It was a case of out with the new and in with the old as a village pub returned to its original name.

The Duke of Marlborough performed the official unveiling on Friday (November 22) to reinstate the name The White House on the pub in Bladon.

New tenants Eddie and Maeve Bradbury decided to discard the name put up three years ago -- The Bygone Inn -- by pub firm Morrells of Oxford.

The Greene King brewery now owns the pub. One of the first decisions Mr and Mrs Bradbury made when they took over was to revert to The White House name, which the pub had used since the 17th century.

Their second decision was to turn the event into a party by inviting everyone in the village to the ceremony.

"I don't think anyone in the village liked The Bygone Inn and neither did we," said Mr Bradbury.

"It's a case of setting the record straight.

"According to the history books, The White House has been here since 1661. So 340-odd years of history can now continue."

Morrells had decided to change the name to try to attract trade from tourists.

Mr and Mrs Bradbury, who were previously managers at the Book Binders Arms, in Jericho, Oxford, have arrived just weeks after the village of Bladon lost its only other pub, The Lamb.

The previous sign for The White House was a representation of the US presidential residence.

The new one, though, depicts a typical English cottage.

"There's an American connection because of all the visitors who come here to see Winston Churchill's grave, but we only get them for two or three months a year," added Mr Bradbury.

"We're keen to get it back to being part of the community, a real old village pub."