Bishop's Castle pub put up for sale

The Boar's Head pub in Bishop's Castle has been put on the market for a cool £695,000.

The move has come as a shock as the pub is a local success story having been brought back from dereliction by Darren Price and Stuart Wassall in 2008 – though Mr Price has said they simply want to move on and start afresh elsewhere and he would rather keep the freehold and lease it out if anyone is interested in taking it on the business that way.

Either way the pair are looking for someone to come in and take on the business. The eight-bedroom pub, which currently lets four rooms to guests, won a 'top-rated' accolade at the Laterooms.com national hospitality industry awards last year.

Mr Price said: "We're hoping to retain the freehold and let the lease to someone, though we'd be open to approaches over the freehold as well.

"It's a thriving business that was closed when we took it on 10 years ago. We're looking to move to another area and do the same thing again, really.

"We've enjoyed it here but there are a lot of communities out there that would benefit from and experienced practitioner coming into to run a pub, there is a big demand out there.

But, he said, they were willing to take their time to find the right person to take on the pub.

"There are no financial problems, we're not going going out of the trade or in any desperate rush to go," he said.

Until autumn last year the Boars Head housed Bishop's Castle's post office, with Mr Price acting as post master for the town also, but it moved in March to the nearby Spar store to extend opening hours.

The pub is up for sale with Guy Simmonds property agents and described as a "Beautifully presented and thriving 15th century, Grade II listed inn with letting bedrooms".

It has a lounge bar, 30 seater restaurant area, breakfast area, four en-suite letting rooms, an unused room to develop two further letting rooms, four-bedroom living accommodation, beer garden and car park.