average person won't have heard of them.
Existingsquid@reddit
It’s on my bucket list to get snowed in.
smoggy_1989@reddit
This was what came to my mind!
Sad-Passage-3247@reddit
The Barley Mow. I even know the Landlord. Mr Arthur "Tiger" Pringle. <- What a thoroughly bloody nice bloke.
Starboard_1982@reddit
The Moon Under Water. Both fictional and real.
George Orwell wrote an essay about his ideal pub, which he called the Moon Under Water. There are now several Wetherspoons that share the name - I know one of them is in Manchester, I'm not sure about the others.
Most people probably wouldn't know the Orwell reference but a lot will know where a pub called the Moon Under Water is.
Time-Mode-9@reddit
There's one near Holborn in London
mattcannon2@reddit
There's one on Leicester Square (it's a wetherspoons) and another in Barnet, north london (it's also a wetherspoons) and another in norbury south London (wetherspoons yet again)
JonnyredsFalcons@reddit
One in Reading as well
Starboard_1982@reddit
I should have known that the one in Leicester Square was called that!!
I guess Tim Martin figured that his pubs were the "perfect pub" - which I imagine for a lot of people they are (cheap, decent choice of beer, family-friendly, etc.etc.).
mattcannon2@reddit
Maybe it's the go-to name when they can't think of some local folk tale to name it after
Spreakib@reddit
probably the blind beggar
LIRFC@reddit
Probably the biggest pub in Britain.
As an older bloke, I knew at least 50+ people (mostly deceased now) that were in there THAT night.
So do most other locals my age!
JimmyBallocks@reddit
My Dad was one of the people who used to claim he was in the Blind Beggar when it happened. Despite not living anywhere near East London at the time. And his story getting most of the details wrong each time he told it.
Nobody ever believed him, but that didn’t stop him. He was a hopeless bullshitter that would never ever back down from whatever shit he was saying even if you had actual incontrovertible proof in your hand that he was talking bollocks and you were holding it up to his face.
The last time I ever heard him roll out his Blind Beggar story was on the morning of my stepmum’s funeral, when the room was full of family and he knew nobody would call him out on his bullshit when he was about to go and bury his wife.
Bozzaholic@reddit
I did a Krays walking tour a few years ago and the guy running it said only about 5 people were actually in the pub that night
LIRFC@reddit
Did he look under the tables? They're pretty big.
_Comped_Sushi_@reddit
All the same people who were at the Sex Pistols at the Free Trade
Siggi_Starduust@reddit
It sounds like Sean Connery’s milk round. He must have delivered to almost every street in Edinburgh
hydrocotyle99@reddit
Sorry, I posted my reply nominating The Blind Beggar before I saw your one.
Upper_Paramedic_2043@reddit
I was going to say this
ima_twee@reddit
/thread.
RoboTon78@reddit
The elephant and castle in London.
Time-Mode-9@reddit
Also angel and bricklayers arms
BulldenChoppahYus@reddit
Absolutely not even close
Time-Mode-9@reddit
The Vic or rovers return
BrummieTaff@reddit
Probably Clarkson's one?
mister_haytch@reddit
The Garrison in Birmingham?
Jonathan5967@reddit
The farmers dog surely
Nice-Rack-XxX@reddit
This all day. I’ve never heard of the Jamaica Inn and I live in the UK. I knew of Jerusalem in Nottingham, simply coz it’s the oldest pub in the country.
But Clarkson’s Farm is popular all across the globe, especially in China. You go and ask all one and a half billion of them to name a British pub, and it will be the only name on the list.
This question reminds me when someone ask “who’s the most famous sports player” and all the Americans pick some rando NFL quarter back, or a basketball player, not realising those people are only really famous in America, but worldwide, they’re dwarfed by football players such as Pele, Maradonna, Messi, Ronaldo etc.
neilm1000@reddit
Apropos of nothing, but one of the best conversations I've ever had was with an American friend who, despite being well educated, genuinely thought the Superbowl was a gigantic global thing watched by billions. She'd never heard of the IPL.
OldGodsAndNew@reddit
The super bowl is dwarfed even by stuff like the Tour de France & winter olympics in terms of global audience. Barely even registers for most of the world
dizzley@reddit
This one hit me from left field. I hadn't thought of it. It's got no history but it's very current.
BarryIslandIdiot@reddit
This was the first pub that came to mind. It's in the public eye right now, and news stories are popping up about it all the time.
While there are other famous pubs, right now it has to be the Farmer's Dog. In a few years, it'll probably swing back to something like the Jamaica Inn, Eagle and Child, etc.
Grimdotdotdot@reddit
And by some distance, I expect.
Practical-March-6989@reddit
Clarksons one obiously.
RumJackson@reddit
Never heard of Jamaica Inn
InspiringGecko@reddit
It’s a novel by Daphne du Maurier and there’s also a pub with that name in Cornwall which supposedly inspired the novel.
Jenkes_of_Wolverton@reddit
It was also Alfred Hitchcock's last UK movie before going to America. Released in 1939 it was a vehicle for Maureen O'Hara and Robert Newton, and the first of three du Maurier adaptions that Hitchcock filmed. 1963's The Birds is probably the most famous now, because the technology moved on a lot in the years between.
RumJackson@reddit
Never heard of her either.
Have heard of Cornwall though.
minadequate@reddit
She also wrote Rebecca, also set in Cornwall. The Birds (and which became the Hitchcock movie of the same name)… amongst others.
InspiringGecko@reddit
She’s a British author from Cornwall. Most of her books are set there. You may have heard of Rebecca (the novel).
Hot_Lynx7043@reddit
The Red Lion is the most commonly used name
crayonman94@reddit
The Square and Compass in Dorset is well known down south
mad-un@reddit
Got to be The Swan & Paedo
StraightTelephone261@reddit
The Ten Bells, in London.
jimmyboogaloo78@reddit
The cock inn.
buttpugggs@reddit
The Swan and Paedo?
Mr_Murdoc@reddit
No logos on the foam!
Alive_Ice7937@reddit
Field of Dreams? That's your marketing strategy? A film about a man who builds a baseball field in his garden for ghosts.
exceptionallurker@reddit
Came here for this.
FartWar2950@reddit
Take me to the nasties.
pooinyourear@reddit
A washing machine?
Maleficent-House-567@reddit
Jesus, I need a drink
Pitiful_Shoulder9730@reddit
Does a lovely organic scrumpy
OneSufficientFace@reddit
Crooked house
asuka_rice@reddit
The Nag’s Head.
EyeAware3519@reddit
They do a lovely Tia Maria and Lucozade
TrendyGame@reddit
They've brought in this revolutionary new rule...from now on, customers have to pay for their drinks 😐
_FreddieLovesDelilah@reddit
Where?
parsl@reddit
Mange tout, mange tout
Daveger4@reddit
The Jamaica inn
Historical_Project86@reddit
The Rover's Return or the Queen Vic.
nazman13@reddit
The Clachaig Inn at Glen Coe is famous in Scotland...... I think.
Perfect_Measurement8@reddit
The Admiral Duncan
(Not famous for good reasons probably)
iceroadfuckers@reddit
I'd say The Green Man at Wembley would be right up there.
probablyaythrowaway@reddit
In Newcastle it’s definitely the black garter.
Embarrassed_Ad1722@reddit
Jeremy Clarkson's pub simply because all these, people are mentioning here are fairly local and as someone who never lived in Britain or doesn't drink I've never heard of them. I've heard of his though for one reason or another.
Deepseagrasshopper@reddit
Wetherspoons
BlackJackKetchum@reddit
The Trent Bridge in Notts and the Prospect of Whitby in London are other possibilities.
Then there are the tube station pubs - Swiss Cottage, The Angel and Royal Oak. Everyone who uses the Tube will know those, but not necessarily that they are pubs.
tobotic@reddit
The Trent Bridge Inn isn't even the most famous pub in Nottingham.
BlackJackKetchum@reddit
Maybe not, but ask pretty well any adult man where TB is and you’ll get a more accurate answer than the one you’ll get for ‘the Jerusalem’.
tobotic@reddit
There exists a pub called "The Pride of London". You've likely never heard of that pub before. But you already know what city it's in. It's not because the pub is famous. It's because you've heard of London.
People have heard of Trent Bridge because of the cricket ground. (And to an extent because of the bridge. But mostly the cricket ground.) So they could guess where the Trent Bridge Inn is.
(And yes, I'm aware the pub is older than the cricket ground. I'm not aware of it because the pub is "world renowned" as the sign says. But because I lived in Nottingham for years and actually worked as a bartender at Trent Bridge. Not the pub, the cricket ground. Mostly the Derek Randall Suite and the members' bar.)
hdhxuxufxufufiffif@reddit
And if you ask them what it is, 99.9% will say something other than "pub".
RedditFan1979@reddit
I expected to see Swiss Cottage more prominently on the thread ✌️
Scottish_squirrel@reddit
Definitely the queen Vic or the rovers return.
In real life I'd probably say the world's End in Edinburgh. Probably more notorious than famous as a pub mind you.
delazouch@reddit
Id say The Angel Islington, although a lot of people probably don’t realise it’s a pub.
DaysyFields@reddit
The Red Lion, the White Hart and the Nag's Head.
ramirezdoeverything@reddit
The Crooked House until a chav bought it and had it illegally knocked down
Responsible-Ad-1086@reddit
Stayed at the Jamaica Inn last year with some Canadian friends, the museum is interesting, free entry if you stay there
Comfortable_Ad_4267@reddit
The Cock & Bull hotel and inn.
tdrules@reddit
The Devonshire I’d imagine.
Do you like queuing for a Guinness that tastes like every other place? Well.
asjonesy99@reddit
It’s not the taste it’s the texture
tdrules@reddit
It’s marketing nonsense
RedditFan1979@reddit
In Ireland it's both ✌️🇨🇮
No_Parsley575@reddit
It’s worth it for the real ale though
_Comped_Sushi_@reddit
Actually if you point the G to Dublin and say three Hail Mary's it'll taste 1% better
Aggressive_Leave3639@reddit
Quiet, TopJaw will hear you and melt down
GreyFoxNinjaFan@reddit
I works say probably The Prospect of Whitby as London's oldest riverside pub at over 500 years old.
megawoot@reddit
There is a bunch of pubs that all make that claim, including the town of Ramsgate, the mayflower and the Angel.
DubManD@reddit
I was going to say this. Or the George Inn, Borough High St
leakee2@reddit
Black Garter
sd-rw@reddit
“The local pub”
Hcmp1980@reddit
The Queen Vic
idontbleaveit@reddit
I don’t know about most famous, but do you know the Downham Tavern Southeast London is in the Guinness Book of records for having the longest bar in the uk The two Bars each 45ft in length able to accept 1000 customers at one time.
MDCB_1@reddit
The Queen Vic X The Ten Bells - TIED!!!
Ok-Explanation1990@reddit
There used to be a pub in Chelsea called "The Ferret and firkin in a Balloon up The Creek (without a paddle)". It held the record as the longest pub name, and it was a fun place to go.
Sadly, and very boringly it changed hands in about 2001 and is now just a bland bistro with a dull name.
Bunister@reddit
If we broaden the definition of 'pub' a tiny bit, then the Cavern Club has got to be right up there.
Zarniwoop7@reddit
Maybe, but the original Cavern Club was demolished (I think) in the early 70s. The current version is a replica.
Bunister@reddit
I did not know that.
Hoopy username by the way.
Bunister@reddit
"The Cavern Club closed in 1973 and was filled in during construction work on the Merseyrail underground rail loop. It reopened in 1984. It was temporarily closed again from 1989 to 1991, and has been open ever since."
Ok-Explanation1990@reddit
A new Cavern was built in the 1980s using many of the original bricks and designed to closely recreate the original atmosphere and layout. The present club occupies about 70% of the original site, and parts of it sit very close to where the original stage stood. But it's not the original.
dospc@reddit
Yeah and if my grandmother had wheels she'd be a bicycle.
Euphoric_Wish_8293@reddit
Before reading further than the title, I thought The Jamaica Inn.
dwair@reddit
Well it's certainly turned itself into a tourist trap that's only attraction is now it's name. It's the only pub I know that does a roaring trade in OAP coach parties.
Ok-Explanation1990@reddit
The First & Last House near Lands End also used to be quite a well-known iconic little pub, but it sits relatively unknown these days.
GrimbleGrombles@reddit
It's gone now, but the Air Balloon pub outside of Cheltenham was a bit of a local landmark. Not because it was a especially amazing pub, but it was a point of reference that all locals seemed to know.
dizzley@reddit
I've certainly spent more time stuck in traffic there than outside other pubs.
EmiaraUK@reddit
Worked there for a few years. Miss it greatly, but yes it was always on the national traffic reports 😂
DubManD@reddit
Many a fond memory there in the late 70s
InEachHomeAHeartache@reddit
The one that comes to mind is probably the Eagle and Child (called 'The Bird and Baby' by students) in Oxford because it is where the 'Inklings' including Tolkien and CS Lewis used to hang out.
DisorderOfLeitbur@reddit
'The Fowl & Foetus' was another student name for it.
dizzley@reddit
The Bustard and Bastard.
Zubi_Q@reddit
I would say eagle and child in Oxford. Tolkien and other famous writers met there frequently
dizzley@reddit
Ah, the old Bustard and Bastard.
Dethark@reddit
Shame it's been shut for about the last 5-6 years. Due to open again soon...
Zubi_Q@reddit
Yeah, think someone bought them out but man, really has been WAY too long! Miss that place
Dethark@reddit
From what I've heard, it's being converted into a hotel on the floors above but keeping the pub below.
I used to love going there and I really hope the pub has not been ruined.
The Lamb & Flag, which is opposite, was also a regular for the Inklings.
Zubi_Q@reddit
Oof, that's not good to read. We have enough hotels in Oxford City centre!
greetp@reddit
The Kebab & Calculator.
HistoryDisastrous493@reddit
The King's Head
richneptune@reddit
I'd have said The Baron of Beef in Cambridge!
CantBeatDickensCider@reddit
I prefer the Pickerel Inn
richneptune@reddit
But Sir Clive Sinclair and Chris Curry didn't have a scrap there!
CantBeatDickensCider@reddit
Surprised no one has said Punch and Judy in Covent Garden, but I guess it's been too expensive to actually drink there for at least two decades.
mrbubbles87@reddit
the blind beggar maybe
sadface234@reddit
I scrolled a long way to not see The Nutshell. Surely it's a bit famous?
LetMeBuildYourSquad@reddit
The Blind Beggar
GraphicDesignMonkey@reddit
The Admiral Benbow.
hydrocotyle99@reddit
Of pubs that actually exist I would say The Blind Beggar in Whitechapel/Stepney. I used to work in that area for a few years and it was the King of tourist traps. A pint of rubbish beer in a decor to attract tourists? That will be a second mortgage please
No_Concern_7583@reddit
The Lamb & Flag.
neilm1000@reddit
Prospect of Whitby maybe?
JamJarre@reddit
The Eagle & Child must be up there, with the caveat that there are so few famous pubs that the threshold is very low
llufnam@reddit
Is that the Jamaica Inn halfway between Bank and Liverpool Street?
peahair@reddit
In Scotland it has to be the Clansman. Landlords a prick though..
clemventure@reddit
The rovers return or the queen vic
impamiizgraa@reddit
Yes the Queen Vic was the first one I heard of (Eastenders) as a young foreign child so it holds a special place in my heart. Anecdotal though, other answers probably more correct!
Jamitry1@reddit
Without a doubt. I couldn't tell you an actual real life pub that was nationally famous.
Wallygonk@reddit
Probably because there isn't one
BoredPenslinger@reddit
Rovers and Woolpack both named after real pubs in Salford.
rygza@reddit
Just got a little bit of sick in my mouth learning the woolpack takes its name from the wrong side of the pennines......
Exact-Put-6961@reddit
The Tan Hill Inn
arjay555@reddit
I’ve been to Tan Hill Inn, there were some free range chickens knocking about and one of them came up to me and rubbed its face on my leg like a friendly dog or cat, then shat on my shoe.
WhoIsJohnSalt@reddit
Never heard of it. And I’m Northern
Exact-Put-6961@reddit
Highest
L00ny-T00n@reddit
Yeah, but you wouldn't want to be stuck in there in a blizzard. With an Oasis tribute band. I'd rather walk home and risk the frost bite
JohnCasey3306@reddit
I've never watched a single episode of either soap and I know them
tobotic@reddit
Except OP asked for a real pub.
impamiizgraa@reddit
The Old Vic was the first one I heard of (Eastenders) as a young foreign child so it holds a special place in my heart. Anecdotal though, other answers probably more correct!
Mangoose@reddit
The Crown in Belfast. It's absolutely beautiful too.
mcRibalicious@reddit
Jamaica Inn. It was always famous in my day, but oddly, I have no idea why
Standard-Still-8128@reddit
Naggs head
GeggingIn@reddit
World’s End in Edinburgh?
dbxp@reddit
I think the one in Camden is more well known
GeggingIn@reddit
Thought The World’s End Murders were really well known?
dbxp@reddit
I've never heard of them. The one in Camden is right outside the tube station, it's a hub for the metal scene and The Underworld is in the basement
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Camden_Underworld
L00ny-T00n@reddit
Also Deacon Brodie, Banshees Labyrinth, Greyfriars Bobby and the weird Frankenstein's
patchyj@reddit
Is that the one that used to straddle the border of Edinburgh and Leith? Where time was called on one side but due to different alcohol laws between the 2 borough patrons would just huddle on one side to continue drinking for another hour?
Potential_Twist3640@reddit
No that’s the Boundary Bar on Leith Walk. The World’s End is on the Royal Mile, where the medieval gates to the city once stood.
patchyj@reddit
Ah ok gotcha. Thanks!
jakeanton@reddit
I’d go for The World’s End in Newton Haven
ApprehensiveSong4@reddit
Was just thinking that. Surely got to be up there one because its old and two the murders.
snoidberg490@reddit
Prospect of Whitby or Cheshire Cheese, also Princess Louise or Citte of York. Also Lamb and Flag. All in London.
Agitated-Builder-582@reddit
The Warren House Inn on Dartmoor - famous for never letting the fire burn out in over 180 years, the loneliest pub and the highest in Southern England
Jack1ngton@reddit
Duke of York's gone down in popularity, apparently they were serving under 18s
TrendyGame@reddit
Likely all fictional ones (soaps...but also The Feathers) - but for real ones, Philharmonic in Liverpool is probably in the conversation.
DV865@reddit
Jamaica Inn on Bodmin Moor
Kadoomed@reddit
There's some good candidates in this list but all very London and England focused.
Just for sake of argument I'll propose a few in Scotland:
Applecross Inn Nice n Sleazy King Tuts Wah Wah Hut The Oxford Bar The Bow Bar Clachaig Inn The Howff The Old Forge (only accessible by boat or an 18 mile hike)
Willing_Coconut4364@reddit
Gandalfs ?
Bread-But-Toasted@reddit
The crown
Did_OJ_Simpson_do_it@reddit
The Blind Beggar
Distant_Touch@reddit
Classic east end boozer.
_Comped_Sushi_@reddit
Classic east end boozer cashing in selling hot dogs
Did_OJ_Simpson_do_it@reddit
Yep, when I got my first job at 16 I used to go past the pub on my commute every day.
Distant_Touch@reddit
I live close to it. Haven't been there in a while though. I also like the Good Sam in Whitechapel.
ctesibius@reddit
Can't say I've heard of it. I'd think of the Tan Hill, or the Trip to Jeruasalem or the Sal in Nottingham. Or maybe the Eagle and Child in Oxford.
imtravelingalone@reddit
Wetherspoons.
Planeontime3@reddit
Horseshoe Bar.
Hes-behind-you@reddit
The Broken arms or Jamie Oliver's pub; The cock in cider.
L00ny-T00n@reddit
Appropriate name for that tosser
Miserable-Ad7835@reddit
Spoons Victoria Station.
Zarniwoop7@reddit
Plumbers Arms in Belgravia? If you know the context.
RealMrIncredible@reddit
The Leaky Cauldron
loveKyoto@reddit
There’s one in Notts that’s apparently the oldest in the UK. For that reason, possibly the most famous boozer in the UK.
Axerav@reddit
Ye olde trip to jerusalem
asymmetricears@reddit
The wonky one that was suspiciously burned down and demolished.
L00ny-T00n@reddit
The Crooked House in Staffordshire
Logical-Permission65@reddit
Spoons
victory_roll@reddit
In terms of now many people have read and know the name…. The Leaky Cauldron from Harry Potter. Fictional but over 600 million copies worldwide across more than 85 languages (thank you Google!) must be in with a chance?
sophietheadventurer@reddit
For cat lovers it’s Bag O’ Nails in Bristol
atomicsiren@reddit
Not hugely famous, but the Adelphi Hotel in Sheffield (on the site of what is now the Crucible Theatre) was where The Sheffield Football Association, Sheffield Wednesday, Sheffield United, and Yorkshire Cricket Club were all founded.
Duskspire@reddit
For real, operating and specific pubs it could be the Royal Vauxhall Tavern.
mattcannon2@reddit
That one in Richmond with all the tiktoks of cars getting washed into the Thames
BigSkyFilms@reddit
Anyone know of the Purple Turtle in Reading?
L00ny-T00n@reddit
Golden fleece, York. You either have been there or at least heard of it
ScotsTouristSoton@reddit (OP)
I've been to York a few times and the name doesn't ring a bell. I've probably been in it but I don't remember it per se.
L00ny-T00n@reddit
As you come down The Shambles, cross the road and it's there. Most haunted pub in the UK. Apparently
AgileInitial5987@reddit
Probably the Farmers Dog these days.
march3110@reddit
The church house inn
Anon-and-on@reddit
The Good Mixer in Camden... I know hardly anything about London pubs, but remember that place being the centre of the Britpop days of the 90s.
Exact-Put-6961@reddit
For mountain climbers:
The Old Dungeon Ghyll The Pen Y Gwryd (Everest John Hunt expedition planned there). The Brittania Elterwater
For Pot Holers: The Hunters Lodge
death-in-tipton@reddit
Tonight, we will be partaking of a liquid repast as we wind our way up the Golden Mile. Commencing with an inaugural tankard in The First Post, then on to The Old Familiar, The Famous Cock, The Cross Hands, The Good Companions, The Trusty Servant, The Two-Headed Dog, The Mermaid, The Beehive, The King's Head, and The Hole in the Wall for a measure of the same, all before the last bittersweet pint in that most fateful terminus, The World's End. Leave a light on good lady, for though we may return with a twinkle in our eyes, we will be in truth blind - drunk
CompleteWhittle@reddit
The kebab and calculator
DancingSpacePenguin@reddit
Red Lion is standard.
Exciting-Trifle9439@reddit
Purple Turtle
presterjohn7171@reddit
The Rovers Return, the Woolpack or the Queen Vic.
Signal-Ad2674@reddit
The Queen Vic
No_Wrap_9979@reddit
The Kebab & Calculator
Mc_and_SP@reddit
The Black Horse (not to be confused with The Black Bull)
Charon13_TB@reddit
Dirty Dicks opposite Liverpool Street station in London springs to mind
Lower-Ad-2082@reddit
I worked in a care home for a while and one of the residents with dementia used to talk about that all the time. Her face lit up when I said I'd been there and had conversations about it.
Only-Tutor7115@reddit
The gents inside the station ought to be named that, what with all the shenanigans that go on in there. I'm saying no more...
majesticjewnicorn@reddit
Wetherspoons
ReputationKind4628@reddit
The Vulcan in Blackburn.
Oh sorry. I thought you said infamous.
Pedantichrist@reddit
The King And Queen, in Fitzrovia which is where Bob Dylan (‘The Jester’ who was still Robert Zimmerman at the time) sang for the customers in a coat he borrowed from James Dean and changed history, rebuilding the music industry after the death of Buddy Holly, as per Don McLean’s famous ditty.
wazbang@reddit
Blind beggar
Teembeau@reddit
Sadly, it's probably the one that Clarkson opened.
Adam-West@reddit
The swan and pedo
jessicarosepole@reddit
Came here for this
Throwaway91847817@reddit
Tan Hill is quite famous for being the highest pub in Britain.
justanothergirl1986@reddit
The Hawley Arms in London is the only pub I've ever sought out to visit, because it was Amy Winehouse's local . Lovely place!
CEP64@reddit
The Winchester?
Upstairs-Quail5709@reddit
Queen's Head is I recall most numerously named pub.
Gullible_Pen4925@reddit
Blind beggar
nopeitsadog@reddit
The cartoon down Croydon
nopeitsadog@reddit
Woolpack
hu70@reddit
The Blind Begger, ain't sayin naffin lse!!
ordinarybloke1963@reddit
The Jockey, Chatsworth
ODFoxtrotOscar@reddit
On a similar note, The Rockingham Arms at Doncaster racecourse. Probably not nationally famous, but very well known nevertheless
JoePasqualeGoatseLuv@reddit
Probably Jeremy Clarkson's pub right?
Maybe The Windmill, doubles as a pub and famous music venue
Long_Day9450@reddit
Omg the Brude, blast from the past
Green_Lychee8221@reddit
Probably not now, but a decade ago, the Clutha.
Apprehensive_Jaguar@reddit
That one in London that Charles Dickens is rumoured to have frequented.
P3rrin_Aybara@reddit
Never heard of it
B0b_Howard@reddit
The Dev in Camden for ageing goths.
Sneckster@reddit
My fathers moustache
I know it's not bit I love the name
signol_@reddit
The Prospect of Whitby
cuccir@reddit
The Oyster Bar in Manchester will be up there. Prominent city centre pub, associated with the Arndale Center bombing too.
evil-kaweasel@reddit
I'd say Blind begger due to the Krays but I'm middle aged so I don't know if they're still well known with the Zoomers
flangeflangeflanges@reddit
Queen Vic.
ExactAdvertising467@reddit
There’s a case here
GasQuirky3938@reddit
Many pubs could claim to be the most famous for one reason or another.
Claims to fame could include being the oldest (Ye Olde Trip To Jerusalem in Nottingham), the most remote (The Tan Hill Inn in Richmond, North Yorkshire), famous events (The murder of George Cornell by Ronnie Kray in The Blind Beggar in Whitechapel, London), good food (a lot of pubs!), known for famous customers (actors going to The Salisbury in Covent Garden, London), infamous customers (The Star Tavern in Belgravia, London was apparently the pub in which the Great Train Robbery was planned), being haunted (The George and Dragon Hotel in West Wycombe, Bucks), a famous owner (whatever Jeremy Clarkson's pub is called), famous performances (Adge Cutler & The Wurzels recorded their first album in the Royal Oak Inn in Nails, Somerset), and many more.
You pays your money and you takes your choice.
TH1CCARUS@reddit
This comment stinks of bot activity tbh
GasQuirky3938@reddit
I can assure you that I am an actual human.
TH1CCARUS@reddit
That settles it, then.
GolfTraditional8113@reddit
The Prospect of Whitby is fairly famous on the Thames in London but probably nowhere near as well known as the Jamaica Inn.
ThisIsAnAccount2306@reddit
The Blind Beggar has to be up there because of the connection to the Krays.
Expensive-Draw-6897@reddit
In Scotland maybe the Pot Still: Best whisky bar in Glasgow or The Old Forge (most isolated pub in the country).
The Cock N Cider: Jamie's mobile pub.
Hes-behind-you@reddit
If your a horse racing fan, The Plough in Temple Guiting, Gloucestershire
gemgodz83@reddit
Read your first paragraph and thought Jamaica Inn straight away. It’s absolutely wonderful and we love stopping in there. A second favourite is the smugglers in. Weymouth area.
memoriadeshakespeare@reddit
The Coach and Horses
BuddyLegsBailey@reddit
Bad luck for getting robbed blind at the Jamaica Inn....
Opening-Fortune4@reddit
The good thing about pubs is that even the famous ones aren’t that famous. You just go there and have a drink. It’s a local amenity, not a tourist destination.
liluniqueme@reddit
The one Jeremy Clarkson owns maybe?
MattDubh@reddit
Everyone knows this pub.
TermAggravating8043@reddit
Spoons.
wookiecock69@reddit
Clearly the right answer
Prestigious-Slide-73@reddit
The Farmers Dog.
Siggi_Starduust@reddit
Given the amount of Ian Rankin fans there are across the world, I’ll nominate The Oxford Bar in Edinburgh.
Visible_Pop2237@reddit
The Spread eagle lol, it's real for sure.
ODFoxtrotOscar@reddit
Real: The Old Trip To Jerusalem
Fictional: The Rovers Return
Wooden_Astronaut4668@reddit
I instantly thought of Jamaica Inn but thought of the one in Nottingham too but couldn’t remember its name, so Jamaica Inn must win 🤣
poo_on_my_scarf@reddit
The swan and pedo. Washing machine in the middle, fuck I need a drink
Pitiful_Shoulder9730@reddit
It’s all fun and games until you get sectioned
djthinking@reddit
The Kebab and Calculator
BG3restart@reddit
Before I read your second paragraph, I'd said 'Jamaica Inn' in my mind.
MazerTanksYou@reddit
For the name? Three lions
guzusan@reddit
The Red Lion
01Stig@reddit
Tan Hill Inn. It’s the highest
Rebelrebel26@reddit
Jamaica inn came to mind and I've been there. Think it's meant to be haunted too lol
Material-Bee-907@reddit
The Eagle & Child in Oxford
itallstartedwithapub@reddit
Strangers' Bar is real, operating, and many people will have heard of it. Is it a pub though? Perhaps not.
ScotsTouristSoton@reddit (OP)
Hmm is it public? But it's a good answer
Abject-Plankton4620@reddit
It is inasmuch as you can get invited to that area of Parliament and use it - although you now need an MP or employees to come with you to the bar, so I guess not
purrcthrowa@reddit
The Olde Cheshire Cheese?
Busy-Ad7936@reddit
The blind begger ? The trip to Jerusalem?
Mental-Bowler-7059@reddit
The Windmill in Stansted and the Red Lion in Gatwick must be up there
Ahleanna-D@reddit
A genuinely good line of thinking there!
EnvironmentalMine194@reddit
My first thought was Weatherspoons 😆
PerLin107@reddit
Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese
National_Wallaby_820@reddit
Unfortunately the answer is Wetherspoons
Dethark@reddit
That's a chain, not a pub and there's no S. It's Whetherspoon 😉
National_Wallaby_820@reddit
no h after the W either
Dethark@reddit
You got me!
ForesterDean23@reddit
The Old Bull And Bush?
Dethark@reddit
Real pub, Ye Olde Mitre?
Failing that, The Queen Vic...
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