Norman Balon

Norman Balon (13 January 1927 – 4 June 2026) was a British publican who was the long-serving tenant landlord of the Coach and Horses pub in Soho, London. He was known as London's rudest landlord, served in the pub for 63 years, and acquired an eclectic cast of regular customers. Balon became closely associated with journalists working for Private Eye and The Spectator, including Jeffrey Bernard. Both publications made regular mention of Balon, increasing his notoriety. He was landlord to a long list of actors, artists and writers, in addition to the prostitutes, alcoholics and gangsters that were part of Soho's social fabric. Balon featured in two plays based on the Coach and Horses, including Jeffrey Bernard Is Unwell.

Early years Norman Balon was born on 13 January 1927 in Ilford, then part of Essex, into a Jewish family, though he was to become a lifelong atheist. He had three siblings, through his parents Jack and Anne (known as Annie) Balon. His parents ran two kosher hotels in Bournemouth, where Balon spent his childhood, his father was previously a loss adjuster and financial speculator. In 1940 the family moved to Temple Fortune in London, and Balon attended Hendon Technical College. On 3 February 1943, during the middle of World War II, his parents took over the tenancy of the Coach and Horses. Balon, who was 16 years old, dropped out of college to work at the pub, and stayed there until May 2006, when he was 79.