Gay force

For four women in Swindon, it was a case of they liked the Cricketers pub in Swindon so much, they decided to take over running it when the previous licensee left. The four ­ Nara Hillard, Sarah Gibbs, Sue Chubb and Lynda Mills ­ took on the InnSpired tenancy and have turned it into the most successful gay pub in the "Railway Village" area of the Wiltshire town. Some of them had never stepped foot behind a bar and their collective workplace experience ranged from working nights at the local supermarket to mucking out on a nearby farm. "It just goes to show that when running a pub, commitment and drive are central, more so than experience," says Gibbs. She continues: "After drinking in the Cricketers for years, we knew the pub's tenancy was available, so we approached InnSpired and put together a business plan. Looking back, it was so easy to do, all it took was hard work and our dream rapidly became a reality ­ we signed the lease and the rest is, as they say, history." When the foursome took over the pub, it was, more often than not, half empty. Gibbs recalls: "We remember its hey-day when it was so popular you would have trouble getting through the door, let alone ordering a drink ­ it was packed. We soon managed to turn things around by getting back to basics' - by putting on classic gay favourites such as fetish nights and drag acts. Within five weeks, we had the place crammed to the rafters ­ regaining its position as the centre for the local gay community, just like it was five years ago." Although Hillard has now quit the business, the remaining trio have soldiered on. InnSpired business development manager Paul Podvoiskis says: "A great example of the pub's success is how busy it can get on, say, a Friday evening. But even when it is full to capacity on a riotous drag night, there is never any need for security as the atmosphere is so care free and friendly." Gibbs adds: "The approach to take with a gay pub like the Cricketers is to ensure that everybody is catered for. Nearly every night has a different theme, whether looking at our monthly fetish night, the regular drag acts, or our weekly lesbian group meetings, the pub is always full of people from the campest queen through to low-key professionals.