THE new team at Wetherspoons Okehampton have been hard at work getting ready for the eagerly anticipated opening of The White Hart Hotel on July 19.

The company has spent almost £3-million developing the pub and getting it ready for its opening on Tuesday, July 19. The pub, which will retain the name The White Hart Hotel, will be managed by Jon Willing. Kayleigh Scott is the hotel manager.

The new White Hart team started ten days of thorough training on July 8 in preparation for what is bound to be a busy few weeks after the pub opens for the first time since its huge refurbishment.

The refurbishment is the latest chapter in the hotel’s long and storied history. The pub has held a licence since 1623 when it was given its official licence as Okehamton’s ’premier inn’. The building was Grade II listed in 1952.

The ‘White Hart’ is one of Britain’s most popular pub names and has royal origins. The white hart was the heraldic emblem of Richard II and is depicted, seated on a bed of rosemary with a golden crown around its neck.

The White Hart Hotel will be open from 7am until 12 midnight Sunday to Thursday and 7am until 1am on Friday and Saturday. Food will be served throughout the day, from opening until 11pm, every day.

The new-look pub will feature one bar and a beer garden, to the rear of the premises, where smoking will be permitted in a designated area. The pub will be wheelchair accessible and have a specially-adapted toilet for people with disabilities, on the ground floor.

The hotel, which is set on the first, second and third floors above the pub, has 23 en suite bedrooms.

These pictures show the new team getting prepared for the big opening, with a sneak peak at the bar and beer garden.