McKellen joins row over Dickens pub

A pub immortalised by Charles Dickens as a centre of hard-drinking iniquity in his novel Our Mutual Friend is at the centre of a row over late-night opening. Police and residents who live near The Grapes, in east London's Limehouse district, are opposing an application for the pub to stay open until 2am because of fears that it will fuel crime. The dispute, which is before the local authority, has been given added impetus by the pub's literary credentials and by the number of celebrities who live on its street. [More]