Jack Straw's Castle is a Grade II

listed building In the United Kingdom, a listed building is a structure of particular architectural or historic interest deserving of special protection. Such buildings are placed on one of the four statutory lists maintained by Historic England in England, Hi ...

and former

public house A pub (short for public house) is in several countries a drinking establishment licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption Licensing laws of the United Kingdom#On-licence, on the premises. The term first appeared in England in the ...

on North End Way,

Hampstead Hampstead () is an area in London, England, which lies northwest of Charing Cross, located mainly in the London Borough of Camden, with a small part in the London Borough of Barnet. It borders Highgate and Golders Green to the north, Belsiz ...

, north-west London, England close to the junction with Heath Street and Spaniards Road. The site is named after the rebel leader

Jack Straw John Whitaker Straw (born 3 August 1946) is a British politician who served in the Cabinet from 1997 to 2010 under the Labour governments of Tony Blair and Gordon Brown. He held two of the traditional Great Offices of State, as Home Secretar ...

, who led the

Peasants' Revolt The Peasants' Revolt, also named Wat Tyler's Rebellion or the Great Rising, was a major uprising across large parts of England in 1381. The revolt had various causes, including the socio-economic and political tensions generated by the Black ...

in 1381 and who is said to have taken refuge on the site until he was caught and executed. A pub has existed here since at least the early 18th century. The building was altered in the early 19th century.

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by ...

was known to visit the pub, describing it as a place where he could get "a red-hot chop for dinner, and a glass of good wine".

William Makepeace Thackeray William Makepeace Thackeray ( ; 18 July 1811 – 24 December 1863) was an English novelist and illustrator. He is known for his Satire, satirical works, particularly his 1847–1848 novel ''Vanity Fair (novel), Vanity Fair'', a panoramic portra ...

and

Wilkie Collins William Wilkie Collins (8 January 1824 – 23 September 1889) was an English novelist and playwright known especially for ''The Woman in White (novel), The Woman in White'' (1860), a mystery novel and early sensation novel, and for ''The Moonsto ...

also visited it. It is mentioned in

Bram Stoker Abraham Stoker (8 November 1847 – 20 April 1912), better known by his pen name Bram Stoker, was an Irish novelist who wrote the 1897 Gothic horror novel ''Dracula''. The book is widely considered a milestone in Vampire fiction, and one of t ...

’s ''

Dracula ''Dracula'' is an 1897 Gothic fiction, Gothic horror fiction, horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. The narrative is Epistolary novel, related through letters, diary entries, and newspaper articles. It has no single protagonist and opens ...

'', where Professor Van Helsing and Doctor Jack Seward stop to dine, and also in

Harold Pinter Harold Pinter (; 10 October 1930 – 24 December 2008) was a British playwright, screenwriter, director and actor. A List of Nobel laureates in Literature, Nobel Prize winner, Pinter was one of the most influential modern British dramat ...

's play '' No Man's Land''. It was the final residence of the

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was most popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850, through the World War I, Great War. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as Varie ...

singer

Alec Hurley Alexander Hurley (24 March 1871 – 6 December 1913) was an English music hall singer, and Marie Lloyd's second husband. Born in London, Hurley began a boxing career, during which he would perform a song entitled "The Strongest Man on Earth" af ...

, who died there in 1913. The building was badly damaged in

The Blitz The Blitz (English: "flash") was a Nazi Germany, German bombing campaign against the United Kingdom, for eight months, from 7 September 1940 to 11 May 1941, during the Second World War. Towards the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940, a co ...

during World War II. The current building was designed by the architect Raymond Erith and dates to 1964; speaking at Erith's memorial service in 1974, the poet laureate Sir John Betjeman called the building "true Middlesex" and "a delight". The pub closed in 2002, and was then converted to a number of luxury apartments and gymnasium. The ground and lower ground floors are now in use by Group Nexus.

References

Citations Sources * * Buildings and structures in Hampstead Pubs in the London Borough of Camden Grade II listed buildings in the London Borough of Camden Former pubs in London Buildings and structures in the United Kingdom destroyed during World War II {{pub-stub