BBC man to reopen historic pub
Friday 18th June 2010, 7:10AM BST.
A historic Shropshire pub which has been in the county for nearly 150 years has been given a new name ahead of its reopening after a £100,000 revamp.
The Last Inn in Wellington Road in Church Aston was bought by BBC presenter Nick Snaith, who comes from Newport, and will now be called The Aston.
Twenty jobs will be created at the pub when it opens on June 23.
Nick Snaith
Mr Snaith is known for his work as a presenter in BBC1′s Holiday show and is now a DJ for Heart FM. But the former Adams’ Grammar School pupil is no stranger to the pub trade and runs a successful bar and club in Notting Hill, London.
Mr Snaith bought the freehold of The Aston from Enterprise Inns in March and said he was planning to “pull the historic pub into the 21st century” but retain its countryside character.
The pub’s interior has been re-designed and new menus are in place.
“We have changed the name of the pub to symbolise a fresh start, the refurbishment has gone very well and the interior is exactly what I envisioned when I set foot in the pub all those months ago,” said Mr Snaith.
“The Aston is a cosy historic pub with a contemporary twist, with locally sourced food and ales The Aston will be at the heart of village life.”
He added most of the produce and ale has been locally sourced and residents will see some familiar faces behind the bar.
Most Commented
- Shropshire Council will face £8m redundancy bill
- Clampdown on Shrewsbury chuggers
- Bishop's gay marriage views do nothing to support bible teachings
- Letter: Alcohol price plans annoy me
- Planners ordered to stay on Newport visit bus
- Letter: Angered by close encounter of the furred kind
- Letter: No sense in overseas job adverts
Shropshire Star on Twitter
Keep updated with the latest breaking news and content on our Twitter feed.
Lifestyle
Interactive Dining Out map
Hundreds of reviews by the Shropshire Star and Express & Star's teams to help you decide where to eat.
Entertainment
All the film reviews
Before you plan a trip to the pictures, get our critics' verdicts on all the latest movie releases.
OUR NEW APP
Get the new Shropshire Star app
Download the Shropshire Star’s new app to your iPad or iPhone to get one week of access to our digital newspapers absolutely FREE.
shropshirestar.com
Popular sections
Useful links
“A historic Shropshire pub which has been in the county for nearly 150 years”
…..so where was it before??
Report abuse
Thank you, Captain Pedantic.
(Still, an excellent point well made.)
Report abuse
Just needs a bridge from the carpark now… I couldn’t cross that busy road with a skinfull in me lol
Report abuse
That’s Major General Pedantic if you don’t mind sir!!!
Report abuse
A new name to symbolise a fresh start..? Is the refurbishment not enough then..? Does the refirb’ not make a sufficient statement in itself..? If “The Last Inn” has been good enough for 150 years, why change the name..? People will continue to refer to the pub as “The Last” as they always have..! “THE ASTON”; I don’t think so..! “THE LASTON”; maybe..!
Report abuse
I guess the new owner wants to make a clean break from the past and get away from the poor reputation it had. See:
http://www.shropshirestar.com/latest/2008/09/30/pub-kitchen-was-over-run-with-mice/
for details
Report abuse
A new name is very much what it needs! The Last Inn before was an awful pub. The town needs another good pub and restruaunt! The Last Inn needs to be forgotten about all together!!
Report abuse
I think I prefer the new name. The Last Inn has a sound of desperation about it!
I’m looking forward to giving it a try. Hopefully it’ll make it on to my list of “regulars”.
Report abuse
Not too keen on name changes for old pubs but “The Aston” is better than “the Slug and Stockbroker” , “Bunter’s Wine Bar” or similar horrors…
Good to see a pub opening again in the current climate. Hope they serve real ale, and do really well…
Report abuse
Pat, 5 handpumps, with a variety of banks/marstons beer. EPA, Pedigree, jennings cumberland and honey (somthing or other)…
All well kept, and the chap i spoke to today seems to want to keep the EPA as a regular, then look out for the more locALE beers.
Looks good nice and bright, could be a good success!
Report abuse
I like the new name. The Last Inn makes me think ‘The Last Resort’ – err, no thanks! When I hear The Aston I think of Aston Martin – fine, classic, stylish and civilised, and I’m looking forward to visiting this pub in the near future.
Oh and how great to see ‘new jobs’ and ‘ales’ in the same article…economists and beer aficionados unite!
Report abuse