BAYSWATER PUBS
The Bayswater Arms
99 Queensway, Bayswater, London W2 4QH
Tel: 020 7727 0259
Nearest tube station: Bayswater: Circle/District line
This pub is an early 20th century building in the middle of busy Queensway.
It is situated close to the Whiteley Centre, the very place that Hitler planned to make his headquarters had he succeeded in invading England.
The Black Lion
123 Bayswater Road, Bayswater, London W2 3JH
Tel: 020 7229 0917
Nearest tube station: Queensway: Central line
The Black Lion Ale House dates back to the mid 1700s.
In 1830 it was used as a recruiting station for the “Paddington Volunteers”. They were formed to support King and country in fear of invasion from Napoleon Bonaparte.
The Dickens Tavern
25 London Street, London W2 1HH
Tel: 020 7262 2365
Nearest tube station: Paddington: Bakerloo, Circle, District, Hammersmith & City line
Known by locals as ‘London’s longest pub’, this is an old building with many traditional features. There’s a Charles Dickens theme throughout.
Kings Head
33 Moscow Road, Bayswater, London W2 4AH
Tel: 020 7229 4233
Nearest tube station: Bayswater: Circle & District lines
The sign of the Kings Head became popular during the reign of Charles I, who lost his head, although not through a surfeit of ale!
“These painted signes unto my view doth bring,
The Royalle figure of a mighty King,
The sighte whereof should men to tem’prance bring,
To come as sober out as they went in.” John Taylor 1636.
Under an Act of Parliament in 1604, “No workman shall stay in an Ale House for longer than one hour at dinner time”. If anyone was ‘found on’, the fine was five shillings or six hours in the stocks for both the guilty party and the landlord!
Redan
1 Westbourne Grove, Bayswater, London W2 4UA
Tel: 020 7229 2993
Nearest tube station: Bayswater: Circle & District lines
The Redan was named in honour of the British and French Victory over the Russians at Redan in South Crimea in 1855.
In Plantagenet times, stags were chased in the district surrounding the tavern, and the pub marks the spot where a knight was accidentally killed whilst hunting with King Henry II.
The tavern was originally known as the Redan Stores and the thoroughfare now known as Queensway was then called Black Lion Lane.
The present-day Redan is a distinguished example of a mid-Victorian pub and is notable for its engraved mirrors and hand-carved mahogany bar.
The Swan
66 Bayswater Road, Bayswater, London W2 3PH
Tel: 020 7262 5204
Nearest tube station: Lancaster Gate: Central line
This pub has a very elegant exterior. It dates back to approximately 1775 and once served the Floral Tea Gardens, an 18th century tourist attraction.
The interior still has some fine Victorian features such as carved wood and moulded green wall tiles, and there are a few authentic old prints. The most significant feature is the fine galleried Regency-style frontage, complete with small leafy garden area looking out onto the Bayswater Road.
