The Anchor London Pub Editorial Photo

The Anchor Bankside is a pub in the London Borough of Southwark. It is on the South Bank of the Thames close to Southwark Cathedral and London Bridge station. A tavern establishment (under various names) has been at the pubs location for over 800 years.nnThis pub is the sole survivor of the riverside inns that existed here in Shakespeares time when this district was at the heart of theatreland and the Thames was Londons principal highway. It was frequented by many actors from the neighbouring playhouses, including the Globe, the Swan and the Rose. It is where diarist Samuel Pepys saw the Great Fire of London in 1666. He wrote that he took refuge in a little alehouse on bankside ... and there watched the fire grow. Another fire devastated the pub whose interior was mainly constructed of oak. It was rebuilt in 1676 and has since had additions over the centuries. The Anchor tavern became a favourite place for river pirates and smugglers: during the course of repairs carried out in the early 19th century the removal of a massive oak beam revealed ingeniously contrived hiding places which were probably used for the storage of stolen goods and contraband.