A HUSBAND and wife are celebrating their 30th year as owners of a Whiteparish pub.

On September 12 Lorraine and Paul Cooper, landlady and landlord of Parish Lantern, marked the huge milestone with decorations and cheer, reflecting on taking over the establishment three decades ago.

From festivals to weddings and parties, the village pub has been a part of it all.

Lorraine told the Journal it felt "amazing" to reach this anniversary, adding the business has "gone berserk" since the Covid-19 restrictions were fully lifted.

"We're full most evenings, you always need to book," she said.

"It's really overwhelming. The support from the locals has been amazing. We've always just been a proper community village pub, the kids in the village have been our staff and grown up with us."

Talking about the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic Lorraine said: "I didn't think we would last this long, especially with what has been going on.

"It's difficult when the government tells you to shut and that is it, you just think 'what should we do?'.

"It was nice to have a bit of time off but then there was always that question of when will we come back.

"It has been hard but we have made it through."

During the pandemic Parish Lantern had taken part in various initiatives to keep afloat, including providing a takeaway service during lockdown and participating in the 'Eat Out to Help Out' scheme last summer.

When asked what it takes to run a successful pub, Lorraine confessed being a landlady wasn't something she had ever planned or thought about, but her and Paul took over the pub from Paul's father when he passed away.

It's the relationship with customers and the village setting however that make Parish Lantern what it is today.

She said: "This wasn't for me to start with but my husband is a very social man and loves to be around people.

"We're both very hard working so we don't just stand back and let our staff take on everything - we've been very hands on from the start. We're always working.

"We want to thank our customers for their support, with old and new customers we're just like a big family."

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