Historic real ale pub The Grapes in Oxford has now reopened.
The hostelry across the road from the New Theatre in George Street shut suddenly at the end of 2021 but is back after a London-based pub company stepped in to take it over.
The pub, which dates back to the 1800s, closed in December 2021 after the West Berkshire Brewery running it went into administration.
READ MORE: Historic real ale pub is reopening
Now, once again, pints of beer and other tipples are being served.
Staff were working right up to the last minute to get the pub looking its best before reopening at 5pm.
Manager Johnny Roberts said: "I'm delighted to be here at The Grapes - I'm from Blackbird Leys originally.
"I was assistant manager at the Four Candles just along the street, and worked at a pub in Bladon and in Liverpool, and I've come back to run The Grapes.
"I fell in love with what the company do - we've got 48 different beers - it's a very good range and half of those beers will be quite local.
"We've got Loose Cannon and Little Ox - the guys from the local CAMRA branch have been very supportive.
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"We've got vintage games and vinyl records too - we have tried to create the feeling of a living room - we want everyone to have fun."
Mr Roberts said the pub would be open late on some evenings - from 10am to 2am from Wednesday to Saturday.
"We expect to get lots of customers from the New Theatre," he added.
"And some drinkers will come to us from other pubs when they have closed for the night."
The pub building is owned by Oxford City Council.
The lease has been bought by Dick Morgan, the owner behind The Express Tavern in Kew, and The Sussex Arms in Twickenham.
He was at the pub today, overseeing the launch.
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Mr Morgan said: "It's nice to be in Oxford and I'm delighted we are ready to reopen - it's taken 18 months of hard work to get to this point."
The Grapes was established by 1808 and may originally have been called the Bunch of Grapes.
It was rebuilt in its present form in about 1894 and and once had 'swinging front doors likened to a Wild West saloon'.
Bath Ales were in charge in 2012 and revamped the pub.
It was renamed Beerd Oxford in 2015. And then its name reverted back to The Grapes by August 2017 when it was given a refurbishment, and theatre photos and memorabilia were removed from the walls.
Then in 2019, West Berkshire Brewery took charge, and went ahead with a £70,000 refurbishment, improving the bar area and created new wooden booths for seating.
Those wooden booths have now been removed and replaced with different seating, and a new grapes pub sign has gone up outside.
Additional reporting: Fleur de Bono
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