"I resign, the evening seemed to say" (c)

"One might fancy that day, the London day, was just beginning. Like a woman who had slipped off her print dress and white apron to array herself in blue and pearls, the day changed, put offstuff, took gauze, changed to evening, and with the same sigh of exhilaration that a woman breathes, tumbling petticoats on the floor, it too shed dust, heat, colour; the traffic thinned; motor cars, tinkling, darting, succeeded the lumber of vans; and here and there among the thick foliage of the squares an intense light hung. I resign, the evening seemed to say, as it paled and faded above the battlements and prominences, moulded, pointed, of hotel, flat, and block of shops, I fade, she was beginning, I disappear, but London would have none of it, and rushed her bayonets into the sky, pinioned her, constrained her to partnership in her revelry."

Virginia Woolf 

" There I shall find ears attentive to my tale of sorrow"(c) The Coal Hole

The Coal Hole occupies a corner of the Savoy Building.  The theme of stone, dark wood and leaded light windows , carries on into the street level bar. The ceiling is very high with heavy black beams. Hanging banners suggest something medieval, but no, it was decorated in 1904.
The cellar bar is open in the evenings and has its own entrance in the Strand. It was in the basement of the pub's former incarnation that the Wolf Club was founded, by actor and lush Edmund Kean.
" There I shall find ears attentive  to my tale of sorrow, hands open to relieve and closed  for my defence. Not to fatigue my hearers longer  with prolix rhetoric, I conclude with my sincere hope  and prayer for the successful increase of honorable  members to this (as yet) imperfect society; and  that every brother may feel health, prosperity, and  happiness will ever be the wish of its founder, and  study to promote, as far as his duty in this club  extends."  Edmund Kean
Supposedly a place where hen-pecked husbands could enjoy a sing-song, its real role was less innocent, and involved heavy drinking and loose women.

"That you are a very proud member, of the pearly society".(c) Costermongers’ Harvest Festival.

When i die and go to 'eaven, it will be much betta there,
 Our good lord will meet me, and say, "come in, pull up a chair.
 You spent your time and energy, collecting money for the poor,
 To give to them all the little fings, they never 'ad before.
 You covered your clothes wiv buttons, so that all could see,
 That you are a very proud member, of the pearly society.
 And now your tired and weary, and your body's past it's best,
 I faut i'd bring you up wiv me, to 'ave a well earned rest.

The End of September has traditionally welcomed a dazzlingly colourful event – the London Pearly Kings and Queens Costermongers’ Harvest Festival. The procession, which included maypole and Morris dancers, historical figures look-alikes, as well as live music from marching bands, was a fabulous spectacle to watch.
The event featured donkeys and carts, in homage to the Pearlies’ origins from the costermongers of the late nineteenth century. They are declared their London pride by shouting along to ‘Maybe It’s Because I’m a Londoner’ – before embarking on a parade around the City of London from The Guildhall to a special Harvest Festival service at St Mary-le-Bow Church.

"Don't fight a battle if you don't gain anything by winning." The Cross Keys Pub

The Cross Keys is located in between the King’s Road and Cheyne Walk. It is 300 years old and the developers who own it were appealing to overturn the council’s decision to forbid planning permission, which would allow the pub to be converted into a home.
But it will have to be a pub now!  Developers appeal was dismissed.

"I love crime, I love mysteries, and I love ghosts" (c) The Golden Lion Pub

"I love crime, I love mysteries, and I love ghosts" (c) The Golden Lion Pub
The Golden Lion, 25 King Street, SW1.
 Given that so many pubs claim to have served her, actress/model Nell Gwynne must have been what ye olde News Of Ye Worlde might have called a binge-drinking hen. Nowadays, she’d no doubt tank up on Timothy Taylor’s Landlord or London Pride with Gordon’s gin chasers at this long-standing bow-fronted tavern. Its current incarnation dates from 1900, but punters have been drinking here since 1762: Napoleon III did, as did luvvie lushes Lillie Langtry and Oscar Wilde in the Theatre Bar, named after the next-door St James’s Theatre demolished in 1957. The drama continues, however, as a ghost of a barmaid murdered by a former landlady reputedly  stalks The Golden Lion’s staircase.(c)

"We are losing our national treasures it is slowly — but definitely" (c) The Cross Keys Pub

Founded in 1708 The Original Cross Keys preceded its neighbour, the original Chelsea porcelain factory.
This Chelsea landmark close to the river, names many of Chelsea's famous residents among its regulars. Well known visitors from the past who've supped a pint here include poets Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Dylan Thomas. There's a continuing artistic theme thanks to co-owner and sculptor Rudy Weller, who created The Horses of Helios & The Three Graces, prominently positioned in Piccadilly Circus. He's also the man responsible for the 'Three Synchronised Divers' leaping from the roof of the Criterion Building above. For The Cross Keys he's created a "magical kingdom" throughout the four rooms: the bar, the conservatory restaurant, gallery and a room at the top. The decor and relief sculptures are inspired by the pub's name. It's a common one among pubs and comes from a Christian sign, symbolizing the keys which Jesus gave to St Peter, so that he could enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
 SAVE THE CROSS KEYS PUB-CHELSEA'S OLDEST !
Another piece of Chelsea history is under severe threat. As usual it's us, the residents, who have to  fight tooth and nail to protect something we love and cherish as an old friend.

"London’s such a big place when you’ve nowhere to go."(c)

Mr. and Mrs. Brown first met Paddington on a railway platform. In fact, that was how he came to have such an unusual name for a bear, for Paddington was the name of the station.