Daniel Craig buys London pub with pals

Daniel Craig has swapped James Bond's Martinis for pints of beer after buying a London pub with his pals.

The former 007 is now the proud owner of the Horseshoe in Clerkenwell after purchasing the 18th century inn with Soho House founder Nick Jones and restaurateur Charlie Carroll. Another partner is Justin O'Shea, creative director of the beer brand Bad Belze, which he and Craig launched this year.

The pub they have taken over is apparently haunted, however, as the ghost of a hangman named Gilbert is rumoured to live in the cellar.

Joking about the ghost, Craig told The Times: "I don't know what he drinks but we might have to leave a pint down there."

The No Time to Die actor is no stranger to pub life as coming from a family of publicans as he grew up in them as a child in Cheshire.

"As a kid I'd get to go down and talk to the locals, especially at lunchtime, and it was always about the day, what's going on," Craig said of spending his youth around the bar. "It's an outlet for people to come and talk about stuff."

The actor and his friends are taking over the Horseshoe from Pauline Tucker, who was the landlady alongside her husband Richard for 36 years. He has vowed to keep the establishment as a "boozer" that welcomes all but has promised to "spruce it up" a bit.

The latest venture comes after the star and his wife, the actress Rachel Weisz moved backed to London after years of living in New York.