THE landlords of a Sinnington pub are celebrating 20 years at the helm.

Andrew and Catherine Stephens are the resident proprietors of the 18th century Fox and Hounds country inn on Main Street.

On February 13, 1997, the couple moved into the inn after nearly two decades as farmers.

Catherine said: “We had been dairy farmers in Gloucestershire, and in 1981 moved to the Isle of Mull with two children aged 8 and 9 to begin a new venture farming beef, sheep and tourists!

“Having spent 14 years on Mull, building up a bed-and-breakfast and holiday cottage enterprise and extending our family, we decided to move to a drier climate and face a new challenge.

“Searching for almost two years we came across the Fox and Hounds, set in the most picturesque village in one of the most beautiful areas in England.”

The only stumbling block was that the pub, at the time, was in liquidation.

“The first six months I spent thinking ‘What have we done?’”, said Catherine. “But it’s proved to be fantastic. The past 20 years have flown by.”

The couple said they planned to mark their second decade at the pub on Monday with a special version of their regular quiz.

The inn serves food by head chef Mark Caffrey, who has been there for 12 years, alongside colleagues Damian and Dan. The inn is managed day-to-day by Helen Morse, who has been there 17 years, with a front-of-house team.

The Fox and Hounds is the centre for village activities: the dominoes team have been playing for 18 years, there has been a weekly quiz for the past eight years raising money for charities and now to help the village hall with their refurbishment.

The pub has also sponsored Sinnington Football Club for 20 years.

“The success we have achieved could only be done with the tireless support of our excellent staff and the support from all our wonderful customers,” added Catherine.