Twenty years ago my husband, Tim, and I took over the lease of the Queens pub in Ludlow from Punch Taverns and moved in with our young children Alice, then aged 8 and Jake aged 5.

From the start we chose to take a hands-on approach, with Tim in the kitchen and I am front of house. Happily we are still here doing the same with the help of a wonderful staff, some of whom have been with us since the beginning!

We specialise in home-cooked food making use of our wonderful local butchers and fruit and veg market in town. And we also enjoy strong support from locals coming to the bar helping us to create a good atmosphere.

Rooms at the Inn

In 2009, we decided to buy the freehold of the Queens including a plot of land and various outbuildings and to make some improvements. We installed fitted oak flooring and beautiful hardwood bifold doors in the restaurant which open out into a patio area and beer garden. We created an enclosed pergola and added a large decking area with pizza oven and grill — all helping to make the garden a popular feature in the summer or sunnier days.

We undertook our biggest project to date in 2015, developing the stable block into three beautiful apartments which have proved to be very popular. However, recently we decided to fully refurbished the rooms with updated bathrooms and soft furnishings.

Our accommodation now consists of two double rooms and a family room with two single beds on a mezzanine level. All the rooms include a small kitchenette, sofa area and dining table providing guests with great flexibility.

What’s ahead?

We have business plans and personal ones. We plan to develop another building on the site into further letting rooms with a similar design. We will also have additional parking.

Personally? Well, Alice is now 28 and Jake is 25. They both live and work in London and travel abroad for their jobs. They are far too wise to take on the commitment of owning and running a pub.

So, once our developments are complete we will probably sell up and move to Monaco with our two lovely dogs Dill and Pickle… IN OUR DREAMS!!!!

The Queens, 113 Lower Galdeford, Ludlow SY8 1RU

To find out more about The Queens visit their website