Cornwall pub Peterville Inn makes finals in running to be named best in England

A Cornish pub is down to the final three in the running to be named the best in the whole country. The Peterville Inn in St Agnes is competing against pubs in Dorset and Merseyside to be named Pub of the Year in all of England.

The Peterville Inn took home the gold award in the Cornwall Tourism awards and the silver at the South West Tourism awards before making the top three at country-wide level. It will now go through to the Visit England Awards for Excellence national finals in June.

The pub is among only a handful of Cornish tourism businesses selected to reach the England finals. Tom and Lara Trubshaw, who run the Peterville Inn, said making it to the final is "absolutely unbelievable" and say they are "thrilled" to be representing the county.

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The couple, who took on the pub in July 2020 and also took over the Wig and Pen in Truro two years ago, said: "We are absolutely overwhelmed to have made the national finals, we had no idea in our wildest dreams this is something we would achieve. We are incredibly passionate about our pub and our team and we’re thrilled that the judges understood everything we’re about when they mystery visited us last year.

"We’re also so pleased to be representing Cornwall as one of just a handful of Cornish tourism businesses selected to reach the England finals. It’s the best county in the country - let’s show everyone what we’re all about."

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The pub has a 4.5 out of 5 overall rating on Tripadvisor where it is lauded for its "excellent roast and service" and "great food" and "great atmosphere". On Facebook it has a rating of 4.7.

The Visit England awards aim to champion the very best of England’s tourism industry celebrating quality, innovation, best practice and exceptional customer service. All of the finalists have already beaten off strong competition at both county and regional level.

Applications to the awards were put forward for judging from businesses including hotels, self-catering accommodation providers, B&Bs, glamping operators, visitor attractions, restaurants, pubs and museums.

VisitEngland director Andrew Stokes said: “I am always impressed by the tourism businesses who make it onto our list of finalists with their innovative approaches to ensuring people have the most amazing experiences whilst delivering outstanding customer service across England. I congratulate all the finalists and wish them the very best of luck.”

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The national awards ceremony will take place at Rum Warehouse at the Titanic Hotel, Liverpool on June 5.