IT’S A PUB like no other on earth.
From the moment you pull into the car park – flanked on either side by 7ft tall red stiletto heels – you are being watched not by CCTV but by a fire-breathing dragon installed on the roof.
The Highwayman Inn near Okehampton, Devon, boasts a variety of the weird and wackyCredit: Neil Hope
Landlady Sally Thomson with a giant high heel shoe outside the boozerCredit: Neil Hope
The interior has vast collections of decorations and nick nacksCredit: Neil Hope
Just watch out for the giant shoe as you make your way to the front door – a Cinderella’s carriage complete with plush benches and a rearing horse statue.
And before you go inside, be sure to admire the pub’s sign. After all it was hand-painted by a convicted murderer.
Inside the ancient watering hole you are quickly confronted by a statue of Tutankhamun in a narrow corridor – enough to make anybody race to the bar to down a stiff drink.
But venture a little further along a narrow corridor and you find yourself inside a stunningly detailed recreation of The Diana, a whaling ship that ran aground in 1869.
The room contains an original door from the ship which was salvaged from off the coast – just watch out for the sea monster!
The truly outlandish decoration in boozer on the edge of the Dartmoor National Park in has given it international fame and been dubbed the UK’s weirdest inn.
But the design has naturally evolved over almost 70 years thanks to landlady Sally Thomson and her parents Rita and Buster Jones.
Mr Jones bought the unremarkable 900-year-old pub in 1959 after Breweries struggled to turn a profit, and that started a labour of love.
After undergoing a dramatic transformation throughout the 1960s and 1970s, the pub has reached some form of stability although Sally, now aged 70, says the renovation will never truly be finished.
She told The Sun: “There is no theme to it, it’s very random but if I like something I’ll put it up.
“The only limit is I wouldn’t put anything up that was offensive.
“Maintenance is the main thing nowadays but if I see something like the red shoes I’ll add them.
“A customer brought in a mermaid statue that we bought off them because I thought that would go nicely.
“I think the ship is the most extraordinary part of the inn, the inspiration was the Diana, but not many people expect it when they walk in for the first time.”
It has drawn its fair share of admirers with Ronne Wood, Spike Milligan, actress Jenny Agutter and Richard Strange, front man of mid-1970s protopunk art rock band Doctors of Madness, among their customers.
Every inch of space is covered with unusual artefacts and Sally plays the joint role of publican and historian with an anecdote for almost every item.
For example she recalls the sign outside – a picture of a masked highwayman – was painted in 1990 by Paul Reeder, a man who had just been released from nearby Dartmoor after serving 14 years for murder.
He lived with the family for three weeks and worked in return for bed, board and a little cash but the day after putting him on a bus, a probation officer from Dartmoor Prison happened to pop in for a drink and told them what he had been inside for.
A 6ft minotaur lives in his own caveCredit: Neil Hope
The dining room has a very nautical feelCredit: Neil Hope
The pub was originally built in 1282Credit: Neil Hope
The inn is a treasure trove for ancient artefacts from old hot water bottles and air-raid sirens to a brutal-looking device designed to hold a horse’s mouth open while giving it medication.
In another room a huge blacksmith’s bellow has been turned into a table while the bannister running upstairs and a roof light are made of discarded wagon wheels.
Much of the work was done by Buster himself by hand while Sally’s grandfather helped upholster the bench seats and her nephew sometimes helps out meaning four generations of the family have worked in the pub.
Elsewhere in the pub a 6ft Minotaur – a mythical creature from Greek mythology with the head of a bull sitting on a man’s body – stalks a small grotto.
Sally said: “Women love it but I think men feel a bit threatened by it!
“It was in an exhibition at the South Bank, it had technically been sold and was due to go abroad but the artist had moved down here and wanted to still see it so he sold it to my husband who gave it to me as a birthday present.”
Sally currently serves customers alongside her husband, Bruce, 80, but she was only four years old when her parents acquired the pub.
The bar itself was made from a single oak tree sawed in half by six men over eight hours – they were paid in .
Lord Nelson keeps a watch on dinersCredit: Neil Hope
An Egyptian mummy’s casket glimmers magnificentlyCredit: Neil Hope
There are multiple highwayman-themed paintings outsideCredit: Neil Hope
“They must’ve thought my father was a bit crazy so they would come in to have a drink to see what he would do next,” she added.
Surprisingly, Sally admits she has a secret soft spot for pub chain giant Wetherspoons despite it seemingly representing the complete opposite of almost all of her design choices.
She said: “Some of them are rather good and they give reasonable value for , they have taken over some buildings that otherwise would have fallen into disrepair.
“It’s maybe not where I would choose to go.
“But they’re good and they give great service and food, it just feels like there is something missing.”
Sally says she doesn’t mind the inn being referred to as Britain’s weirdest and accepts it isn’t for everybody but has received overwhelmingly positive comments from customers.
She said: “Everything is so samey now, it’s not difficult to stand out
“It’s nice when people have a nice experience, that’s what makes the job worthwhile. It doesn’t always happen that way because we’re not for everybody.
“Not everybody wants this. You have got to like the unusual and a bit of fantasy.
“It’s one family’s folly but it’s nice to do things that make people happy.
“I get a thrill if people like the place but if they don’t like it then tough.
“It’s very personal but to me this place is special.”
Landlady Sally and Sun reporter Ben EndleyCredit: Neil Hope
A pistol points the way into the loungeCredit: Neil Hope
An antique ship’s compass and mermaid continue the nautical themeCredit: Neil Hope
Sally and her parents Rita and Buster Jones have evolved the pub over the last 70 yearsCredit: Neil Hope
The glam ladies toiletCredit: Neil Hope
Eze Chidiebere Paul
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