Pub of the Year winner buys freehouse in Cambridgeshire

The former owner of the Good Pub Guide's 2005 Pub of the Year has snapped up the Hole in the Wall freehouse and restaurant in Cambridgeshire.

The new owner is Stephen Bull, who earlier in the year sold the award-winning Lough Pool Inn in Sellack near Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire. He plans to reopen the business in January 2006.

The historic property in the village of Little Wilbraham (which is near Cambridge and Anglesey Abbey) dates back to the 15th century.

Previous owners Willie Dixon and Anne Byrne, who bought the property in 1998, built up a strong reputation for serving high-quality home-made food.

The business, which is sited near Anglesey Abbey, comprises two restaurants for 24 and 50 diners respectively (each with their own bars) and a lounge bar.

It also has a two-bedroom owners' accommodation, a beer garden and a car park.

The name stems from an old tradition in which farm workers left their jugs in a hole in the wall of the main bar in the morning to be filled with beer ready for collection on their way home from the fields.

The Ipswich office of Christie & Co achieved a sales price for the freehold close to the asking price of £525,000.