Rendezvous & Royal Oak, Weymouth has been featured in Short Stories from down the Pub, a debut collection of stories championing pubs around the country. Written and collated by the team at Stonegate Group, the UK’s largest pub company, from contributions made by customers and employees, the book contains over 100 stories, including a nostalgic tale from Area Manager, then General Manager, of the Rendezvous and Royal Oak, Keith Treggiden.
Back in 2010, Keith had an unexpected visit from Don, who wanted to give his compliments to the manager. After a short conversation, Don revealed that he grew up in the very building they were in. Don had lived there, before it converted to a pub and bar, over 70 years previously with his family. He was visiting his childhood home to celebrate his diamond wedding anniversary with his wife. Keith invited Don up to the flat upstairs for a trip down memory lane as they exchanged stories and reminisced about how the area had developed.
Keith said of the story, “I remember what a special experience it was to meet Don. He had so many stories to tell and it was so fascinating to hear about his life and his family. Pubs on the outside are bricks and mortar, but it is the people in them like Don that make them so full of life and history; that give them the heart that makes them so important to so many people, myself included.”
Now this heart-warming story is featured in a new book, Short Stories from down the Pub. This book began as part of an initiative by Stonegate to keep teams engaged over lockdown. The pandemic has taken its toll on so many aspects of daily life, especially on mental wellbeing. To keep morale up, an employee-led team encouraged their colleagues to share stories from the pub – funny moments, great memories and heart-warming recollections were in abundance. The stories soon came flooding in and the book took six months to complete.
Colin Hawkins, Operational Director at Stonegate said “It has been a huge honour to relive all these incredible stories and collate them into something really special. We had so many great stories to choose from and Keith’s story about Don is a fantastic example.
“I am so proud of the team at Stonegate for all their efforts towards the book and their unwavering positive attitude over the past year. It has been amazing to be able to give something back to the hospitality industry and all the people who make pubs the great places they are.”
Profits from the book go to the Licensed Trade Charity, an organisation that provides crucial help, support and advice for licensed drinks trade people. At £9.99, Short Stories from down the Pub is available in print and digitally through Amazon at https://amzn.to/3wkzJ2K.
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