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D2 �� | FAMOUS PUBS THE 2011 FAMOUS PUBS When you discover a Famous Grouse Famous Pub, you’ll find a unique and unusual place worth celebrating — and one you’ll want to visit again Commissioning editor Julia Newcomb Art editor Sally Farr Contributing writers Rufus Purdy, Louise Renwick and Melissa Crowther Sub editors Chris Jones, Paul Carroll and Brett Lampitt Main pub photography Andrew Martin, Andy Paradise, Alamy, Arwyn Roberts and Photolibrary The public houses published in this supplement have been nominated by readers and reviewed by the Telegraph. While the Telegraph and The Famous Grouse have taken all reasonable steps to check their accuracy, neither the Telegraph nor The Famous Grouse takes responsibility for the views and claims they may contain. Following the success of last year’s quest to find the most famous pubs in the UK, The Famous Grouse has again compiled a guide to great British pubs. This collection of renowned pubs is truly exceptional, and the result of a nationwide search to find places in which to drink. All of them stand out from the ordinary and deserve to be celebrated. In this special guide, The Famous Grouse Famous Pubs, you’ll find inns and hotels of all shapes and sizes, from towns, cities and all corners of the United Kingdom. And like The Famous Grouse, every one of them is famous for good reason. Some have gained a dedicated following for their gourmet food or expertly crafted choice of drinks. Others fulfil perfectly the pub’s role as a community hub, and have raised thousands of pounds for worthy causes. Glance through the list and you’ll discover the grandest people’s palaces with dazzling architectural and decorative flourishes, alongside bars that are literally holes in the wall. What’s more, a great number of these pubs warrant inclusion for their place in Britain’s heritage. In this list, you’ll find public houses that have witnessed some of the most momentous episodes in our island’s history. This being Britain, there’s no small measure of eccentricity in our selection. From the Haunch of Venison pub in Salisbury which exhibits a mummified hand from the 19th century to the 500-year-old facade of The Crown at Wells which was used as one of the locations in the hit comedy film Hot Fuzz featuring Simon Pegg in 2007. Whatever the basis of their fame, all of these pubs have been nominated by the people best able to judge their merit: the customers who go back again and again. Here are their nominations. �� The Adam and Eve Norwich, Norfolk The oldest pub in Norwich, The Adam and Eve was recorded as an alehouse in 1249, and was frequented by the stonemasons building the nearby Norwich Cathedral. The monks who owned the building also gave its ale to their patients at a charity hospital that helped the poor. The ghost of Lord Sheffield – killed by rebels nearby during Kett’s Rebellion in 1549 – is reputed to still haunt the building. Licencee Rita tells of a bell in the upper bar, which rings when no one is there and stools which scrape the floor after closing time. This atmospheric pub, which is a frequent winner in Norwich, also serves excellent food. �Bishopgate, Norwich, Norfolk, NR3 1RZ; 01603 667423; www.adamandevenorwich.co.uk The Cock and Rabbit Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire Set in the idyllic hamlet of The Lee in the Chiltern Hills, The Cock and Rabbit has become known as the pub frequented by Barnaby and Troy in ITV’s Midsomer Murders. Look out for a signed photograph of them in the hallway. The pub and adjoining award-winning Italian restaurant, set in beautiful gardens, have been owned and run for 26 years by Italian Gianfranco Parola. The Piedmont-born chef serves guests with homemade Italian cuisine, including the popular Pasta Graziemille – prepared using wild garlic picked from the surrounding woods. �The Lee, Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire, HP16 9LZ; 01494 837540; www.graziemille.co.uk The Dove Hammersmith, London James Thomson, the 18thcentury poet, was a regular and reputedly wrote the words to Rule, Britannia here. Above the fireplace there’s a list of the famous personalities (musicians, poets, writers and comedians) who have bought a drink or two while contemplating life and the river. A firm fixture of west London pub life, the pub holds a prime position on the Thames just before Hammersmith Bridge – a favourite place to watch the Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race. OCTOBER 16 2011 The Sunday Telegraph Distributed with The Sunday Telegraph �19 Upper Mall, Hammersmith, London, W6 9TA; 020 8748 9474; www.fullers.co.uk The Eagle Cambridge, Cambridgeshire One of the oldest and largest inns in Cambridge – dating back to the 15th century and built on land owned by Corpus Christi College – The Eagle is most famous for
The Sunday Telegraph OCTOBER 16 2011 D3 Distributed with The Sunday Telegraph being the bar where the scientists James Watson and Francis Crick first announced their discovery of the “Secret of Life” (DNA). This is commemorated on a blue plaque next to the entrance. Check out the ceiling in the back bar, where Second World War pilots signed their names using lighters, candle smoke and lipstick. Poet James Thomson wrote the words to Rule, Britannia while in The Dove at Hammersmith �� The Famous Grouse has been making blended whisky since 1897. We’re often asked the secret to our success… It is a closely guarded recipe and all we’ll say is it’s built around two of the world’s most revered malt whiskies, The Macallan and Highland Park, which contribute to its beautifully balanced tone. You can recognise the bottle by the Red Grouse emblem. FAMOUS PUBS | �� From left: The Adam & Eve; the sign of Cambridge’s famed The Eagle pub; the bar of Euston Tap and the fine views from The Dove’s garden Look out for the outline of a naked woman drawn in lipstick on the ceiling – said to have been the landlord’s sister who “looked after” the airmen and soldiers who frequented The Eagle during the war. Many ghosts, including those of two airmen, are said to haunt the premises. �Benet Street, Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, CB2 3QN; 01223 505020; www.gkpubs.co.uk/ pubs-in-cambridge/eagle-pub The Eight Bells Hatfield, Hertfordshire Built in 1226, this old familyrun pub is remembered as the resort of fictional character Bill Sykes from Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist. Dickens himself stayed here in 1838 and in Oliver Twist, Part 21 (1839), Chapter 48, The Flight of Sykes, the housebreaker and his dog travel through Islington, up Highgate Hill and down the other side, skirt Caen Wood, cross Hampstead Heath and arrive at evening at “a small public-house” in the quiet village of Hatfield – undoubtedly The Eight Bells. Notorious 18th-century highwayman Dick Turpin, also frequented the pub, while in more recent times famous actors including Angelina Jolie and Russell Brand have been spotted here taking a break from filming at nearby Hatfield Hall. �2 Park Street, Hatfield, Hertfordshire, AL9 5AH; 01707 272477; www.theeightbells.com Euston Tap King’s Cross, London Bringing the best craft beers to London, this unique pub prides itself in stocking 27 beers on draft including the best quality cask ales and keg beers, plus around 150 bottles. The Euston Tap is not brewery owned and rather than finding the wackiest beers from around the globe, or aiming for the biggest list, the beers are chosen for their quality. Set in one of the former Victorian-built gatehouses to London’s Euston station and one of the only surviving parts of the original railway station, the various destinations around the UK reached from Euston are engraved into the facade of the stonework. The opposite gatehouse is currently under renovation and will open mid November as The Cider Tap – dedicated entirely to cider. �190 Euston Road, King’s Cross, London, NW1 2EF; 020 3137 8837; www.eustontap.com Fox & Hounds Southampton, Hampshire Tucked away in the amusingly named village of Hungerford Bottom, Bursledon, close to the Hamble River, the Fox & Hounds pub building dates back to the 16th century. The charming old Lone Barn restaurant, to the rear, was moved from Winchester
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The Famous Grouse - Telegraph

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