Adrian Arksey, 54, alongside his partner Clair Stokes, 51, have taken up management of The Bulls Head in Ranmoor, after the pub was left in a ‘sorrowful state’.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite already managing The Angel at Holmesfield, Adrian and Clair have taken it upon themselves to restore the pub that Adrian had worked at when he was just 18 years old. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Adrian said: \u201cWhen I got here it was smelly, it was dirty, they had trashed the cellar, there were barrels and kegs thrown all over the place, and smashed glass. It was in such a sorrowful state that I just felt a bit sad.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
It took Adrian, alongside some of his employees from The Angel, four weeks to clean the pub and get it back to its current condition. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Adrian said: \u201cIf it sat still long enough, it got jet-washed. We had a six tonne skip outside which was filled with rubbish.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cThere\u2019s been a lot of stressors because there\u2019s a lot of stuff that\u2019s been broken. A lot of frustrating things like fridges have needed repairing, lights haven\u2019t worked and so on.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Despite the challenges that Adrian and Clair have faced, the pub is now back to its former glory and open for business. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Its opening night in April saw a great turnout, with locals remembering him from his days working behind the bar, despite the many years he\u2019s been away. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
He said: \u201cThere were lots of familiar faces that remembered me, bizarrely. There have been a lot of Facebook posts where I\u2019ve seen people saying \u2018The Bull\u2019s reopening\u2019 and \u2018guess who\u2019s back\u2019. It was a great success.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe sold so much wine on that first night I had to go to our wine merchant again, because they drank tonnes of the stuff.\u201c<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Adrian and Clair have big plans for The Bull\u2019s future – including hopes for a pool and darts league, live music events, quiz nights, and even a psychic night which is taking place on May 23.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Adrian said: \u201cWe\u2019re starting off probably about every 2 or 3 weeks, but it would be nice if we could get to it that we\u2019ve got a weekly event with music on.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n