Cornish pair win Greyhound race

A ghost and a mention in the Domesday Book are just some of the features of the Greyhound Inn, Fenny Bridges, Devon, which has just changed hands.

The inn, located off the A30 between Exeter and Honiton, has been bought by Paul and Lorain Whyle, experienced licensees from PCL Leisure Limited of Widemouth in Cornwall.

'This charming thatched property has a wealth of character features - there are even tales of a resident ghost, an unidentified lady who insists that the flowers immediately under her photograph are not moved,' said Michael Easton of the Exeter office of Christie & Co.

'A mention in the Domesday Book proves that an inn has stood on the site for centuries. The earliest parts of the property date from 1086. It later became a coaching inn belonging to the Greyhound Stagecoach Company.

During the Prayer Book Rebellion of 1549, a former landlord of the inn was hanged, drawn and quartered as part of the massacre at Fenny Bridges.'

Trading as a food-led inn with letting accommodation, the business has a main bar, 60-cover restaurant, 10 letting bedrooms, two-bedroom owner's accommodation, gardens, stables and car park.

The trade split is currently 50% food, 40% wet and 10% accommodation.

'It has been sold on behalf of Steve and Patti Geiss, who bought the lease of the business in August 2002 having previously worked there in a management capacity,' Easton added. The remaining 32 years of the lease was sold for an undisclosed sum off an asking price of £175,000.