A FORMER pub owner turned author is set to sign copies of his new book recounting life behind the bar at a much-loved local pub.

John Hopkins, who spent 21 years running The Three Horseshoes in Langley Marsh alongside his wife Marella, has released ‘The shoes as it was’, a heartfelt and humorous look back at their time in the hospitality trade.

The book follows the couple’s journey from working as cruise ship entertainers to becoming pub owners in 1986.

From colourful regulars to a fiercely competitive skittles league, John shares the stories, characters and challenges that defined more than two decades at the helm.

Providing an honest and often candid account, the book explores what it truly takes to run a pub over the long term, including cuttings from the Wellington Weekly News, which document the pub’s journey and quirks.

He said: “The work was hard and at times difficult but we weathered just about everything that was thrown at us.

“The Three Horseshoes did us wonderfully over the years, allowing us to have a family, two fine lads, and also giving us a decent lifestyle.

“Coming from working backgrounds, we had no bother with the workload of running a pub, and I for one, would do it all again, if I was able.”

‘The shoes as it was’ took John two years to write and was published a few months ago. It has already sold more than 100 copies.

The memoir is described as a “happy record for those local folk who supported John and Marella so well for many years, but also a nostalgic tribute to the village pub, an institution widely valued but threatened as never before.”

John will be signing copies of his book at Tanners in Wiveliscombe on Wednesday, April 8, from 4 pm to 8 pm.