No Irish. No Blacks. No Donkeys 1968

It was common in London pubs until relatively recently to see signs proclaiming ‘No blacks. No Irish. No donkeys’.

In years gone by, London pubs could be less than welcoming to strangers and these signs were designed to warn off the casual drinker from entering these pubs lest they incur the wrath of the locals.

It took a brave publican in those less-enlightened times to open the doors of his establishment to all who were thirsty and in need of refreshment.

In 1968, Charlie Perkins, the landlord of the Queen Mary in Plaistow, East London (seen here on the left), caused controversy when he was the first publican in London to allow donkeys to drink freely in his pub.

The Queen Mary continued to ban Irish drinkers until 1985 and the ban on black people still operates to this day.