The Queens Head, Leighton Buzzard

The Queen's Head is still open, but it does now have a run-down feel to it. Opening times were hard to establish. We had assumed that the pub opened at 3pm and arriving about 2:30pm on a Saturday afternoon, we were prepared to return later in the evening if it was indeed closed. The pub is situated on a double bend which is currently the subject of temporary traffic lights. It is in the middle of the roadworks. The car park to the rear was quite full and appears to be in use as some kind of scrap car yard. Some of the cars and vans clearly hadn't moved for a while. Parking up, we still weren't sure if the pub was open or not. However, it was indeed open. Opening times are listed on a piece of A4 paper inside. Since January, they have been opening earlier at 2pm for weekends. During the week, I believe it was still 3pm. Two rooms are still apparent. There is a bar area to the left and a very basic space to the right with a dartboard and a few children's toys. In the bar area, the landlord was at the end of the bar, there was a barmaid and a couple of other customers. A TV above the fireplace was showing a football game from the Euros. Note, there has clearly been a change in ownership since the last review, as the current landlord is definitely not in his 80's or 90's! Tring Ridgeway is the real ale. I suspect it's not something that most of the locals would drink, but there must be somebody who comes in to drink it. This was a bitter that I'd not tried before, but there was nothing particularly special about it. This feels like a pub very much on its last legs. Being the only pub in the village, it's probably still cherished by the locals. But from an outsider's perspective, it's unlikely to attract too much passing trade. As plus points, it doesn't appear to be owned by a pubco and it does stock a local cask ale.

A small, two-roomed village boozer located on an S-bend in the middle of Tebworth village, which according to the signage outside is at threat of closure due to Charles Wells wanting to sell up. The front entrance brings you into a small, square-shaped tiled floor room with small bar counter facing, a fireplace to the right, a dartboard on the wall to the left of the bar itself and three arches to the left housing a narrow strip of room, and used to store old tables, chairs and A-boards. On the bar there were four separate charity boxes along with several A4 posters on the walls donating either upcoming or previous charity events as well as totals of monies raised. A door to the right on entry, signed 'Bar' leads to a longer, thinner room, which runs at a right-angle to the other room, carpeted, and served by its own separate bar to the left and which had a handful of good-natured locals in attendance on a lazy March Sunday afternoon. The solitary pump clip offered CW Eagle IPA, but the amiable barman, who talked me through the story of their current Sword of Damocles, explained that they had two Young's beers - Burning Gold and Special available from the barrel in the cellar, so a half of the latter it was (albeit served in a hi-ball glass). It's a tired old building that's seen better days (the landlord himself is in his 80s, and made a friendly appearance before I departed) and could do with a bit more TLC but part of me wishes them well (they've already secured it as an ACV), and I hope this place hangs on.