I was paranoid we'd be refused entry to Cheers as it was the only pub so far to have doormen on duty, but we all made it in safely. Unlike two years before, everyone managed to get served quickly this time although once again the poor bar staff didn't get any tips in their gratuities saucer! There weren't many hats left in evidence by this stage although I had passed mine to an increasingly wasted Mr P before we entered this pub. On the way from here to Coventry Street though, everyone got split up in the Saturday evening London crowd through Piccadilly, and as a result, only me, Mike and Bev arrived at the next stop, and ordered a drink. Had things gone wrong?

Thankfully, about five minutes after the rest of us got here, Jamie turned up, followed by a few other stragglers. Some crawlers had gone onto Leicester Square first and we passed them halfway across the Square as they went back to Coventry Street, and we headed towards Yates' Wine Lodge. Sadly, our second port of call with doormen proved our downfall as they informed us "sorry lads, you can't come in here" before helpfully sending us next door to Wetherspoons! I can't confirm if everyone actually made it to the Coventry Street pub, but I know I did!

For a change, we chose Yates' instead of Wetherspoons for this years Monopoly crawl, but as they wouldn't let most of us in (a few did actually blag their way in), the rest of us hot footed it next door to the tried and tested Moon Under Water. As usual, this place was packed, but you can't really argue with Wetherspoons value drinks! Our numbers were seriously depleted by this point although that was mainly due to some people going here before Coventry Street! I managed to round up those of us left and we moved onto Trafalgar Square, where we found the rest of the survivors.

Some of our group were getting slightly rowdy by now, but I got the fiver back off Jamie which he'd borrowed a few pubs back, which meant I could actually afford to buy a drink, so I was happy! The pub here was packed out with foreign tourists, possibly as a result of there being a massive festival in Trafalgar Square the following day, so much chatting up of fit birds happened. All too soon however, it was time to move on once again, but what happened next nearly prematurely ended my day! Thank God for mobile phones on pub crawls! I went off to the cash machine before going to the next scheduled pub, but when I eventually got there (I got lost), there was no-one else from our group in sight!

OK, I was in a pub, so I had a drink anyway, before panicking I might not actually finish the crawl this year AGAIN!!! Outside the pub, I finally got Bev to answer his phone and found out they had gone to Whitehall first, with the aim of going back to where I was afterwards, so started walking up there. Half way though, I passed Jamie on his own going to Northumberland Avenue after Whitehall, so I joined him, went back to The Sherlock Holmes, and had a second drink there, before Jamie said he was going on to the next pub, and I turned round again and went back to Whitehall. After getting lost for the second pub in a row behind this big Police Station, I eventually found Whitehall, and The Silver Cross.

Bev, Mike, Phil, Mr P, Andy and a few others (I think) were just finishing off their drinks in this recently refurbished pub when I arrived, so in order to keep up, I had a double vodka and ice which could be knocked back quickly, ready to go. However, everyone else slowed down, so I didn't really need to rush after all! We all left here together, but that was the last I remember seeing of Phil. Predictably, it was back to The Sherlock Holmes for my third time (everyone elses first) so keeping in the spirit of things, I had yet another drink there. We were into the home straight after leaving here - only 2 pubs to go yet we are 2 hours ahead of schedule.

We planned to go into The Coal Hole for The Strand square, but the doormen once again wouldn't let us in, saying it was a couples only pub, and our protestations that we were really all gay partners didnt cut the ice. Maybe it was a blessing in disguise that we didn't get into our first choice pub though, as The Lyceum Tavern which we did get into was a really top place! Andy reckoned the barmaid here fancied him, so much so that a few of us came back here after completing the crawl to see if she did or not, but all that really achieved was the spectacle of Mr P falling asleep on a table. I had semi-sobered up by this point, so much so that I was up for doing Waterworks and Electricity Company as bonus pubs, but no-one else I was with could really cope with that. Still in high spirits, we asked a taxi driver the way to the last pub. He told us we were stood right outside it, and looking up, we were!

And finally, four years after me and Jamie first attempted a Monopoly pub crawl, we got to the end, a full two hours early! Bev, Mike and myself finished the entire crawl together, with Andy and Mr P present also (though they joined us part way through). Jamie and at least four others finished ahead of us and went on somewhere else, somehow running into Bev around half past ten drunkedly wandering the streets of Soho on his own. Andy, Mr P and I hung around the last pub for a while chatting to anything female, before we left and headed back to The Lyceum Tavern so Andy could chat up the cute barmaid he saw earlier. Last orders came and went, Mr P wandered off into the night, and so ended the 2001 (and possibly our last) Monopoly Pub Crawl. If we ever do it again, we're going to attempt it in the order of the actual board game. Go back to Old Kent Road. Do not pass Go. Spend over £200...