When I say I’m a teacher, people assume that I have months of leisure time swanning around global Irish pubs, due to Woke.The reality is , in my line of teaching, Summer is the busiest time of year so I’ve not had one off for about 15 yrs. However, this then becomes the optimal time to explore the many and varied Irish Pubs of London, particularly when working from home and you need to get out and about, so a 90 minute tube & Bus to Morden becomes a wee holiday AFD ( away from desk, not the Right Wing Alternativ fur Deutschland political party) Here are the ones I had the pleasure to visit in Summer 2025. Some absolute legends. Some I may never return to. Where should I add next?

1. Boot ? The Boot ? Das Boot ? King’s Cross

Found this one on a gentle stroll home from work. Quiet and contemplative. Old Guinness signs hint at its Irish origins. Apparently used to be a legendary Punk Squat spot back when King’s Cross was a dive.

2. Philomena’s, Covent Garden:

Somewhere in Central London, just off Covent Garden lies one of London’s most mysterious buildings. Shrouded in secrecy over the mists of time, yes it’s :PHILOMENA’S IRISH PUB AND SPORTS BAR. Philomena’s is as mysterious as the Masonic Lodge that stands before it. It used to be a site of great and ancient evil , or an O’Neills as they are officially called. Before that, the site has been a watering hole since 1770 till finally going independent in 2012.

But who is Philomena? What’s going on with their logo? We may never know. Philomenas is an old reliable when about in central; Guinness is decent , it’s open late, serving as a Chamber of Reflection till 1 AM . Service is tip top and they usually have whatever match you want. In my mind, I remember watching Ireland v Spain here in 2012, a defeat so galling that I didn’t watch another Ireland game in a pub for about 5 years.

Outside, they have managed to cordon off a bit of space in the street perfect for people watching . In front stands the Grand Lodge of the Masons. Despite the layers of mystery, the Masons are just a group of guys whose primary interests include fraternity, charitable works, Alchemy and something about trying to establish a New World Order. As I watch out the window , a group of besuited Masons splinter off in a myriad of directions with their little briefcases full of blueprints for controlling all of society. Philomena’s is aptly the meeting place or Grand Lodge for another mason-esque shady cabal , the London Northern Ireland supporters association.But the only Order I’m interested is their tasty pints. Ordo ab Chao.

3. The Rising Sun, St Paul’s

”There is a Pub in Old St Paul’s  ……..They call the Rising Sun” . This is How to spot a Crypto- Irish Pub –  in 5 easy steps. ”For there are Cathedrals everywhere for those with the eyes to see “

While wandering by St Paul’s, I spied this comely boozer nestled down a street corner, looking resplendent with its pillars, (it’s a listed building) . As a fellow Colm, I’m a big fan of Columns , and I hope you are too. The Rising Sun, was a common trope for Pub names back in the day (It used to be called the Hedgehog & HogsHead , which is apt because due to its proximity to Fleet Street, some porcine clientele linger on. Ah well ). It doesn’t sound very Irish. but with a little digging, we can ascertain if it is indeed of Hibernian origins 

• Telltale sign 1- the old skool Guinness Tap , the beacon of good times , poured with skill by a trained Professional
• No.2 Authentic Guinness Booze adverts from yesteryear,  some offering questionable medical advice
• No.3 insignia of the motherland , hidden in plain sight
• No.4. Allusions to the quality of the Guinness. The award in question is never mentioned. The Nobel Prize for Guinness??  or Pintovision Song Contest. 
• And finally :  
• No.5 it’s on the @irishinlondon website, under Irish Pubs . Dead giveaway.

4. The College Arms, Bloomsbury:

Some people wonder if my full time job is prancing around supping porter like some sort of French Marquis but alas, if you peak behind the wizard’s curtain of Social Media, I actually have a job which takes me into Bloomsbury each day to educate the next generation. However, on this quest of mine, you have to be opportunistic, strike at a moments notice and take the path less travelled.

And so, yesterday while walking home from Bloomsbury after taking a wrong turn, I spotted 2 glorious tricolours fluttering in the gentle summer breeze from a salty looking alehouse I had ne’r seen before. On closer inspection, unbeknownst to my good self, in walking distance of the office is a Proper Authentic Irish Pub (TM) right in the heart of town. The @guinnessgb to start was indeed of the finest quality. Meanwhile, vis a vis decor, you have a Crab offering to have a pint with you, always a plus. Live music, road signs and Taytos complete the bingo card of Authentic Irish Paraphernalia in this haunt of post-work drinkers and students from the myriad of nearby Uni’s. The College Arms has been an education in a fine pub ambiance and a testament to the act of wandering the wrong way home. Get Lost people.

5. The Station House, South Tottenham:

The Auld Shillelagh in Stoke Newington is the Irish Pub you take people to show them how good an Irish pub can be. Welcoming. Sexy. Independent. Actually Irish. It’s the PublicanEnemy Pub of the year two years running for flips sake!! Yet a mere jaunt away on the 76 Bus , you can enjoy the other end of the Irish Pub spectrum and visit one of the more savoury Irish Pubs I’ve had the pleasure to encounter -South Tottenham’s The Station House.

On a balmy Summers eve, from the outside the building looks positively continental. What of the pint? Tis nothing special,which is usually the saving grace of this type of establishment. The Station House could be a sister pub to that other similarly Spartan nearby venue The Yucatan, where they used to make you buy 3 pints on entry if there the North London Derby is on, and they shut the curtains so no freeloaders can look in , circumventing The System.

The Station House is one for the purists then, and not the kind of place you bring the Irish Pub virgin. Also not one for the split-the G- baseball-cap -wearing -cropped -leather- jacket enjoying semi-mulleted Kneecap listening Hiberno-curious. As its Tottenham-Irish flags make clear, this is a bastion of the local N17 community and for that alone, it doesn’t have ideas above its station.

6. The Faltering Fullback, Finsbury Park

With all due respect, you can’t go on a quest to visit every Irish Pub in the World and not mention the Chinese practice of Feng Shui. Feng Shui is ( according to my recent AI prompt) “a concept that focuses on aligning your environment with your life to achieve harmony and balance, adhering to the key principles of Feng Shui ; Harmony, Energy Flow (Qi), Five Elements, Yin and Yang & Orientation and Placement”

I don’t know if the designers of the Faltering Fullback were consciously thinking of these tenets of design, but I’ll be damned if they didn’t manage to nail all of these. How, then, could you improve on spiritual and spatial oneness? Add in a £5 pint of Murphy’s, sit up in the lofty beer garden and achieve as close to Nirvana as you can get whilst in Finsbury Park.

While the beer garden takes most of the plaudits, a shout out is needed for the Dark Room , one of the most atmospheric spots to watch a match with its packed picnic tables, bathed in neon light sustained by an endless supply of Thai noodles by the ever attentive staff. .It is not only respectful but cosmically just to add the Fullback to the Shangri La of Irish Pubs.

7. Ryan’s Bar N16 – Stoke Newington

Apropos of nothing, I decided last week to drop into @ryansn16bar after work as I returned to my former ends – Stoke Newington and its hinterland.

Juxtaposed between nearby boozer the Wheatsheaf ( see below ) and the might of The Auld Shillelagh, the polar extremes of the London Irish Pub genre, lies Ryans. Much like the ancient biblical palace of Babylon, Ryan’s too is known for its delightful and extensive gardens. The Pint was freeessssh ( see pic 2) and staff were very sound. Alas, I had departed early before some sort of impromptu Gaelgeoir mosh pit scenario took place later that evening where Lewis Capaldi wandered in. Next time.

8. Annie’s ,North Finchley

Annie are you Ok? Annie are you ok? Are you OK, Annie?”,

…famously sang the dethroned Prince of Pop, Micheal Jackson. And finally, I can confirm that Annie’s IS more than OK. It’s a delightful, real locals Irish Pub. Due to soaring heat and to avoid the infernal Tube , I took an hour long Bus trip on the Superloop(?) to North Finchley, the former Irish / current Iranian stronghold.

On a beautiful Summers day, the smell of grilled meats waft tantalizingly close from the nearby Persian and Turkish charcoal Grills .Annie’s is definitely a locals spot, with Irish , London Irish, and all those who call London home alike. Outside, I have a grand chat with 2 Montenegrin Gents about being bodyguards to millionaire foreign clients (them, not me). “I am now a builder, working with Irish. They were the only ones who teach me. The other pubs, we used to go but they raised the prices. Not here though”. I am hit by a wave of nostalgia for a simpler time when I first came to London, triggered by the pint- £5 exactly, as the delightful bar lady( Annie?) brings it over .

£5 pint. In the Sun. You can’t Beat it * (also a Michael Jackson Song. )

9. The Wheatsheaf, Stoke Newington:

As you may have gathered, I like pubs. There are some wonderful accounts that expand your horizons, bequeathing you with a sense of knowledge, wonder and appreciation of the past + present of these hallowed sites. I’m talking of the giants of the genre, @proper_boozers , @londondeadpubs and the Godfather , @londonpubmap

You also of course have some of the most cretinous content of all,where some finance bro jabbers on about schooners despite  clearly drinking pints, his jerky camera designed to desperately help maintain the focus and attention  of his  morally- deficient ,concentration-defunct bleating army of sycophants. But he has his place too, much like in the natural world we need bottom feeders and mindless woodlice and the like to hoover up detritus.

Anywho, The Wheatsheaf has been in Stoke Newington for years and I had never heard tell until the great Londonpubmap brought it to my attention. Stoke Newington is a funny ole place, in parts Islington esque and the rest distinctly Tottenhamified.  The Wheatsheaf falls into the later, but very friendly staff and without doubt the loudest pub I’ve ever been to despite their being only about 5 people in the joint. But that’s what some pubs are for.  And despite having lived there for 10 years, there’s still more you can learn, if you listen to the wisdom of the greats.