Crouch End · Haringey
The Kings Head
Home to one of Britain's longest-running comedy clubs
- Address2 Crouch End Hill, Crouch End, London, N8 8AA
- Phone020 8340 1028
- Websitedownstairsatthekingshead.com
- OwnershipPart of Mitchells & Butlers (Castle Pubs)
About The Kings Head
A Castle Pubs (Mitchells & Butlers) local on Crouch End Hill whose basement, Downstairs at the King's Head, has run as a comedy club without a break since 1981.
Downstairs at the King's Head was founded in 1981 by Peter Grahame and Huw Thomas, who wanted a friendlier and more inclusive alternative to London's more combative comedy circuit; it grew from occasional shows to a full weekly programme through the 1980s. It bills itself as one of the oldest comedy clubs in Britain still running in its original room, and acts including Stewart Lee have appeared there earlier in their careers. Upstairs, the pub itself keeps a more conventional identity as a Castle Pubs (Mitchells & Butlers) local, with live music on Fridays and jazz on Sunday afternoons rounding out a programme built almost entirely around live entertainment.
On tap
Standard cask ales and lagers typical of a Castle Pubs house
Food
Pub food menu; food service is secondary to the entertainment programme
More pubs in Crouch End
- The QueensCrouch End's grandest room, dressed in Art Nouveau stained glass
- The Fox at Crouch EndThe classic Crouch End corner local, done up by a small London pub group
- The Maynard ArmsA Victorian corner pub scrubbed up with Chesterfields and a Wing Wednesday