The famous Virgins & Castle on the old High Street in Kenilworth has been working with a young, local designer to help them bring to life the magic of Christmas of a bygone time ready for their re-opening in December.

The 16th century pub, that is part of the Everards Brewery and owned by hospitality group Caviar & Chips, had to close its doors, along with every other pub in the country, on Thursday, November 5.

During the second phase of lockdown the team at the pub have been busy behind the scenes getting ready for their first Christmas in the oldest pub in Kenilworth.

With pubs set to open again on Thursday, December 3 just in time for Christmas trade, the Virgins & Castle has been getting ready behind the scenes and local designer Robyn Clements has been playing a big part in designing the new festive menu along with social and digital media designs.

Marc Hornby, Co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer for Caviar & Chips and the Virgins & Castle commented "We've been really looking forward to our first Christmas in the pub. I remember when we agreed to take on the ownership, it was around Christmas time last year and the pub just has something cosy and magical about it - everything you could want in an old, nostalgic Christmas of times gone by.

"With the pub being built in the 16th century it's seen almost 500 Christmases before us and you can imagine how special it would have been when the Victorians made Christmas the season that we've come to know now. Bringing in the holly and the ivy, the large Christmas tree and enjoying mulled wine and cider with a feast of roast Turkey, cranberries and Christmas crackers. We get excited just talking about it!

"We love working with local suppliers and that runs through our food, drink, printing and now our designs with Robyn creating some amazing artwork for us. Robyn has taken our chefs' festive menus and sprinkled some wonderful festive designs throughout and we're really looking forward to sharing them with our guests."

While the Virgins & Castle is closed throughout November the pub is still taking bookings and reservations for Christmas and the New Year although not on Christmas Day as they say that Christmas Day is 'when our team should be with their families.'

Robyn Clements added "I loved working on the designs we created for the Virgins & Castle. It's a pub that I and my family know well. My brother even has a job there as a host and we've been taking part in the pub's online quizzes during lockdown.

Working with Marc at the Virgins & Castle we listed everything we connected with Christmas and festive nostalgia from Victorian England and even prior. The pub has such a rich history and the food and drink is pretty special too! Working on a project like this has been such a great opportunity to build up my portfolio and being centred around such an exciting time made it that bit more fun too!"

You'll be able to see the new festive menus online and on social media from the Virgins & Castle and the team will be announcing all sorts of events, extra festive treats and dates in the coming weeks.

Visit their website to keep informed and book your table.

To see even more designs by Robyn Clements you can visit her website or visit her Instagram page @rf.clements