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Jeffrey Johnson’s Favourite Pubs

March 28, 2023
by the gentle author
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Click here to book for THE GENTLE AUTHOR’S TOUR OF THE CITY OF LONDON on Easter Monday

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Hoop & Grapes, Aldgate (Dentures Repaired)

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One day Jeffrey Johnson walked into the Bishopsgate Institute, deposited a stack of his splendid photographs with Archivist Stefan Dickers and left without another word. We can only conclude that these fond pictures from the seventies and eighties record the enigmatic Jeffrey’s favourite pubs. Some are familiar, but for the locations of the others  – some of which are long gone – I call upon the superior experience of my readers.

Sir Walter Scott, Broadway Market

Knave of Clubs, Bethnal Green Rd

Dericote St, Broadway Market

Crown & Woolpack, St John St, Clerkenwell

Horn Tavern, Knightrider St, City of London (now known as The Centrepage)

Unknown pub

The Queen’s Head, City of London

The Queen’s Head, City of London

Unknown pub

Unknown pub

Old Bell Tavern, St Pancras

Magpie & Stump, Old Bailey

The Mackworth Arms, Commercial Rd

Green Man

Green Man

Marquis of Anglesey, Ashmill St

The Crooked Billet

The Bull’s Head (Landlords fight to save City pub)

The White Horse

The Olde Wine Shades, City of London

The Crispin, Finsbury Avenue

The Blue Posts, West India Dock Rd, Limehouse (Plasterer’s Required – Call at Back Door)

The Ticket Porter, Arthur St, City of London

Weavers Arms

Photographs copyright © Jeffrey Johnson

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8 Responses leave one →
  1. tankard permalink
    March 28, 2023

    Number Ten
    crooked billet, walthamstow

  2. Vince Quinlivan permalink
    March 28, 2023

    7&9 The Green Man Bucklersbury, St. Benet EC4

    10 Crooked Billet Chingford Rd, Walthamstow.

  3. March 28, 2023

    Thank you Jeffrey and the GA. I don’t know many of these establishments but recognised The Crooked Billet because we passed it every Saturday on our way to my grandparents in Walthamstow. You have a photo of the sign and the derelict pub with the “diabetes” posters outside. I checked with another site because so many more modern pubs look the same.
    To me, the Crooked Billet meant: “We’re nearly there”, or “We’ve only just started”, depending on our direction of travel. I had no idea of the meaning of the pub name but I always thought that the sign showed a man with crooked legs. We used to go through old Stratford which is completely unrecognisable now. We used to beg my Dad to go an interesting way back to Kent. The Woolwich ferry was the favourite, followed by traversing Tower Bridge. However, the usual route was through the boring, smelly Blackwall Tunnel, past the “Vims for Dogs” equally malodorous factory. We used to enjoy going over Shooters Hill and seeing all of the lights in southern Greater London twinkling in the dark evening. We used to call it fairyland and it meant we were nearly home.
    Isn’t it strange that a photograph can trigger such vivid memories?

  4. Keith permalink
    March 28, 2023

    My 4 x Great Aunt ran The Roman Arms pub in Roman Road, Bow, London in the 1880s, but i cannot find any excisting photograph of it sadly. My 4 x Great Uncle also ran a pub 1878-1884 in Medland Street, Radcliffe – The Queen’s Head – alas there’s no excisting photograph of that pub either. Also, another relative and her husband ran The Jacob’s Well pub in Hanbury Street, Whitechapel… and sadly, there’s no photograph of that! All those pubs and not a picture, nor a sketch, nor a photo of any of them. Anyone have any?

  5. gkbowood permalink
    March 28, 2023

    That Green Man pub in the lovely wedge building- please say that is still around! All that fine wood and the leadlighted windows…I despair if such great places are demolished!

  6. Madelaine Pierson permalink
    March 28, 2023

    The exterior unknown pub reminds me of a photo that I have seen of a pub in Silvertown…

  7. Maddie Pierson permalink
    March 29, 2023

    Sadly the Green Man pub was demolished gkbowood. And, worst of all, it was demolished for the abissmal 1 Poultry Square in 1994. I think it was listed too, 8 listed buildings with the Mappin and Webb store were demolished for that awful building, with the secretary of state saying ‘it may well be a masterpiece’. Hmmmmm…….

    https://www.citypubs.co.uk/pubs/thegreenman.html

    And to add insult to injury, now no. 1 Poultry is listed!!

  8. Christine permalink
    March 30, 2023

    What an excellent selection of boozers! I would love to have had a pint in each of these establishments!! Sadly I feel most are no longer serving beer! ?

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