The Five Swans

You walk into what feels like a cathedral of budget drinking – soaring ceilings, elaborate cornicing, and those unmistakable Wetherspoons carpets somehow working together in glorious contradiction. The old banking hall's original features dwarf the usual Spoons fixtures, creating an oddly majestic atmosphere for your £2.50 pint. The food follows the familiar formula – decent enough for the price, nothing revolutionary – but you're really here for the spectacle of drinking in such grand surroundings without breaking the bank. It gets properly busy with students and office workers, especially Friday evenings when the ornate space fills with the familiar hum of cheap drinks and loud conversations echoing off those Victorian walls.