William the Fourth, Leyton, E10

Having read previous posts, we half expected to be disappointed with the ale selection, but were pleasantly surprised by the range on offer. Unfortunately the stout had finished, but there was a mild on, as well Bethnal Green Bitter (excellent value at £3 a pint), Rhymney Hobby Horse, Brodie's Shoreditch Sunshine, Old Street Pale, and a stonking 5.8% brown ale. We were well satisfied with that selection. I didn't see any sign of food at Wednesday lunchtime. The pub has been well described by others. The bizarrely shaped original Victorian bar counter is still there, as is the collection of photos and prints on the walls, musical instruments hanging from the ceiling, bar billiards and dartboard, etc, etc. One of our number was enthusiastic about the ancient clocking in clock on one of the walls (some of my friends have strange hobbies!). Having all enjoyed pints of the excellent Bethnal Green Bitter, we then bought five halves of other beers in order to have a mini beer sampling session. We thought that was a good idea. We really enjoyed our extended stay in this pub, and all agreed that it was a pub desrving of a revisit.

First time to visit for a while and will concur with the previous reviewers that the extensive beer range that the King Billy was renowned for seems to now be a thing of the past and the majority of the 24 hand pumps are now unused, especially the long row on the back bar. However, there were still four Brodies Beers and three local guests available dotted amongst the remaining ones for my recent and I still got to enjoy the breweries London Fields pale and Bethnal Green Bitter and there was no sign of GK Old Speckled Hen amongst the decent guests on this occasion. And with the England v Australia Rugby being shown on the large pull down screen and the various teles dotted about the pub there was a very lively late afternoon atmosphere with quite a few in and I did well to get a seat. Although perhaps not the Ale emporium it once was, this solid corner Victorian boozer is still well worth a visit in my book with decent pub grub and decent ales and I enjoyed my visit here, especially as we squeezed past the Aussies to boot.