The Royal

31/10/2026

Happy Halloween! 🎃👻

We’ve got a rather substantial chest of treats at The Royal today, so if you’re popping in for a drink or a bite to eat, the little monsters are welcome to help themselves! 🍬

LITTLE monsters, mind. Adults, you’ve had your turn. You’re old enough to buy your own bloody chocolate. 😉

Lovely day for it, and we’re looking forward to seeing all your costumes. Pop in and say hello! 🎃

30/10/2026

🎃 THE ROYAL’S PUMPKIN CARVING COMPETITION — TIME TO VOTE! 🎃

The pumpkins are in, the knives have been put away (hopefully), and now it’s over to you lot to pick the winners!

We’ve combined the adults’ and children’s entries into one gallery this year, but they’re still two separate competitions, each with their own prizes.

🏆 ADULTS
🥇 1st — £100 food voucher
🥈 2nd — £50 food voucher

🏆 CHILDREN (11 & UNDER)
🥇 1st — £50 food voucher
🥈 2nd — £25 food voucher

HOW TO VOTE 👇

🎃 Browse the numbered pumpkins and give your favourites a like or reaction. Vote for as many as you like!

🎃 Adults and children are judged separately, with the two most popular entries in each category winning their respective prizes, regardless of the overall rankings.

🎃 Only reactions on the original photos on The Royal’s page count. Feel free to share, but votes on shared copies won’t be included.

⏰ Voting closes at 6pm on Sunday 1st November, with the winners announced that evening.

Some cracking efforts again this year. Good luck everyone, and happy voting! 🎃👏

30/10/2026

🍻 History, quality and community spirit all under one roof.

A huge congratulations to The Sportsman Inn in Carlisle on being crowned City Pub of the Year by Solway CAMRA.

For centuries, The Sportsman has been at the heart of Carlisle's pub scene, and today it continues to set the standard. From perfectly kept cask ales and delicious home-cooked food to the warm welcome that greets every customer, the team consistently delivers the kind of experience that keeps people coming back.

Its reputation speaks for itself. Alongside previous honours such as Winter Pub of the Season, The Sportsman has earned regular recognition in the CAMRA Good B**r Guide and remains one of the city's most loved traditional pubs.

This latest award celebrates the passion, hard work and dedication of the entire team, who continue to preserve the pub's rich heritage while making it a thriving destination for b**r lovers and the local community alike.

👏 Congratulations to our Publican, Amanda Picken, and everyone at The Sportsman Inn on another fantastic achievement.

27/10/2026

November menu is hot on our heels!! 😀

We’re into the final couple of days of our October menu, with preparations starting tomorrow for November’s offerings. 🍂

Our last seasonal menu before the Christmas festivities take over, and it’s packed with rich, hearty autumnal flavours — game, pheasant, slow-braised meats, root vegetables and plenty of comforting dishes for the colder months.

We’ll be winding down October’s dishes ahead of Thursday’s launch.

One of my favourite times of year for food. Hope you enjoy what’s coming! 🍷

27/10/2026

WOW 🔥

This has been such an honour to be a part of!

Huge thanks to Coca-Cola for championing community leaders around the UK and for picking our very own Simon Dafforn-jones as Local Royalty!

It was a privilege to have portrait artist to royalty, Jamie Coreth, capture Simon in his natural habitat, the FBI.

Read more here 👇🏼

https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/pub-landlord-given-royal-treatment-37812329

26/10/2026

The clocks have gone back, the nights are drawing in, and Christmas is starting to loom ominously on the horizon. 🎄

So, if you’re contemplating a festive get-together, we’ve got you covered.

Our Festive Menu runs from 23rd November to 23rd December, alongside our usual main menu. Two courses £29.95 or three for £35.95.

Whether it’s a Christmas party for 30 or just a few friends fancying something festive, everyone’s welcome. No pre-orders needed for smaller tables.

And for anyone unfortunate enough to have been lumbered with organising a party for 30 or more, we’ve even included a little ‘incentive’ — a £25 food voucher for the organiser.

😉

25/10/2026

We appreciate that if you’re not a serious w**e drinker, deciphering a w**e list can be an absolute minefield. 🍷

All those elaborate tasting notes, flowery descriptions and unnecessarily pretentious guff. And frankly, we’re as guilty as anyone.

So we’ve taken the liberty of adding a few helpful annotations to our own w**e list, translating the jargon into something a little more understandable.

We hope this clears things up. You’re welcome. 😂

24/10/2026

Don’t forget, the clocks go back tonight! ⏰

We’ve decided an hour isn’t nearly enough, so we’re going back to 1996.

£2 pints, Nokia bricks and nobody photographing their dinner.

See you there. 🍺

22/10/2026

🎃 THE ROYAL’S PUMPKIN CARVING COMPETITION IS BACK! 🎃

We’ve got 50 FREE pumpkins arriving tomorrow morning, ready for you lovely lot to take home and work your magic on!

Same drill as last year:

🎃 Collect your free pumpkin from The Royal from Friday morning 23rd (once they’ve arrived!).

🎃 Carve your masterpiece at home and return it by Thursday 29th October, ready for our Halloween weekend display.

🎃 We’ll photograph each entry as it comes back, while it’s looking its best, and let our Facebook followers vote for the winners!

PRIZES 🏆

Adults: £100 first prize / £50 second prize

Children (11 & under): £50 first prize / £25 second prize

Everyone who returns a carved pumpkin also gets a 25% off food voucher as a thank-you! Valid Monday–Thursday, excluding other promotions.

As always, creativity is encouraged. Adults, feel free to exercise your questionable sense of humour — just remember these will be displayed in a family pub, so try not to get us arrested. 😂

50 pumpkins. First come, first served. Let’s see what you’ve got! 🎃

22/10/2026

If you’ve ever found yourself setting the village to rights over a pint, this might be your chance to actually do something about it… 😬

And on the plus side, you’ll also get plenty of opportunities to tell the boss where he’s going wrong — apparently he doesn’t just get that at the pub 🤷‍♂️😆🤫

Parish Councillor vacancy — details below.

Fancy getting more involved in what happens in Bolton-le-Sands?

We currently have a vacancy for a Parish Councillor and would be keen to hear from residents who might be interested in joining us.

This is a voluntary role and a genuine opportunity to get involved in local issues, contribute ideas and help shape decisions affecting the village.

If you’re interested, please email our Clerk at:

[email protected]

There’s no need to send a CV or write an essay. Just give us a brief introduction to yourself, a little about your background, and what you feel you could bring to the Council.

If you’d simply like to know more about the role before deciding whether to put yourself forward, feel free to get in touch with any questions.

21/10/2026

Anyone up for another pumpkin carving competition this Halloween? 🎃

Let’s hope so. I’ve got 50 pumpkins arriving on Friday.

Otherwise, expect a LOT of pumpkin soup on the menu over the next couple of weeks. 😂

Details tomorrow! 👀

21/10/2026

Another early morning, gruelling supplier meeting at Lovingly Artisan near Kendal. Just as well I skipped breakfast… 😔😂

Came away with bags of bread samples to try, although I may have accidentally slipped in a few artisan pastries for the guys too 🤷‍♂️

It’s a tough job, but someone’s got to do it.

Anyway, back to The Royal for Northern Tapas Wednesday — all 12 tapas dishes just £6 each, all day and evening, with selected bottles of w**e for £18.

A few little plates, a bottle of w**e and Wednesday evening sorted. 🍷

20/10/2026

At Punch, we're proud to see young talent thrive across our pubs and support teams. From first jobs to leadership roles, remains one of the UK's greatest industries for developing skills, building confidence and creating rewarding careers.

That's why we're backing a hospitality-wide call to Government ahead of the Budget, championing the sector's ability to create jobs and opportunities for young people.

Hear Harry Bourne's story and why he's proud to support this message.

07/10/2026

Britain’s pubs are worth up to £30 billion in wellbeing value to communities across the UK. But rising costs and high taxes are putting pressure on pubs that bring people together.

This Week of Action, join the campaign today and tell your MP to keep pubs open and pints affordable.

https://www.longlivethelocal.pub/letter 🍍

25/09/2026

Actress Daisy Edgar-Jones filmed 🎥 a promo for her new film, Sense and Sensibility in our Canonbury pub, The Marquess Tavern for Vogue 🥰

The team at Vogue were searching for a shooting location that oozes class, was timeless and in-keeping with the theme of the movie... so where else were they going to film?! 😏

Take a look at the promo - Daisy is in character as Elinor Dashwood throughout!

Sense and Sensibility hits cinemas TODAY! 🎬Why not pop into The Marquess Tavern to wash down your popcorn! 🍿🍷

!

22/09/2026

We're on board, are you?

Join thousands backing Britain's pubs and breweries.

www.longlivethelocal.pub ❤️🍺

21/09/2026

This pub is a gem! 💎

The Wig & Mitre in Lincoln's Cathedral Quarter has reopened following a £100k investment. ⛪

Anne-Marie and Paul Balcomb have taken on the 14th century pub... "We’re thrilled to take control of such an iconic pub and can’t wait to meet all of our wonderful guests" ❤️

📷 Courtesy of Tory McTernan

17/09/2026

Welcome to The Buck Inn 🦌

New Management Partner Adrian McShane-Chapman has taken over the Thornton-le-Dale pub following a whopping £490k investment 🤑

🗨️ “I arrived in the UK 22 years ago from Australia, armed with just a backpack and no real plan... I’ve dipped in and out of hospitality over that time but the fire inside me to run my own pub burned bright.” - Adrian

If you're in Yorkshire, pay Adrian and his team a visit and check out this stunning pub for yourselves. 🤩

15/09/2026

Rory takes the keys to the refurbished Cross Keys pub in Nottingham! 🗝️

Our new Management Partner Rory Calladine has taken the reins at the popular city centre pub following a £100,000 investment.

🗨️"I was instantly drawn to the pub and as soon I discovered it was available in a partnership with Punch, I jumped at the chance." 🍍

Regular guests at The Cross Keys will instantly notice the pub’s traditional feel and special characteristics have been retained throughout but that a complete refresh has taken place. 💫

11/09/2026

We have reopened the Keyworth Tavern following a quarter-of-a-million refurbishment 🔥

The Keyworth pub in Nottingham, run by our Management Partner John Francis, had been closed for 5 weeks while we tore out the bar, stripped the pub back and replaced everything with new, modern furnishings. 🤩

Great work by everyone involved in the transformation 🥂

03/09/2026

We're quite fond of it too, Prime Minister! The Dog House

28/08/2026

Our Publican Beth at The Beeswing Inn 2013 has raised circa £250K for charity 😍 so if you're in the area this weekend, pop in and enjoy the music, food and drink!

Well done Beth!! 🥳

The Beeswing in East Cowton is hosting its 13th ‘Glastonbury’ festival to raise money for end of life care at a nearby hospital.

27/08/2026

Newly married couple Gareth and Jamie Furness have take the over The Bay Horse Inn in Pickering. 🔔

The pub has received a £400,000 investment and Gareth says it has been very well received by locals. 😃

“We are seeing more locals returning to the pub, faces that haven't been seen here for many years and we are seeing them on a regular basis... The refurb has really put The Bay Horse Inn back on the map and firmly at the heart of the Pickering community.” ❤️

Well done to everyone involved in this brilliant transformation 👏