PRINCE Charles and Camilla, The Duchess of Cornwall, paid an unlikely visit to a small village on the outskirts of Grantham on Tuesday afternoon.
The Royal couple were on a tour of the county and decided to stop off in Burton-le-Coggles to see the success being made of the village pub and farm shop at The Cholmeley Arms.
In wet and windy weather, the Prince arrived to be greeted by schoolchildren from Charles Read High School and Corby Glen Primary School.
Ruby Earl of Charles Read presented Camilla with a bouquet of flowers on her arrival.
Proud mum Natasha Earl said: “She was really excited and wanted to know if she could give Camilla a kiss.
“It’s really big news for the village - everyone has been talking about it.”
The Prince was shown around the village farm shop, praising the bread on sale courtesy Bloomsbury Bakery of Inner Street, Grantham.
Sam Markiewicz of Bloomsbury said: “He told us he couldn’t believe we’d all been standing out here in the cold and Camilla said how nice the bread looked.”
The Prince then headed into the pub where he poured himself a pint of Newton’s Drop Ale - brewed here in Grantham by Oldershaw Brewery.
Kathy Britton, of Oldershaw’s said: “We are so proud that Prince Charles pulled a pint of our beer.
“We do whatever we can to support local pubs, after all they are our customers, and The Cholmeley Arms is a fantastic example of a proper local pub that really serves its whole community.”
Lesley and John Berry became tenants of the Cholmeley Arms, which is owned by the Easton Estate, in 2009 after it had been closed down. Since then they have turned it around and opened up a village farm shop.
Villager Judy Carr of the Old Chapel, Burton-le-Coggles, said: “John and Leslie coming here and taking over the pub is the best thing that’s ever happened to this village.”
As he left Prince Charles waved to the dozens of people who had come out despite the weather to support his visit. As he got into his car and pulled away, villagers cheered as he went.
Cholmeley Arms landlady Lesley Berry said: “He was just great and really put us all at ease. They are a lovely couple.”
