One of the most endearing configurations for any pub you’ll ever see, it’s cleft in two by a narrow alley trod by commuters on their way to Charing Cross station. On the north, there’s a traditional Victorian-style space, and on the south, a cozier room with a charismatically sloping floor and private snugs. A cellar links the two halves. The bewigged tubby chap on the swinging sign is Admiral Cloudesley Shovell who, in 1707, wrecked his ship and instantly drowned 800 sailors, which certainly gives the interior’s nautical theme an ignoble context. It’s special for another reason, too, being one of the few pubs in town to pour Dorset ales from Hall and Woodhouse brewers, a family brewer dating to 1777.