The Shrewsbury town centre pub that provides a 'snapshot in time' for staff and customers

Other pubs offer a gastronomic experience through carvery lunches, while others exist as a community hub, nestled in a neighbourhood and accessible to all.

In the case of the Bulls Head in Shrewsbury, its location plays a large role in its life, being based next to the town's railway station on Castle Gates and easily seen by anyone heading into or out of the town centre.

The pub actually pre-dates the station, having been opened in the 19th century to service the coaching route that ran through Shrewsbury to northern parts of the county, then was taken over by Yates Brewery of Birkenhead after the railway station opened in 1848.

It has changed hands over the years, starting with Butlers of Wolverhampton and now operated by Marstons, undergoing a renovation in 2019 which saw the central bar moved to the rear of the pub and the interior updated.

It was into this popular town centre pub that current landlord Ben Adams stepped in in September, having spent 18 months running a pub in Wrexham and finding he wanted to run somewhere with more people and with a greater social aspect.

He explains: "I was living over in Wrexham, running a pub in a rural area and while it was lovely, we wanted to see more people as people would come in the evening, so it wasn't lonely, but it wasn't going to be this big social pub.

"This pub was on our old area managers group and said I should take a look as they thought it would fit my personality, and I found that there was a nice flow of people throughout the day and you could get to interact with them.

"The part of Shrewsbury we're in is a great little community, from the Tap and Can to the coffee house across the road, and that's one of the core factors that brought us here as we would see people all the time and that was something we liked."

Mr Adams said the passing trade was one of the best parts of the pub, with plenty of people coming to and from the railway station, and said it was nice to be able to talk to people about their journeys and where they were going.

He says "I personally quite like talking to people about where they're going or where they've been, finding out a little bit about them, and it's like a snapshot in time as we might not see that person again for weeks or months, but when they come back, they get that same warm welcome.

"We don't have a great deal of locals, so it's all about passing trade and people who are looking for a warm, friendly face as they call in for a drink or something to eat, and we're not a chain pub where it's impersonal and they're just a number.

"It's a lovely situation to be in because when you look out the window, you see the constant flow of people going past and while you might only get two out of every 100 people, they'll be welcomed in like they live just across the road."

The pub itself is equipped to deal with all visitors, with everything from real ale to cocktails available behind the bar and all ingredients made from scratch for the cocktails and a wide a range available.

There is also an extensive wine list, a wide range of spirits and a good selection of food, ranging from a breakfast menu to a lunch deal with sandwiches and wraps, then a full pub fayre menu later on with steak, Hunters chicken and sausage and mash among the favourites.

Mr Adams says the pub is a warm, welcoming and friendly place and was special because of its location, which made it perfect for people to call in.

He adds: "It's nice where we are situated as people can visit us from the train station or heading up the hill to go to the town centre and we're not in the town centre, so we don't experience a lot of the trouble other people get.

"We get a different type of clientèle who are a bit calmer, older and just want to come for a nice drink and a chat and I love that as I'm not interested in running a party bar.

"I like to building something where you can talk to each other in the room and you can meet new people and you can catch up on what's in the news, so it's just a lovely environment all around and a lovely building with a lot of character."