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Benjamin Franklin, London

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Operator: Wetherspoon
11 Strand, Charing Cross, London, WC2N 5HR (View on Google Map)
Website

This Pub is Temporarily Closed

NOT YET OPEN - expected opening date: Tuesday 24th November 2026

This will become the closest 'Spoons to Trafalgar Square after the closure of the old Lord Moon of the Mall on Whitehall, now McMullen's Horse & Guardsman. It is in a modern building and on two levels, the upper level fronting onto Charing Cross Station forecourt (the main customer entrance) and a lower level leading to Craven Street at the back, with exit only for emergency use. The site was opened only after a hard-fought planning battle that went up to the Planning Inspectorate, and a previous abortive attempt by JDW to open a pub in Bedford Street close by.

Historic Interest

The name of the pub is a nod to Benjamin Franklin, who lived for a time at 36 Craven Street just down from the rear of the pub and whose old house is now the Benjamin Franklin House museum. Franklin was a signatory of the American Declaration of Independence in 1776 and before that famously conducted a dangerous early electrical experiment by flying a kite into a thunderstorm to prove that lightning and electricity were the result of the same phenomenon. He is now considered one of the fathers of electricity, and helped advance the eighteenth century's Age of Enlightenment.

Information for this venue is provided by the West London Branch of CAMRA
Previous Names
Local Authority
Last updated
Last surveyed
Leasehold owner
unknown
Freehold owner
unknown
Pub ID
WLD/17338
Asset of Community Value
Opening Times Unavailable
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Facilities
Lunchtime Meals Lunchtime Meals
Evening Meals Evening Meals
Family Friendly Family Friendly
Smoking Smoking
Forecourt
Wi Fi Wi Fi
Features
Quiet Quiet
Transport
Close to bus routes
Nearby Station (100m)
London Charing Cross
Close to London Underground/Overground/DLR (50m)
Charing Cross

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