BELL’S WHISKY: Thanks to my generous friends at Bell's Whisky, those strange names given to public houses are beginning to make some sense.

The whisky people’s natty little handbook, The Sixty Minute Sage, which hits our doormat once in a while in recognition of my patronage of their products, unravels the mysteries of some odd-sounding pubs.

The Red Lion, for example, was a familiar symbol in England as it had been the personal emblem of John of Gaunt, son of Edward III, and by the time of his death in 1399 the most powerful man in the country. The heraldic red lion of Scotland was displayed on all important buildings, which included taverns. Richard II was rather annoyed that his own authority was being bypassed by John of Gaunt, so he passed a law forcing London's tavern owners to hang out his own badge, the white hart. Failure to do so meant the innkeeper “shall forfeit his ale”.

The Bull, or Bull’s Head, is thought to have originated from a reference to a papal bull, the leaden seal attached to the Pope's edicts. A bull’s head was introduced into the arms of Henry VIII after he defied the papal bull of 1538, causing the split from Rome and the establishment of the Church of England. Keeping on the right side of the authorities who owned the land on which a pub stood was a fine balancing act, but The Crossed Keys, the emblem of St Peter, would have kept many an innkeeper on church land in favour with his landlords.

And by calling their pubs the Rose and Crown, publicans could proclaim their loyalty to the monarchy and remind everyone of their nationality.