A regular said he ‘cannot wait’ to get behind the bar at a popular pub.

Darren Heggie, 43, is taking over the Feildens Arms on Preston Old Road, Feniscowles, with the pub re-opening its doors on March 2.

Darren, who also operates Blackburn's Havelock Inn and the Mill Hill Hotel, with his business partner Chris Dilworth, is looking forward to taking over the pub which he said has been his local.

He said: “I can’t wait to get behind the bar and service the customers.

“It will be different on the other side of the bar but I am very eager to be serving all the regulars in there.

“They are die hard regulars and I know most of them.

“The pub is about 200 years old. It has been my regular for a few years.”

Darren said that following his takeover, he is looking at refurbishing the pub but wants to retain the pubs character.

The refurbishment will include soft furnishings, new carpet and some work on the bar.

Darren is also looking at doing work on the beer garden space.

He said: “I hope that the refurbishment will bring more people to the pub.

“We are keeping on the staff who currently work here and, if we can, we will be looking to hire more people.”

He is also looking at introducing food, potentially starting with a weekend breakfast.

Behind the bar, he said he will be deciding what beer to have on but he is looking at concentrating on ale.

Darren added: “We will be concentrating on real ale.

“It is not a CAMRA pub at the minute but it is something we are aiming for.”

Darren is also considering live music on occasions and will be putting in TVs to show sport.

The Feildens Arms closed its doors after the previous landlady left earlier this month.