[1] The pub had a long history as music venue, with bands such as The Pogues, Coldplay, Blur, and Suede playing there towards the start of their careers.

[2][3] It was built in 1871 on the site of a former inn called the Boulogne Gate named after Henry VIII's victory in France.

[4][5] From then until the early 2000s the venue saw performances by acts such as Blur, Suede, My Bloody Valentine,[6] Huggy Bear,[7] Jesus Jones, Pop Will Eat Itself, Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine, The Pogues, The Housemartins, PJ Harvey, Ash, The Darkness, The Libertines, Muse, Manic Street Preachers, Keane, and more.

[8] It ceased operations as a venue in 2013, after being sold by previous owners to the Young's pub chain.

[4] Some of the music video for the Taylor Swift song End Game was shot at the pub in October 2017.