Mawdesley pub described as "heart of the village" saved from potential closure by one of the locals.

It was a case of it takes a village to save a pub for the Red Lion in Mawdesley as one of its 'cubs' has taken it over to save it from potential closure.
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The popular pub, which has been at the heart of the village for generations, even surpassing two World Wars, was threatened with closure due to Covid.

Determined to save their pub, locals launched the question: how can we save the Lion? on the Mawdesley Help each other out Facebook page when one man and his family answered their prayers.

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Ian Hewitt, 56, decided to step up, dedicating his time to perfecting the beer, cleaning up the place, and providing the love needed to breathing the roar back into the Lion.

The Red Lion Pub in Mawdesley.The Red Lion Pub in Mawdesley.
The Red Lion Pub in Mawdesley.

Ian, who runs the establishment with his wife Sarah, and has three kids - Bunny, 19, Leon, 23, and Cameron 25, has never owned a pub before but has experience with distillers as he owns Spitfire Gin company and also runs RAF events said: "The pub needed a lot of work. We will be starting food at the end of the month with a local chef who will be serving up country English classics.

"We also have monthly story-telling on the first Tuesday of every month where we invite the audience to get up and tell a story. We will also be doing one on Valentine's evening."

The pub will also cater for live bands as Ian adds "music is very much a part of our village vibe, and massive in our lives for sure."

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"It took the village to save The Red Lion of Mawdesley. It’s a countrywide issue to be honest, we all need to fight for our pubs. They are an important part of our identity and unique to our culture.

The Red Lion continues to roar.The Red Lion continues to roar.
The Red Lion continues to roar.

"Pubs see people just to say hello to, not ours - it's all about connecting people to see the soul of the village.

"They are where we mix and listen to other opinions different to our own and develop tolerance. It’s where young and old see each other as individuals. It’s where we learn our manners and etiquette, it’s where we look up from our phone screens, catch a wink, and belly laugh. It’s where we pat each other on the back an ask….”Are you alreet mucker?”

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