| The Spice of Life | |
| Coordinates: | 51.515°N -0.1221°W |
| Location Town: | --> |
| Est Completion: | --> |
| Destruction Date: | --> |
| Management: | or |
| Operator: | or |
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The Spice of Life is a pub at Cambridge Circus in London's Charing Cross Road. The pub was founded as The George & Thirteen Cantons[1] in or before 1759,[2] and later became The Scots Hoose. By 1975 it had been renamed The Spice of Life.[3]
As the Scots Hoose in the 1950s and 1960s, the pub had one of Britain's most celebrated folk clubs in its upstairs room,[4] run by Bruce Dunnet,[5] that featured some of the greatest names of the folk revival, such as Bert Jansch, Al Stewart, Davey Graham, Ralph McTell, Roy Harper,[6] Sandy Denny,[7] Ewan MacColl[8] and The Young Tradition.[5] The club operated under various names, including "The Young Tradition".[3]
In the 1970s and beyond the pub was regularly frequented by members of many rock groups including; The Stranglers, Buzzcocks, Stiff Little Fingers, Sex Pistols, Spandau Ballet, The Faces, UFO even the comedy group The Rutles. Film Directors including Jim Parsons, James Russell, Alan G Parker and Don Letts have also been regular visitors since the mid-nineties.
Members of the Monty Python team have also been among the pubs regulars over the years.
The pub features as a location in Ben Aaronovitch’s novel Moon Over Soho, part of the “Rivers of London” series.