The Adam and Eve, Norwich is thought to date to 1249; although the current building was only built in the 17th century.
The Berney Arms in Norfolk may only be reached by foot, by boat or by train as there is no road access.[1][2] It is served by the nearby Berney Arms railway station which likewise has no road access and serves only the pub and nearby nature reserves.[3] The pub is adjoined by a tea room, gift shop and small store. Both the pub and shop close during the winter months.[2]
The Eagle in Benet Street, Cambridge. The pub in which Francis Crick and James Watson announced that they had "discovered the secret of life" (the structure of DNA). The pub is opposite the Cavendish Laboratory[4] and the event is commemorated by a blue plaque next to the entrance.[5] In addition, the ceiling of the back bar, known as 'The RAF Room' is covered with the signed names of Second World War pilots.[6]
The Old Ferryboat Inn, Holywell, Cambridge. One of a number of pubs claiming to be the oldest in England with claims of alcohol being sold on the site as far back as 560.[10]
East Midlands
Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem in Nottingham. It incorporates caves under Nottingham Castle and claims to be the oldest pub in England, although the first confirmed reference to a pub on the site (called the Pilgrim) dates to 1751.[11] The owners claim a model galleon hanging from the ceiling is cursed and the premises are haunted.[12]
The Bell Inn in Nottingham. Has been officially dated to 1437. It has been proven to be actually older than the other two pubs, although there is some evidence that there was a Brewery on the site of the "Trip" which served the Castle above it, and which does date back to somewhere around the end of the 12th century.
The Alchemist, Battersea, a pub built in the Victorian-era and originally called The Fishmongers Arms, which closed in 2013 and was demolished in May 2015 by a property developer without permission.[14] The property developer was later asked to rebuild the pub brick-by-brick.[15]
The Carlton Tavern in Kilburn, a building erected by Charrington & Co in the Vernacular Revival style in 1920, to replace an earlier pub on the same site which was destroyed by a Zeppelin bomb in 1918. The building was demolished without permission by a property company in April 2015, who were later ordered by Westminster City Council to rebuild it brick-by-brick.[22][23]
Crocker's Folly, Maida Vale. Huge ornate late Victorian pub, closed 2004 but reopened October 2014, said to have been built by Frank Crocker on this site in the expectation that the Great Central Railway terminus in London would be built opposite and not in Marylebone. Known as The Crown Hotel from its opening until 1987.[24]
Dirty Dick's, Bishopsgate. Established in 1745[27] and originally called The Old Jerusalem it is named after ironmonger Nathaniel Bentley, who upon the death of his fiancée on the eve of their wedding, refused to clean, clear up anything or even wash.[28] The pub was rebuilt from ground level in 1870.[29]
The Drayton Court in Ealing. Built in 1893 as a hotel, it was converted to pub use in the 1940s.[31] Former Vietnamese leader Ho Chi Minh worked in the kitchens in 1914.[31]
The Feathers, Linhope Street, Marylebone. A pub since 1899 it is claimed to be the smallest in London, with only three tables and a small bar. It changed name to The Swan & Edgar and closed in 2013.[32]
The Finborough Arms was built in 1868[33] to a design by George Godwin.[34] It was one of five public houses built by Corbett and McClymont in the Earls Court district during the West London development boom of the 1860s.[35] The upstairs room hosts a leading fringe theatre.[33] Renowned plumberThomas Crapper is a famous former patron.[34]
The Grapes, Limehouse, on Narrow Street, Limehouse. Originally The Bunch of Grapes, this pub has stood for over 500 years and is immortalised as the Six Jolly Fellowship Porters in Charles Dickens' novel, Our Mutual Friend (though some commentators claim that Dickens amalgamated descriptions of several waterside taverns).[40] The current licence holder is actor Sir Ian McKellen.[41]
The Grenadier, Belgravia. The building dates to 1720 when it was originally constructed as an officers' mess for the 1st Regiment of Foot Guards and became a public house in 1818 with the name The Guardsman. Said to be haunted by a young grenadier who was beaten to death after being caught cheating at cards.[43][44]
The Lamb, Bloomsbury, Lamb's Conduit Street, Holborn. A grade II listed building dating from the 1720s, it retains its Victorian-era 'snob screens' which would have been erected to protect the well-to-do in the saloon bar from being seen by the common folk in the public bar.[47]
The Old Queens Head, Essex Road, Islington. Said to have been frequented by Vladimir Lenin during his time in the capital.[50] It is also said to be haunted by the ghosts of a woman and a girl, who appear on the first Sunday of each month.[44]
The Prospect of Whitby, Wapping. Said to be London's oldest riverside pub, dating back to around 1520.[54] Originally known as The Devil's Tavern, it changed name in 1777 to The Prospect of Whitby, after a ship that transported coal from Newcastle to London that moored nearby.[55]Judge Jeffreys is said to have dined and drank here in the 17th century.[56]
Spaniards Inn, Hampstead. A listed building built in 1585, it is said to take its name from two of its former owners – Spaniards Juan and Francisco Porero.[59] Dick Turpin's father is also said to have held the licence.[59] It is reputedly haunted by three ghosts; a former owner, a woman in white and Turpin himself.[44]
Marsden Grotto, currently the only pub in Europe that is built on a sea-cliff face and partially into sea-cliff caves.
The Fisher's Arms, Horncliffe, Northumberland is believed to be the most Northerley village pub in England.
North West England
The White Lion Inn, Barthomley, built in 1614 in the ancient parish and village of Barthomley in Cheshire this historic pub is situated in a place of great beauty with an intriguing history.
The Moon Under Water, Deansgate, Manchester, a Wetherspoons house, is the largest in the country
The Old Wellington Inn, Shambles Square, Manchester. The birthplace of the writer John Byrom and along with its neighbour, Sinclair's Oyster Bar, probably one of the only two pubs in the world to have been physically moved twice. They were both raised 4ft 9inches in the 1970s to be incorporated into a redevelopment and then dismantled and re-erected in a new location after the IRA 1996 Manchester bombing.[67]
Boot Inn, Chester, The Boot Inn was built in the early to middle part of the 17th century, opening as an inn in 1643. Its façade was rebuilt and restored in the late 19th century.
Old Custom House Inn, Chester, The inn originated from two former houses, their undercrofts now forming the inn's cellars. The older house, on the east side, is dated 1637.
The Falcon, Chester, The building originated as a house in about 1200 and was later extended to the south along Lower Bridge Street, with a great hall running parallel to the street.
Bear's Paw Hotel, Frodsham, According to the date on the lintel over the front door, the Bear's Paw was constructed in 1632.
Old Hall Hotel, Sandbach, is a public house and restaurant in High Street, Sandbach, Cheshire, England. It was built in 1656 on the site of a previous manor house.
The Warren House Inn is a remote and isolated public house in the heart of Dartmoor, Devon. It is the highest pub in southern England at 1,425feet (434m) above sea level. It is located on an ancient road across the moor, about 2miles (3km) northeast of the village of Postbridge and has been a stopping point for travellers since the middle of the 18th century.
The King William Ale House and The Famous Royal Navy Volunteer Public House on King Street. Originally a row of three houses dating to around 1670, these are now two public houses side by side[77][78] with gabled fronts to the road.[79]
The Old Duke on King Street opposite the Llandoger Trow; a Jazz and Blues venue, the building dates from about 1780. Originally named The Duke of Cumberland, the name was changed to honour jazz musician Duke Ellington.[84]
The Printers Devil. A grade-II listed building[87] originally named The Queens Head,[88] the name was changed in the 1980s. The pub closed in 2008 and remains closed.[89] A Printer's devil was an apprentice in a printing establishment who performed a number of tasks, such as mixing tubs of ink and fetching type.
The Pump House in the Hotwells district. Built around 1870 by Thomas Howard as a Hydraulic Pumping House to provide power to the bridges and machines of Bristol Harbour, the building is now used as a gastropub.[90]
The Shakespeare Inn on Victoria Street. Now known as Ye Shakespeare, this pub dates from 1636.[94]
The Stag & Hounds is also located in the Old Market area of the city centre, the building dates from 1483 when it was erected as a private house, although the current building is of predominantly 18th century origin.[95]
The Victoria also in the suburb of Clifton. Originally a part of the much larger historic Lido, the corner was sold off to create the pub at some time before 1879.[96] The pub building is grade II-listed and is owned and run by the Dawkins Brewery.[97]
The Lamb & Flag, on St Giles' in Oxford which is also owned by St John's College. This pub has been in existence as an alehouse since 1695 and was named after the two symbols of John the Baptist – a lamb and a flag. Brewery-owned between 1829 and 1999, the college now offers financial support to DPhil students from the pub's profits.[104]
The Crooked House (officially called The Glynne Arms and now demolished) in Himley near Dudley, Staffordshire. Formerly The Siden Arms, subsidence caused by overmining led the building to fall into a hole in the early 19th century. It has been saved by buttressing, but tilts at a 15-degree angle.[108]
The Garrick Inn, Stratford-upon-Avon. A pub in its current building since 1718, but an inn on the site has existed for a lot longer reputedly making it the oldest pub in Stratford.[109] Named after Shakespearean actor David Garrick.[110]
The Lad in the Lane in Erdington, near Birmingham. An inn from 1780 and formerly known as The Green Man (though reconstructed at a later date), some of the beams are said to date to the 13th century when the building was a home to a wealthy family connected to the Earl of Warwick.[111]
The Old Crown in Deritend, Birmingham. One of the oldest buildings in the city and the oldest pub in the city, dating back to 1368.[112]
The Picture House in Stafford is a former cinema, built in 1913 and converted into a pub in 1997, retaining original features.[113]
The Old Queen's Head, opened as a public house in the mid-19th century, but is one of the oldest Grade II* listed buildings in Sheffield, dating from around 1475. The Queen in the pub's name is thought to be Mary, Queen of Scots, who was imprisoned in Sheffield from 1570 to 1584.
The Tan Hill Inn in Yorkshire is the highest inn in England at 1,732 feet (528m) above sea level. Tan Hill is a high point on the Pennine Way.[119][120] It also won the right to continue to call its Christmas dinner a "family feast", which Kentucky Fried Chicken had registered as a trademark.[121]
The Vulcan, Cardiff, built in 1853 and became Cardiff's oldest public house under its original name, it was dismantled in 2012 to be re-erected at St Fagans National History Museum.
Christopher Wade (1973), More streets of Hampstead, Camden History Society, p.20, The first building in this street was The Magdala Tavern, which was already there by 1868.
Bagshaw, Mike (2018). North York Moors & Yorkshire Wolds: local, characterful guides to Britain's special places (2ed.). Chalfont St. Peter, Bucks: Bradt. p.51. ISBN978-1-78477-075-4.