James Archer has bemoaned that Taylor Swift fans have ruined his local boozer after her latest hit album sparked thousands of fans to descend on the Black Dog.
Swift may be a resident of the Tortured Poets Department, but the former Tory cabinet might be Itching for a place in the tortured punters department – and he won’t be raring to shake it off anytime soon.
Its been a cruel summer for the former politician as his local watering hole of 30-years was forever changed after its name The Black Dog featured as a track on the international chart-breaking project.
The London Boy singer dedicated the track to her ex-boyfriend Joy Alwyn’s favourite pub in Vauxhall, South London – but now it has been overrun by Swifties, leaving a blank space in his daily routine.
Lyrics ‘You forgot to turn it [your location] off / And so I watch as you walk into some bar called The Black Dog,’ have led Swifties to believe that the pub could be somewhere that the 34-year-old’s former ‘London Boy’ Joe Alwyn visited.
There may be some bad blood brewing between Lord Archer (Picutred) and Taylor Swift after the ex-politician has moaned about Swifties taking over his local – The Black Dog in Vauxhall, London
His local watering hole of 30-years was forever changed after its name The Black Dog featured as a track on the international chart-breaking project (Pictured: Taylor Swift)
Despite its traditional feel, The Black Dog was only established in 2009 – though the ornamental dog design on its wall predates it
Although the pub itself making the most out of their new found reputation, with an Instagram bio that reads ‘home to tortured poets @taylorswift’ – Lord Archer is less than impressed.
He told the Mirror: ‘The Black Dog is about a hundred yards away from me and I’ve been going for 30 years and have my own table.
‘But I couldn’t get in for the last month because Swifty… mentioned The Black Dog where one of her lovers went.
‘And so I went one morning innocently down to The Black Dog to see 200 girls outside taking photographs, another 200 inside.
‘And if only Swifty had said, “It’s the pub where my favourite author sits in the corner”, I’d have been grateful.’
But while the new-found fame resulted in booming business for the beer house, they’ve had to repaint the walls of their toilets because fans of the American singer have been scrawling messages including ‘We love TS’ in the cubicles.
Despite the vandalism, the business is still cashing on its fame and has launched official merchandise including hoodies, caps and t shirts with the pub’s logo.
And although there has been a surge in popularity at the local London boozer, none of the staff remember the megastar ever visiting.
Staff have resorted to scouring CCTV over the period of Joe and Swift’s relationship to see if they can spot the singer or her ex-boyfriend inside.
![Lyrics in The Black Dog such as 'You forgot to turn it [your location] off / And so I watch as you walk into some bar called The Black Dog' have led fans of the singer to suspect her ex Joe Alwyn snuck off their during their six-year romance](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2024/10/20/01/83934575-13979351-Lyrics_in_The_Black_Dog_such_as_You_forgot_to_turn_it_your_locat-a-5_1729384206133.jpg)
Lyrics in The Black Dog such as ‘You forgot to turn it [your location] off / And so I watch as you walk into some bar called The Black Dog’ have led fans of the singer to suspect her ex Joe Alwyn snuck off their during their six-year romance
The Black Dog has a charming Victorian-style interior featuring wood panelling, green tiles and antique chandeliers
Taylor Swift fans Jordan Ludwig (right), 20, Kylee Ludwig (left), 20, and Katelyn Anziano (centre), 20, inside the Black Dog on the song’s release day
Connor Price (seen), assistant manager at The Black Dog, said: ‘We’ve already had quite a few groups. Some came in and asked for a vodka and Diet Coke, as that’s apparently Taylor’s favourite drink
The pub is not some high-flyers exclusive venue for celebs like the English actor, rather – like seven other watering holes name-checked on the LP – it is a typical London corner pub with a small beer garden out the back.
The Black Dog is even available to book out for events such as weddings or other private events. It can even be booked for filming – a potential out, then, for Alwyn if his ex suspects he was sneaking off to London pubs to get away from her.
Swift superfans and twins Kylee and Jordan Ludwig visited the pub with their friend Katelyn Anziano, all 20, on the day of the song’s release in April.
Kylee said: ‘As soon as we heard the lyrics and realised it was a real place, we knew we just had to come here. I mean, we can now say we were in The Black Dog on the day of its release.’
Katelyn added: ‘It’ll become part of Taylor Swift lore. Especially because it’s such a sad, emotional song.’
Jordan was particularly excited to visit The Black Dog and said she had already fallen in love with the new album at the time.
‘I love Taylor’s more depressing songs, and for me Tortured Poets was the perfect mix of the production value of Midnights with the tone of folklore and evermore,’ she said. I love it.’
The trio, who are all from the United States but have been studying abroad at London’s Arcadia University since January – and dub themselves as mega Swifties – had all already been to The Eras Tour by April.
A hoodie available on The Black Dog website for £50. The pub has been capitalising on its new found fame
The tote bag is available in an unbleached cotton and can be bought for £22 making it one of the cheaper items on the pub’s website
The embroidered grey cap has the pub’s logo and name on the front and is on sale for £34
A cropped peach hoodie has the lyric ‘come bar called The Black Dog’ with the bar’s logo and name
A travel mug with the pub’s branding. The overnight success of the pub has meant staff have had to hire extra security and even buy in more glasses after fans have stolen them and sold them on eBay
Connor Price, assistant manager at The Black Dog, said the three students were not the only fans who visited the pub that day.
‘We’ve already had quite a few groups. Some came in and asked for a vodka and Diet Coke, as that’s apparently Taylor’s favourite drink,’ he said.
‘And last night we had a group in Taylor Swift t-shirts, which was before the whole song was even out.’
Mr Price, 36, said he’s hoping the mention might be good for business, adding: ‘At the moment, it’s all a bit of fun – people have been giving us Google reviews based on the song, which are mostly 5* so that’s good.
‘But we’re thinking we might get some more customers here around the time when Taylor’s tour comes to London, so that would be good.’
Capitalising on the eyeballs, the pub joked on Instagram that they were frantically trawling through their CCTV to see whether it was Alwyn or Matty Healy who had visited them in the past few years.
Though the cosy venue has a traditional feel inside, The Black Dog was actually only established in 2009, before which it was called The Lavender.
However, even then, it already had a picture of the black dog which would become the pub’s symbol.
On the corner of Glasshouse Walk and Vauxhall Walk, The Black Dog sits on land which likely once housed Buckingham’s glassworks.
The pub is not some high-flyers exclusive venue for celebs like English actor, Joe Alwyn, rather it is a classic London corner pub with the usual fare of steep prices
The pub has a Spanish-inspired tapas menu as well as all the classic pub grub. Fish and chips would set you back £17.50
With both its food and drink menus, the pub rotate options depending on what is in season. Pictured: The Black Dog cheeseburger, which is £15.50 with chips
A Sunday roast at the pub can come in above £20, while the cheapest pint is £5.75
The factory operated from the 1600s to the late 1780s as part of a thriving glass industry in the south of the city.
Even though the bar staff can’t remember seeing the All Too Well singer, the venue is making the most of its time in the spotlight.
The award-winning pub had to hire extra security staff and buy in more branded glasses to deal with the flurry of new customers making a pilgrimage to the beerhouse according to The Times.
The influx of new customers has meant that the bar now regularly reaches capacity and even has to turn customers away as fans continue to line up to make TikToks and get a quick snap in the now famous watering hole.
The pub was overrun with booking requests for a table during Swift’s Eras tour performances in London and are even considering introducing a bottomless brunch.
