AN HISTORIC Abingdon pub has been overhauled under new management to bring it into the 21st Century while still honouring its past.

The freshly-painted doors to The Broad Face opened to the public on Sunday after weeks of refurbishment under new licensee, Joshua Khan.

Mr Khan, who also runs The Plough in Bicester, said: "We want to re-establish this pub back at the heart of the community and offer our guests exceptional service.

"We know the intriguing history of the pub’s name and how near we are to the site of the Old Gaol so we have made sure that this is suitably recognised in our new signage.

"It is not just a paint job, we have done a complete transformation, it has a very London feel to it.

"There are tiles on the walls, exposed brickwork, pictures of old Abingdon town and the shelf behind the bar is made to look like prison bars as a nod to the Old Gaol.

"And there is a huge map of the town on the ceiling, its about four metres by three metres."

The Broad Face was named after the hangman who worked at the old jail opposite the pub on Bridge Street.

A regular customer of the pub he was described as having a "broad face".

This is Mr Khan's third pub to be leased from Greene King, which will open daily from 11am.

He said: "With the menu we went out and did a lot of research in the town.

"We did a lot of interviews to find out what people wanted from a menu.

"The feedback we got is that there are too many pubs trying to be gastro, so although our image of the pub is gastro, our menu is a British one.

"I think my favourite dish on the menu is our fish and chips."

Behind the bar, residents will also be able to enjoy cask ales from local breweries.

Mr Khan said: "People have already said they love it.

"And we welcome everyone to come in, enjoy a pint and tell us what you think about our new look."

For more information contact: 01235 538612