Lamb And Flag, Covent Garden
The building is erroneously said to date back to Tudor times, and to have been a licensed premises since 1623, but in fact dates from the early 18th century, or according to its official listing, perhaps from 1688. The building became a pub in 1772.
Situated in what was a violent area of Covent Garden, the pub's upstairs room once hosted bare-knuckle prize fights, leading to it being nicknamed "The Bucket of Blood". A plaque on the building commemorates an attack on John Dryden in a nearby alley in 1679, when Charles II sent men to assault Dryden in objection to a satirical verse against Louise de Kérouaille, Charles II's mistress. Writer Charles Dickens frequented the pub in the 19th century.
Many of the internal fittings are Victorian woodwork or earlier, including a remaining partition, meriting the pub a maximum three-star rating as a Real Heritage Pub.
The pub was refaced with brick in 1958. It has been operated by Fuller, Smith & Turner since 2011.
References
- ^ Historic England, "The Lamb and Flag public house (1265122)", National Heritage List for England, retrieved 2 October 2014
- ^ Flude, Kevin; Herbert, Paul (1 May 1990). Citisights: Guide to London. Virgin Books Limited. ISBN 9780863693533 – via Google Books.
- ^ Fodor, Eugene (27 September 1994). Fodor's Great Britain. Fodor's Travel Publications, Inc. ISBN 9780679027201 – via Google Books.
- ^ Balfour, Michael (1970). Help Yourself in London: A Guide to Services, Facilities and Things to Do. Garnstone Press. ISBN 9780900391378 – via Google Books.
- ^ Publishing, D. K. (1 February 2012). DK Eyewitness Travel Guide: London: London. Dorling Kindersley Limited. ISBN 9781405393140 – via Google Books.
- ^ "Lamb & Flag". Pub Heritage Historic Pub Interiors. CAMRA. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
- ^ Richardson, John (1 January 1979). Covent Garden. Historical Publications Limited. ISBN 9780950365619 – via Google Books.
- ^ Gerrard, Neil (27 June 2011). "Fuller's buys the Lamb & Flag in Covent Garden". The Caterer. Retrieved 20 March 2024.
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