ONE of Oxford’s most famous pubs is offering beer lovers a choice of more than 30 ales from across Britain.

The Turf Tavern, in Bath Place, is hosting a three-day beer festival which starts with a ‘meet the brewers’ event tonight.

John Bexon, head brewer of Greene King, and Andy Wilson, owner of White Horse Brewery in Stanford in the Vale, will both be on hand to talk about real ale.

Tomorrow and Saturday a pig roast will be on offer. Managers Chuck and Stella Berry took over the pub in May this year after moving back to the UK from Spain.

Mrs Berry said: “This is our first ale festival at the pub. It has always had a great atmosphere, but it is really going to be a great place to be this weekend.

“We have a large array of beers from across Britain so there should certainly be something for everyone.”

The pub’s foundations date back to the 14th century.

It featured in the Thomas Hardy novel Jude The Obscure and in Evelyn Waugh’s Brideshead Revisited.

Bob Hawke, who later became Australian Prime Minister, broke the world record for sinking a yard of ale in the pub in just 11 seconds in 1962, while Bill Clinton was a visitor during his time as a Rhodes scholar.

The Turf Tavern also features in two of Colin Dexter's Inspector Morse books, The Daughters of Cain and Death Is Now My Neighbour, and was used in a number of the television episodes.

Thom Yorke, lead singer of Oxford band Radiohead, is said to be a regular.

To find out more about the beer festival, visit theturftavern.co.uk