Top 10 Traditional London Pubs

A unique London pub, the Cittie of Yorke is a Grade II listed building full of nooks and crannies. Step into the dark, panelled front bar and make your way through to the great hall at the rear. Take note of the fire in the middle of the room. It has no chimney. Instead, its flue is diverted underground and out of a pipe on the wall.

The Eagle is one of London's oldest pubs and retains many original features. There's a menu of British dishes, from fish finger sandwiches to Sunday roasts, and a lovely beer garden. The pub even makes an appearance in a nursery rhyme: "Up and down the City Road, in and out The Eagle. That's where the money goes, pop goes the weasel!"

The only remaining galleried coaching inn in London, The George now belongs to the National Trust. This London pub can be traced back to 1542, although an inn probably stood on the spot even earlier. Shakespeare lived and worked in Southwark, so it's likely that he'd have been one of its patrons; he may even have played there.

The Dog and Duck is housed in a Grade II listed building in the heart of Soho. The well-preserved Victorian décor provides all the atmosphere you would expect in a historic London pub. Tiles and mirrors line the ornate interior and there is a small bar upstairs that's perfect for people-watching in the street below.

Both this London pub and the street it's on take the name of philanthropist William Lamb. The Lamb was built in the early 18th century, improved in Victorian times and remains a popular pub to this day. The bar features Victorian remnants including rare snob screens, which would once have hidden a drinker's identity at the bar.

Greenwich is home to some of London's best attractions, including the Trafalgar Tavern, a riverside pub built in about 1837. Along with other Greenwich pubs, The Trafalgar became famous for its whitebait suppers. Whitebait is still served today, as is a selection of other British staples. More than 1,000 original prints of Greenwich line the walls.

The Spaniards in Hampstead dates from around 1585 and remains full of fascinating features. Some say Dick Turpin watched carriages go by from this legendary inn as he waited to rob them, while others talk about Keats, Shelly and Byron writing over a claret or two, and Charles Dickens including the pub in his Pickwick Papers novel.

The French House in Soho started life as a gin parlour in the mid-19th century, but had become a wine bar by 1914. In the Second World War, the bar was taken over by Charles de Gaulle and his French forces, providing the nickname "the French pub". It's now a bohemian hangout where TV, recorded music and mobile phones are banned.

One of London's most famous pubs, the Prospect of Whitby dates from 1543. The Thames-side tavern developed a reputation as a meeting place for smugglers and villains, and later became the favourite pub of "Hanging" Judge Jeffries. According to legend, criminals would be tied up outside and left to drown as the tide came in.

Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese in Fleet Street has stood on the same spot for centuries. The historic pub had to be rebuilt after the Great Fire of London in 1666. Its dark, gloomy interior has hosted many famous figures including, reputedly, Charles Dickens, Dr Samuel Johnson and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle.