WL logo2

The Campaign for Real Ale branch for the boroughs of Hammersmith & Fulham, Kensington & Chelsea and City of Westminster.

News and events update, 16 Nov 2025

Here's an update on the latest news and information from West London branch of CAMRA.

Branch events

Why not join us on one of our branch socials or meetings? We'd love to see you! Here is a list of our events:

 

November 2025

  • Tue 18 (2.30pm) West Brompton social, meet Lillie Langtry, 19 Lillie Road SW6 1UE.

 

December 2025

  • Wed 10 (2pm) Chelsea social, meet Sydney Arms, Sydney St, SW3 6NJ, then Trafalgar and Cooper Arms.
  • Sat 13 (from 6pm) Alasdair’s birthday party, West London Trades Union Club 33-35 High Street, Acton, W3 6ND.
  • Mon 22 (2pm) Victoria social, meet Wetherspoons, Victoria station concourse upper level, then Willow Walk.

 

January 2026

  • Tues 6 (7pm) Olympia social, meet Hand and Flower, Hammersmith Rd, W14 8J then Crown and Sceptre, Warwick Arms.
  • Tues 13 (7pm for 7.30) Branch Meeting, The Harp (upstairs), Chandos Place, WC2N 4HS.
  • Mon 26 (2pm) North Soho social, meet Clachan, Kingly St, W1B 5QH, then Shakespeare's Head and Shaston Arms.

 

Branch and regional CAMRA news and events
  • London Pubs Group continues its tours of historic pubs - for information see https://londonpubsgroup.camra.org.uk/events. Next event: Wed 17 Dec (from 7pm) London Pubs Group evening tour of Waterloo. Start Lion & The Unicorn, The Sidings, Waterloo Station, Waterloo SE1 7BH, then Victory, Hole in the Wall, Waterloo Tap, Kings Arms.
  • Our neighbouring branches have regular socials and other events - for information see the websites of East London and City, North London, South East London, South West London, and West Middlesex. See the London CAMRA website for links to other Greater London branches. Here are a few examples of events offered by our neighbouring branches:
    • Wed 19 Nov (4pm to 9pm) N. London branch visit to Werewolf Brewery taproom, Arch 87, Randolph Street, Camden, London, NW1 0SR
    • Tue 25 Nov (2pm) N. London branch social, Doric Arch, Euston Station Colonnade, 1 Eversholt Street, London, NW1 2DN (15% CAMRA member discount)
    • Mon 22 Dec (7pm) Richmond & Hounslow branch Christmas currywurst evening. Northumberland Arms, 11 London Road, Brentford, TW8 8JB.
  • London Drinker is available in pubs across London and online at https://londondrinker.camra.org.uk/wordpress/ with details of CAMRA and beer related events across London, pub and brewery news, and more. 
Pub, club and other local beer events
Pub news

  • SW1

    • ADAM & EVE (Greene King), 81 Petty France, SW1H 9EX. Closed for refurb. Reopening 14 November.

    • GANYMEDE (Lunar Pub Company), 139 Ebury Street. Renamed ELIZABETH.

    • SPECIAL FORCES CLUB, 8 Herbert Crescent, SW1X 0EZ. Apparently sells cask beer but we are not allowed to tell you what it is!

    • TATTERSHALL CASTLE (Stonegate), King's Reach Victoria Embankment, SW1A 2HR. No longer Cask Marque accredited.

    • WHITE HORSE & BOWER (Shepherd Neame), 86 Horseferry Road, SW1P 2EE. Reopened following lengthy refurbishment. Four handpumps provide at least three ales from the Shepherd Neame range.

  • SW3

    • ADMIRAL CODRINGTON (Butcombe Brewer), 17 Mossop Street, SW3 2LY. Reopened and run since Oct 2025 by the small London Inda Pubs chain, after a period under Butcombe Brewery management. Three handpumps for cask ale; and a gastro-type food offering includes Sunday roasts. Weekday lunch offer and other deals.

    • TRAFALGAR (Three Cheers), 224-226 Kings Road. This is stated to be the first new pub to open in Kings Road in over a century. On a corner directly opposite Chelsea Old Town Hall, it's the tenth pub from Three Cheers Pubco. Via a £2.4m investment a grade II-listed former banking hall has been transformed into a two-floor pub venue. The pub has been sympathetically decorated in a heritage style. Note that because of its listed status there is no external signage apart from the swingsign. The ground floor with its very high ceilings and large Georgian windows, is a stunning British pub serving excellent food and drink with dining areas at the front and in a side room, and a drinking area at the back. Two cask ale handpumps initally serving Harvey's Sussex Best Bitter and Timothy Taylor Landlord. The wide and interesting food offering includes a set lunch offer, Sunday roasts, daytime sandwiches, and a bar food menu. Food prices are set at pub not local restaurant levels and are reasonable for this affluent area. Downstairs is dedicated to live entertainment and private parties in keeping with King’s Road’s vibrant history. It has a first-class sound system, live music, cabaret and stand-up comedy. The Trafalgar name is a nod to a pub that stood a few yards east at 200 Kings Road, now demolished as part of the Gaumont development at 196-222 Kings Road.

  • SW5

    • EARLS COURT TAVERN (Greene King), 123 Earls Court Road. Closed for refurb reopening 20 November.

  • SW10

    • GOAT (Stonegate/202 Pub Co Ltd ex Aldrich Inns), 333 Fulham Road. Should reopen in time for the Christmas trade.

  • W1

    • 28-50, 15-17 Marylebone Lane. There is a small bar bites menu including sharing platters, and a set lunch menu, as well as the a la carte. Drinks include cocktails, spirits, and bottled beers, as well as wine.

    • BOX, Unit B Ground & Basement, 21-23 Shaftesbury Avenue. Arc Inspirations runs sports bars in other English cities under their Box brand and this is their biggest and newest such venture, with an investment reported at £4m. At the base of a modern building very close to Piccadilly Circus, it's spread across 7200 square feet with a capacity of 550 people. The venue offers 33 screens for watching sports plus activities such as electronic shuffle, electronic darts, and karaoke. The venue also features Box’s signature Bandeoke event, where guests can sing on stage with a live band. The drinks lineup includes draught craft beers; food veers towards burgers, pizzas, kebabs, and sharers.

    • CHESTERFIELD ARMS (Greene King), 50 Hertford Street, W1J 7SS. Now part of GK’s Metropolitan Pub Co.

    • CLAYS, 77 Brewer Street. Clays is an Imbiba-backed, indoor interactive clay shooting experience concept, and this Soho site is now their flagship site in London. The venue spans around 19 thousand sq ft across three floors. "Step into a world where competition, cocktails, and conversation come together inside our beautifully restored 1930s Art Deco building." The extensive drinks list includes some draught keg beers plus cocktails, wines etc. Food is of the sharing, pizza and street-food type. There is music in the evening (not live). The licensing conditions state that the provision of licensable activities shall be ancillary to the main function of the premises as a competitive socialising and virtual indoor clay target shooting venue.

    • FLOWERHOUSE (Portman Estate), 56 Blandford Street, W1U 7JA. This is now the HART operated by Public House Group. Note that there is no named fascia on the exterior of the pub and no name on the swingsign. There is a pub on the ground floor with an authentically pubby look, serving British beers such as Portobello Pilsner, Allsopp’s and DEYA. There are two cask ale handpumps. Bar snacks and a full menu are available all day. The first floor has an open kitchen, the second floor a restaurant; and the third floor is described as "an intimate dining space". The menu at The Hart contains British pub classics made with ingredients from British farmers and producers; fresh produce comes from their own market garden at Bruern Farms. No bookings taken, walk-ins only.

    • G-A-Y (Soho Estates/G-A-Y Group Ltd/Mean Fiddler), 30 Old Compton Street. Reported in media as closed permanently due to rising costs.

    • LOUCHE SOHO (Samocca Assets Ltd (BVI)/Robatoo Ltd/independent), 4-5 Greek Street. Renamed GREEK STREET LIVE A bare-boarded bar selling various keg beers including Guinness and continental lagers plus other drinks. Live music gigs from a stage at the rear, booking necessary.

    • MARLBOROUGH HEAD (Grosvenor Estate), 24 North Audley Street. After a period of closure the pub reopened in November as the MARLBOROUGH with strategic support from the team behind The Devonshire in Soho. The Devonshire's celebrated Guinness installation has been replicated and cask ales are amongst the drinks offering. Downstairs, there is a bespoke pizzeria under the control of Carl McCluskey of of Chancellor's pub and its Crisp Pizza fame, making "award-winning pizzas in what promises to be a cool, inviting speakeasy environment". The pizzas here are New York style rather than Neapolitan, hence with thin and crisp crusts, not chewy ones.

    • MASONS ARMS (Greene King/unknown/Greene King), 38 Maddox Street. Closed for refurb reopening 14 November.

    • MR FOGG'S HOUSE OF BOTANICALS (Shaftesbury/Newman Street Bar Ltd/Inception), 48 Newman Street. Freehold purchased by EL Retail No2 Ltd (Jersey) from Shaftesbury.

    • QUEENS HEAD (Shaftesbury/BoPubCo Ltd/independent), 15 Denman Street Now offers CAMRA members 10% off cask beers.

    • SHASTON ARMS (Shaftesbury/Hall & Woodhouse), 4 Ganton Street. Reopened and is now a gastropub, the second pub secured by Joe Grossmann, founder of better burger concept Patty & Bun and operator of the Waterman Arms in Barnes. Two cask ales are on offer (initially from 5 Points and Wadworth). There is a full menu at lunch for bookings and walk-ins, but in the evenings the full menu is restricted to the back section, with a bar snack menu for the rest of the pub.

  • W2

    • OAK, 137 Westbourne Park Road, W2 5QL. Reopened as GOOD OAK. For a long period classified as a restaurant, this venue now describes itself as "a modern tavern where good food, great drinks, and a warm community come together under one roof." There is a pub/restaurant on the ground floor and an evening cocktail bar upstairs. On the ground floor there is a centrally sited bar, and you can drink without needing to eat.

    • KUPP (Canal & River Trust), Unit 53, 5 Merchant Square. This has now become a JDW site named SIR ALEXANDER FLEMING; the name has been taken from another (now closed) pub further south in Paddington. Unlike very many other JDW sites this is not a splendid conversion of a heritage building, but is on the ground floor of an almost new building and not as big as many 'Spoons. The entrance, on the pathway alongside the canal cul-de-sac basin, leads into a bar with picture windows overlooking the water and across to parts of St. Mary's Hospital (where Sir Alexander discovered penicillin in 1929). The interior is very modern with mustard coloured exposed brick and screed walls, then titmouse blue or mushroom paint; the floor has a typical JDW unique patterned carpet then terrazzo flooring around the bar. There is a lot of exposed ductwork, photos and prints of the area from yesteryear, and a mixture of furniture styles including some booth-style banquettes. Lighting is bright, coming from various lamp styles. WCs are reported quite small, and access is down steps between the bar and the open kitchen. Six handpumps offer cask ales (Ruddles,Abbot, Doom Bar & three guests) but possibly with a smaller choice than other London 'Spoons.

  • W6

    • BLACK BULL (Local Authority), 257 King Street. A licence application submitted by the freeholder was approved by the Council in Sept 2025. It is expected that the pub may reopen by the end of 2025.

    • BRASSERIE BLANC (St. George), Goldhurst House, Parr's Way. Self-declared closed in late Oct 2025, future uncertain.

    • CRABTREE (Greene King/ /Metropolitan), Rainville Road. Closed for refurb, reopening Thursday 20 November.

    • DISTILLERS (Fuller's), 64 Fulham Palace Road. Closed for refurb, expected reopening 14 November.

  • W11

    • QUIET NIGHT INN (Max Barney Pub Company/Forest Road), 60 Great Western Road. Reopened as the LOCK & LANTERN. The operator is now 202 Pub Co (ex Aldrich Inns), a small but growing London chain of pubs. Handpumps not currently used.

  • W12

    • BREWDOG, 15-19 Goldhawk Road. To reopen as the BUSH TAVERN on 20 November from Bird House brewery.

    • OAK (Superheroes Properties Ltd/Racon Investments), 243 Goldhawk Road, W12 8EU. Closed, lease on the market via AJR Leisure.

    • TOCA SOCIAL (//), Westfield White City, Aerial Way, W12 7GD. Within the Westfield complex but with a separate entrance opposite Shepherds Bush library, this is the third venue to be opened by TOCA Social. As its name implies it's a social gaming venue with an emphasis on football and with photo booths, football tables, shuffle boards, claw machines and virtual reality equipment. It has a capacity of 1000 with 500 seats. Two bars sell keg beers (including steins and 3-litre towers) and other drinks; the food menu includes finger-food to share, burgers, street food and a kids' menu. It is entirely possible just to use the bars without needing to book a gaming space.

  • W14

    • CROWN & SCEPTRE (Heineken UK/MLVH Ltd/independent), 34 Holland Road. Reopened in late 2025. One cask ale is on offer. At date of this entry the kitchen should be up and running by start of December 2025.

  • WC2

    • DALY'S WINE BAR (Young's), 210 Strand. Reopened following refurb and merged with Temple Brew House to become DALY'S WINE BAR & BEER HALL.

    • TEMPLE BREW HOUSE (Young's), 46 Essex St. Used to be a standalone bar and brewhouse but following the takeover of City Pub Co by Young's, this is now a beer hall and part of Daly's Wine Bar upstairs. A separate street entrance, further down the street than the main wine bar entrance, has been kept. The brewery is no more.

National CAMRA news

For the latest news check out our Facebook page. Also for news from CAMRA across London see London Drinker, and the London CAMRA Facebook page.



Wanda (branch chairman) presents certificate to Chris of the Victoria, with branch members. Photo courtesy of Fuller's.
Wanda (branch chairman) presents certificate to Chris of the Victoria, with branch members. Photo courtesy of Fuller's.

Victoria wins Pub of the Year

The Victoria on Strathearn Place near London’s Paddington Station has been named CAMRA West London Pub of the Year. The pub, which has just reopened following redecoration, has been under the stewardship of General Manager Chris Cochran for 23 years whose wife Helen now runs another Fuller’s pub, the Admiralty on Trafalgar Square.

Chris said: “This is such great recognition. We have come second in West London CAMRA’s Pub of the Year competition more times than I care to remember. So having just reopened – and with the pub looking so fantastic – this is the icing on the cake.

In a clean sweep for Fuller’s pubs in our branch competition, The Star Tavern in Belgravia – one of only five pubs that has been in every edition of The Good Beer Guide – took second place, and The Antelope near Sloane Square took third.

Wanda Piontek, Chairman of West London branch said: “The Victoria is just a delightful place to visit – it really is a quintessential embodiment of what a great pub should be. A fantastic pint, an iconic venue and a great host in Chris. It’s a pleasure to recognise it with this award. It’s also good to see Fuller’s pubs scoring so highly. Fuller’s has always taken beer quality incredibly seriously and we are pleased to be able to recognise this.“

Beer scoring and the Good Beer Guide

You are more than likely aware of the ‘Good Beer Guide’, CAMRA’s flagship publication, that lists the best pubs in the UK, but what you may not know is how those pubs are selected. Mainly, it is as a result of beer scores being submitted by CAMRA members from across the country, the unfortunate reality is that those scores are mainly derived from the few branch activists that visit the pubs within their branch.

As a CAMRA member you can send in beer scores to West London or any other local CAMRA branch via the camra.org.uk/pubs website. If you have ever wondered why your favourite pub that sells really good beer, isn’t in the Good Beer Guide then this may well be because it hasn’t had enough visits rating the quality of the beer. Entering the scores doesn’t automatically get your pub into the Good Beer Guide as scoring beers is the first stage of a multi-stage process, but beer scoring on a consistent basis contributes to the process of selection of pubs that go into the Good Beer Guide.

You don’t have to be an ‘expert’ to begin scoring and the process is pretty simple. Please remember though that it is not about your personal favourite beer receiving the highest score, or that the reason that you are doing it is just to get your favourite pub into the Good Beer Guide. You will more than likely try a beer that isn’t to your normal taste but what you need to consider is the quality of the beer. Ask yourself whether the publican has kept it in good condition and how have they served it, and score it in accordance with the scoring system in camra.org.uk/pubs, which is quite simple to use.

In order to submit your scores you need to login to camra.org.uk/pubs which is CAMRA’s online pub guide. The address is www.camra.org.uk/pubs and you can access the website by using your smartphone whilst you are still drinking your pint. The website contains over 31,000 pubs from all over the UK.

Here are the steps to submitting a beer score, or if you prefer you can watch a video taking you through this at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TSgRLWj7q20.

  1. Login on camra.org.uk/pubs. To do this you will need your CAMRA membership number and your CAMRA password.
  2. Start searching for your pub by name of the pub, the location or nearest tube/rail station. Postcodes and postcode areas eg W14 can also be used, but note that W1, WC2 and SW1 don’t work (you need to use SW1E etc instead). If you’re scoring while in the pub using your smartphone though you can just tap the ‘Nearby pubs’ button.
  3. Locate the 'Beer Score' button.
  4. Enter the date, score, brewery name and the name of the beer as the fields automatically pop up. If the beer that you are drinking is new or a one off by the brewery then you may need to type in the full name.
  5. Click the 'submit' button and your score will be winging its way to the branch’s Pubs Officer.

Another added bonus is the fact that the website will automatically keep a record of all your scores and when you made them so you can look back to see what beers you have had in a particular pub and how you rated them.

In West London branch we have over 700 pubs and clubs listed in camra.org.uk/pubs. As you can imagine it’s quite difficult keeping track of how all of these are doing! Scores submitted by members are hugely valuable in identifying which pubs are consistently serving beer in excellent condition and can be considered for inclusion in the Good Beer Guide. The scores also help us to identify pubs which require further surveys.

We warmly welcome scores from CAMRA members regardless of whether you live locally or have just been to one or two pubs while visiting the area.

Also, if you have any updates of the details in the camra.org.uk/pubs entry for a pub you’ve visited these would also be very helpful! Just click on the ‘Suggest an edit’ button in camra.org.uk/pubs and fill in the form with your updates.

You can learn more about beer scoring on the national CAMRA website at www.camra.org.uk/nbss including details of what the different scores mean and some frequently asked questions.

(This article is adapted from articles by Danny Clark in ‘Draught Copy’ and Sonia James-Henry in ‘Mersey Ale’ CAMRA magazines. Thanks!)

Upcoming events

10 Dec 2025;
02:00PM -
Chelsea social
13 Dec 2025;
06:00PM -
Alasdair’s birthday party
22 Dec 2025;
02:00PM -
Victoria social

Buy your copy of the Good Beer Guide now

Buy your copy of the Good Beer Guide here