Red Lion Renewal? No, Just Business at Usual
Michelle: we used to look after it for Dave & Lorraine while they were on holiday for.. what, the last three years? I used to do a few shifts a week when I was here because I lived with Claire and Mick Brooks in Lower End until we bought our house about two years ago. So I knew Dave and Lorraine, who let us know that they were leaving, and we said we'd be interested in taking it. It was all very quick - we didn't really have much time to think about it! (laughs). I've got a personal licence, which I did when I was here with Lorraine, because to be a holiday cover I had to be a licence holder. You have to learn the law, and all the ins and outs.. then a two-part exam. We know all the regulars and they know us - so it is quite nice. After the interview process, we got a call. As long as we could take it within a week, it was ours.
Josh: from us finding out that Lorraine was leaving and us moving in was about two and a half weeks.. all very quick.
Michelle: It's long hours, but we've enjoyed every minute of our first few weeks.
Josh: It's a lot of hard work. People think you open at twelve, shut at three; open at six, close at midnight, but it's not like that at all. You get down here at 8.30, and you don't stop until one o'clock, when everybody's gone home. You might get an hour's sit down - but there's the potatoes to do, salads to sort out for tomorrow. There's never any time when you say, we've got nothing to do. There's deliveries coming.. and I'm not here all the time. I work at Marshall's Aerospace - I'm an aeronautical engineer, on the manufacturing side. Michelle's in charge - I'm just the deputy!
I'm from Bottisham - went to school there straight to Marshall's, did my four year apprenticeship there, and just carried on. I'm still there. My grandma and grandad, Jeff and Annie Haynes, owned the Sun and Gate, in Longmeadow. There were two pubs - the Sun, and next to it was the Gate, but one closed and they merged so it was the Sun and Gate when my grandad had it. But my dad and my auntie, they grew up there, and the house is still there, and my dad's got his business next door. My grandad would have liked to have seen us in here, and come over here for a drink.
Michelle: I'm from Chatteris originally - it's a bit like Burwell, with a few more shops. Or Soham. Nobody famous comes from Chatteris - except Dave 'Boy' Green, the boxer! Know him well - he went to school with my mum. I worked at Addenbrookes, and lodged in Swaffham Prior when I worked at the hospital.
Josh: We knew each other from bowling, then I was playing in the cup final at Cambridge. We had a few drinks afterwards and got chatting.. that was three years ago.
Michelle: I think we first got the idea of running a pub when we first looked after it for Lorraine - something different, we both enjoyed it. A completely different experience.
Michelle: I was an anatomical pathology technologist. It involves post-mortems. Histological work on children. Histology is the study of tissues and diseases. So this to me was completely new. I don't think people realised I had another job when I was here. I was just.. here! (laughs).
Josh: We looked after it together purely because you worked here. We thought, okay, we'll do that! We never imagined running it. But we said, if we ever run a pub, we'd love it to be this one. And when it came up, we decided to go for it.
Michelle: and it's a lovely pub. A lovely village. We love it.
Josh: We like the area, my family's around, friends are here. When they asked us if we'd be prepared to run one of their other pubs we said it was this or nothing. Laid it out to them straight, and they appreciated that. We did pretty much everything we do now, but before it was: there's the rota, get on with it. It's a good pub, good reputation, Lorraine and Dave worked hard and brought the pub right up, so - if it ain't broke, don't fix it.
If people walk in and don't notice any change, that's ideal. Without people it's just an empty building! They're behind us 100%. Pam Waters, she's helped us out delivering leaflets.. Steve who's going to do the quiz.. things like that. And Sid comes down to see us every day.
Michelle: The worst bit? Not being able to watch any telly! Not having five minutes to yourself.
Josh: Everything's got to be planned. Both, in unison: You can't be spontaneous!
Michelle: And I can't have Polo, my big fat black and white moggy - That's much worse. My mum's looking after her. That makes me very sad. She's just had an operation. Last time she saw me I was taking her to the vet's. She'll think I've abandoned her.
I trained from school as a vet nurse and then was interested in histopathology, because we used to send the tumours and things off to the lab, so I went to visit Addenbrookes for the day. I must have made some sort of impression - the boss of the department phoned and asked me to apply for a medical assistant job. It was very interesting, so I went.. then after a couple of years they created a new department. Addenbrookes is East Anglia's regional centre for paediatric and perinatal pathology, so I did the qualifications in anatomical pathology.
Josh: But you can be your own boss now, and you can just do things your way. The pub itself is the best bit. It's one of those places you walk in through the front door and it feels very homely..
Michelle: I think it's about six hundred years old, but don't quote me. Parts of it are. It used to be one room, with bits added on later.
Josh: If there were any serious problems - there haven't been any - we just have to phone the owners and they'll send someone over. So far, it's only light-bulbs that have been trouble. Never known a place where so many light-bulbs go..
Michelle: We had about five go the other night. I'm sure it was the Norman the ghost. We just blame him. I don't know whether there's supposed to be a ghost, but I just call him Norman.
Josh: You get the phone ring, funny little noises, funny little things down in the cellar - everyone says, oh, that's just Norman. Everyone that's worked here before..
Michelle: It was me and Janet that came up with the Norman theory. We just decided to name him one day.. the door that keeps opening upstairs.. It's all speculation!
Josh: You get the phone go ding randomly at one o'clock in the morning..
Michelle: Buttons go..
Josh: and 'who put that in the middle of the floor in the cellar, it wasn't me!' (general laughter) silly little things like that.
Michelle: Maybe there is. But I think he'd have told us by now if there is.
Josh: Ask us again in a couple of years' time.
MICHELLE AND JOSH WOULD LIKE TO SAY A VERY BIG THANKYOU TO CUSTOMERS FOR ALL THEIR SUPPORT!