Beer fan who’s been in 50,000 pubs names Britain’s best 50 — but does your local make the list?

HAVING had a beer in more than  50,000 pubs, Bruce Masters knows  what makes the perfect boozer.

Now Bruce, who holds the Guinness World Record for visiting the most bars in Britain, has joined The Sun’s quest to find YOUR perfect pub.

We are asking you to nominate your favourite pub and tell us why. We’ll pick the best — and  stick £1,000 behind the bar for a great night out.

This week we revealed how nearly 1,000 pubs closed down last year — so they need our support.

Bruce, 74, a retired railway accountant, tries to visit 20 pubs every week — and always goes by bus or train.

His latest outings took him to pubs in London and Essex. Married dad-of-three Bruce, from Flitwick, Beds, says: “We need to stop pubs suffering what happened to the railways in the Seventies. It’s really a case of use it or lose it.”

Since 1960 when he had his first pint for a shilling (that’s 5p kids), he has kept a spreadsheet of every boozer he has visited.

Today that total stands at 51,712. He says: “I do remember all the pubs I have been to, particularly the outside. I never forget the beer.”

Bruce rates every pub by its beer, the welcome customers receive — and the toilets.

He says: “You spend a lot of time in the toilets if you’ve been drinking.”

Here he shares 50 of his favourite boozers from his epic tour.

The top 50 boozers — is your local on the list?

1) OXFORD BAR, EDINBURGH: Not a particularly distinguished bar, but I visited it because it is the watering hole of detective John Rebus in Ian Rankin’s crime novels.

2) BON ACCORD, CHARING CROSS, GLASGOW: This early recruit to real ale in the centre of Glasgow has 800 different beers to try over the year. It also has 400 types of malt whisky. Well worth a visit.

3) SPLIT CHIMP, NEWCASTLE-UPON-TYNE: Under the railway arches near Central Station, it is a good place to stop while waiting for your next train.

4) PRINCE OF WALES, FOXFIELD, CUMBRIA: Across the road from railway station – and because the trains are visible from quite a way, you can wait with your beer and still be on the platform in time.

5) MOTHER SHIPTON INN, KNARESBOROUGH, NORTH YORKS: One of the early pubs on my list. I visited this 15th century tavern near the famous Mother Shipton’s cave in 1972.

6) BIRCH HALL, BECK HOLE, NEAR GOATHLAND, NORTH YORKS: A pleasant Grade II listed pub, well worth finding after a steep walk from Goathland. The exercise is a great excuse for a refreshing beer.

7) HOUSE OF TREMBLING MADNESS, YORK: Medieval ale house is now a craft beer specialist. I don’t stick to real ale all the time.

8) THE DRAKE, GOOLE, EAST YORKS: Former dock offices beautifully restored into a pub and small hotel which always serves six different beers. Nice pub, nice people, great ale.

9) JUBILEE REFRESHMENT ROOMS, SOWERBY BRIDGE, WEST YORKS: Another one near a railway station – just 15 seconds from the westbound platform. A bit longer if staggering back.

10) BEER BOX, BAMBER BRIDGE, LANCS: I paid a visit to this new micro pub near Preston two weeks ago. It was opened  by three beer-loving friends just six months ago. Good on them.

11) THE LAKESIDE INN, SOUTHPORT, LANCS: This hidden gem once claimed to be Britain’s smallest pub. Excellent beer and popular with locals.

12) THE STEAMHOUSE, URMSTON, NR MANCHESTER: One of several pubs on stations in and around Manchester. Well worth a visit even if your train is on time.

13) THE SIGNAL BOX INN, CLEETHORPES, LINCS: It’s on the Cleethorpes coast light railway and is the smallest pub I have ever visited. There’s only room for six people and a barman – but it does have a beer garden.

14) THE CHIMNEYS, HOOTON, NR LIVERPOOL: Named because of its 17 chimneys, this rustic former gentlemen’s club serves great food and up to five real ales.

15) THREE TUNS, DRONFIELD, DERBYS: When I visited in 2012 there were gigantic pork pies on the counter for sale. Need I say more?

16) THE HOLLYBUSH, MAKENEY, DERBYS: A pleasant ale house not too far from the main road – that’s why it was popular with highwayman Dick Turpin. Three hundred years on, it is still as popular.

17) SHROPPIE FLY, AUDLEM WHARF, CHESHIRE: I stopped at this pretty, timbered pub on the side of the Shropshire Union Canal during a canal holiday in 2010.

18) CHIP AND PIN, MELBOURNE, DERBYS: Owned by a group of locals who love real beer, this micro pub gets five-star ratings – including from me.

19)GREAT WESTERN, WOLVERHAMPTON: This pub near the station has long been an attraction for rail enthusiasts, football fans and real ale connoisseurs.

20) THE PLOUGH INN, WISTANSTOW, STAFFS: Since I visited this pub in 2006 it has become a Wood’s Brewery Tap. The staff are really friendly and serve excellent beer and food at reasonable prices.

21) THE WHERRY, GELDESTON, NORFOLK: Had a very pleasant local ale at this waterside pub near Beccles while waiting for a bus.

22) TURF TAVERN, BLOXWICH, WEST MIDS: This hostelry near Walsall is another time warp pub, run by two pleasant ladies when I visited in 1998. Don’t let the ordinary-looking exterior stop you going into this great little boozer.

23) THE KINGS HEAD, LAXFIELD, SUFFOLK: Also known as The Low House. Stepping inside is like stepping back in time. You can imagine farm workers of the past  letting off steam here after a day  toiling in the fields.

24) CROOKED HOUSE, GORNAL WOOD, WEST MIDS: Makes the leaning Tower of Pisa look vertical. If the walls appear to be straight, you have had too much to drink.

25) LIVE & LET LIVE, BRINGSTY COMMON, WORCS: Located in the middle of a common, so you will feel like a few beers by the time you walk there.

26) OLD TICKET OFFICE, CAMBRIDGE: Opened last year at Cambridge Railway Station. Plenty of train memorabilia and good beer.