Cellar House landlords take on Wymondham's Green Dragon

Victoria and Grahame Macdonald, who run the Cellar House in Eaton and the Old Ram in Tivetshall St Mary, will soon be pouring pints at the Green Dragon in Wymondham having agreed to take on the lease.

The move will see Mr Macdonald follow in his great-great-great-great-grandfather's footsteps, who ran the historic inn in the mid-1800s.

Victoria Macdonald outside the Cellar House in Eaton (Image: Steve Adams)

He said: "Victoria and I live in Wymondham so when the opportunity came up we were really keen to pursue it.

"We will maintain its position at the heart of the community - like how it has been for centuries."

In February this year, the Grade II listed pub closed to customers after its then-landlady Jill Tickle decided to leave the business. 

The Church Street inn went up for rent by owners Admiral Taverns shortly after but it wasn't long before a new landlord agreed to take over the reins.

The pair will bring many years of experience in the trade to the new venture which they hope to make a continued success as his relative once did.

The Green Dragon in Wymondham is one of the oldest pubs in the country (Image: Newsquest)

Mr Macdonald added: "The family connection makes it particularly special.

"My great-great-great-great-grandfather Cordell Clarke founded the Cann & Clarke Brewery, which owned a number of pubs in Norwich and Wymondham, including the Green Dragon.

"There are many Clarke's buried in Wymondham Abbey, including Cordell himself.

"With this link, it gave us a real desire to take on the pub alongside our two others."

The Green Dragon claims to be one of the oldest pubs in the country - serving locals for more than 600 years.

Its Tudor features remain and upon close inspection, you can still see scorch marks from the Great Fire of Wymondham in 1615, which the Green Dragon survived despite it destroying many of the town's buildings.  

Work is under way to reopen the pub in the coming weeks.