Dirty Dick's (London pub)
Encyclopedia
Dirty Dick was Nathaniel (Dick) Bentley, an 18th century merchant
who owned a hardware shop and warehouse in London, and is one of the people who is considered as a possible inspiration for Miss Havisham
in Dickens' Great Expectations
after he refused to wash following the death of his fiancée on his wedding day.
The name is used for a pub in Bishopsgate
, London.
in his youth, but following the death of his fiancée, he refused to clear up or clean anything. His house and warehouse shop became so filthy that he became a celebrity of dirt. Any letter addressed to The Dirty Warehouse, London, would be delivered to Bentley. He stopped trading in 1804 and died in 1809. The warehouse was later demolished.
, London at the beginning of the 19th century, changed its name from The Old Jerusalem to Dirty Dick's, and recreated the look of Bentley's warehouse shop.
The contents, including cobwebs and dead cats, were originally a part of the cellar bar, but have now been tidied a to a glass display case. Successive owners of the Bishopsgate Distillery and its tap capitalised on the legend. By the end of the 19th century, its owner, a public house company called William Barker's (D.D) Ltd, was producing commemorative booklets and promotional material to advertise the pub.
The pub was described in 1866 as having "cobwebs festoons dangling from the black rafters." It is now owned by Young's.
Merchant
A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...
who owned a hardware shop and warehouse in London, and is one of the people who is considered as a possible inspiration for Miss Havisham
Miss Havisham
Miss Havisham is a significant character in the Charles Dickens novel Great Expectations . She is a wealthy spinster, who lives in her ruined mansion with her adopted daughter, Estella, whom she has sent to France, while she herself is described as looking like "the witch of the place."Although she...
in Dickens' Great Expectations
Great Expectations
Great Expectations is a novel by Charles Dickens. It was first published in serial form in the publication All the Year Round from 1 December 1860 to August 1861. It has been adapted for stage and screen over 250 times....
after he refused to wash following the death of his fiancée on his wedding day.
The name is used for a pub in Bishopsgate
Bishopsgate
Bishopsgate is a road and ward in the northeast part of the City of London, extending north from Gracechurch Street to Norton Folgate. It is named after one of the original seven gates in London Wall...
, London.
History
Bentley had been quite a dandyDandy
A dandy is a man who places particular importance upon physical appearance, refined language, and leisurely hobbies, pursued with the appearance of nonchalance in a cult of Self...
in his youth, but following the death of his fiancée, he refused to clear up or clean anything. His house and warehouse shop became so filthy that he became a celebrity of dirt. Any letter addressed to The Dirty Warehouse, London, would be delivered to Bentley. He stopped trading in 1804 and died in 1809. The warehouse was later demolished.
Dirty Dick's pub
A pub in BishopsgateBishopsgate
Bishopsgate is a road and ward in the northeast part of the City of London, extending north from Gracechurch Street to Norton Folgate. It is named after one of the original seven gates in London Wall...
, London at the beginning of the 19th century, changed its name from The Old Jerusalem to Dirty Dick's, and recreated the look of Bentley's warehouse shop.
The contents, including cobwebs and dead cats, were originally a part of the cellar bar, but have now been tidied a to a glass display case. Successive owners of the Bishopsgate Distillery and its tap capitalised on the legend. By the end of the 19th century, its owner, a public house company called William Barker's (D.D) Ltd, was producing commemorative booklets and promotional material to advertise the pub.
The pub was described in 1866 as having "cobwebs festoons dangling from the black rafters." It is now owned by Young's.