The first law of public houses states that, more often than not, the quality of a hostelry is inversely proportional to its location. In other words, the riverside pub is rarely the best bar in town.

That said, the inns and taverns that line the Thames from Gloucestershire to the East End of London are invariably worthy of study for their historical associations. And what better way to study them than at first hand?

Beginning with the Thames Head Inn at Kemble near Cirencester, Mark Turner meanders from Cotswolds to Docklands, stopping off at more than 150 pubs along the way. These range from stone-roofed coaching inns to stuccoed gin palaces.

It is a narrative peopled with monarchs and eccentrics, boatmen and bankers, dockers and seamen. And alongside it are the author's excellent photographs, which provide a visual feast.