Two brothers and a lifelong friend have embarked on a joint venture to give one of their former favourite pubs a new lease of life.
Siblings Ben, 28, and George Stephens, 25, met Nathan Hood, 27, when they were youngsters living on Inman Street in Bury.
Having grown up together, the trio have made many memories and intend to make even more at the site of their former go-to pub, The Thirsty Fish near Bury Market, which closed its doors earlier this year.
George, who now lives in Walmersley, said: “We grew up together and although we all have our own jobs and lives, we would always meet for a drink there on a Friday night.
“Me and my brother Ben had the idea to take over the pub and reopen it as something new, still focusing on real craft ales but also making it a little bit more inclusive with a wider selection of spirits, European Pilsners and Lager.
“Once we got things underway, we asked Nathan at the last minute and he was all for it.”
The pub will be refurbished over the coming weeks in the hopes of opening at the start of July under the aptly named title of "The Marketside Tavern".
The new owners are aiming to locally source food and other items from the market and keep the Bury link as strong as possible.
George, who is a football coach and Bury FC fan, added that with the recent FA announcement confirming the club’s return to Gigg Lane, they want to accommodate fans before and after matches too.
He said: “I’m a Bury fan and we use to go to the Rose and Crown on Manchester Road on match days and it would be heaving, but unfortunately that has closed now.
“But, now we know that Bury FC will be back at Gigg Lane, we would love to have fans here and possibly open an hour earlier, get some pies in before the game and welcome everyone back after.”
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The trio added that they have had huge amounts of interest since announcing their plans for the pub and aim to seat around 35 to 40 people inside the venue.
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They say they will continue working their day jobs.
Ben is a joiner and Nathan works in the travel and tourism industry.
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