Couple make sure they are first to bar at revamped Wetherspoon

A Wiltshire couple went to great lengths to ensure they were first in the queue for a pint at the newly-reopened Wetherspoon pub in Trowbridge.

Dan Baker and his partner Amy Abram took some time off work to make sure they were first in the queue at the bar of the Albany Palace in Park Road.

The pub – known fondly locally as ‘The Spoons’ – reopened on Tuesday (June 25) following a £2.2 million refit and extension project.

Mr Baker, 22, who works as a systems control engineer in Chippenham, said: “My partner and I went in for 8am for breakfast.

"I wanted to be the first person to have a drink at The Spoons following the refurbishment.

“But I was told that they don’t serve alcohol until 9am so I went to the bar ten minutes early at 8.50am.

“We got the clock out and counted down the seconds until 9am and then they pulled the first pint for me.”

Dan was pictured with the pint of Thatcher’s Gold with Trowbridge mayor Stephen Cooper, who had earlier officially reopened the pub.

Mr Baker says he and Amy, 22, who works in Trowbridge, are frequent customers at the Albany Palace, as well as drinking at Wetherspoon’s The Bridge House pub in Chippenham.

While at the Albany Palace, Dan and Amy enjoyed two Full English breakfasts for a total cost of £6.28, with Amy having a refill coffee and Dan spending £3.09 on his pint.

“I had a lovely refreshing cold pint outside in the beer garden,” said Dan, who has been using the pub for the past five years.

“The outdoor bit is great. It was nice sitting outside in the sunshine.

“It has always been a relatively fancy Spoons, but the area now feels much larger with its high ceiling.

“Usually, the floor inside is sticky so it was actually quite nice to walk on a soft carpet, though I’m not sure how long it will stay that way.”

The interior has been tastefully redecorated as Wetherspoon attempts to take the Albany Palace more upmarket.

Cllr Cooper also praised the pub’s refurbishment and redevelopment, saying it was now the kind of place he could take his wife and family.

He said: “I was really impressed. The outside space is a little oasis. It is lovely and it’s a perfect position. It’s a nice venue.”