A popular 17th-century village pub is throwing a huge celebration in honour of the people who bought it 21 years ago.

Lisa Storey, landlady of The Ship 1691 in Kirkby-in-Furness, is hosting a party on Saturday April 13 with live music and a buffet.

Lisa has planned a ‘huge celebration’ to acknowledge the role Tony Barton and his wife Judith Roberts have played in owning the pub for the last 21 years.

The Mail: Lisa Storey is the landlady of The Ship InnLisa Storey is the landlady of The Ship Inn (Image: Newsquest)

The couple bought the pub at auction in December 2002 after it was put up for sale by Robinson's Brewery.

The couple set to work renovating the pub, removing the 70s decor and false ceilings to expose the original building and its period features.

By Easter 2003 The Ship had reopened as the first voluntarily non-smoking pub in Cumbria.

Next the pub was extended to provide living accommodation in 2005 before adding a hostel for walkers, bikers and travellers to stay in later that year.

To mark the occasion Lisa has organised a ‘delicious’ complimentary buffet made up of traditional pub grub such as sandwiches, pies and sausage rolls.

She has also arranged for local ‘Singing Sensation Jerry’ to perform live music.

“It’s brilliant,” Lisa said. “They ran the pub for 15 years or so then decided to keep it open and rent it out. They are both brilliant landlords and great friends and neighbours.

“The pub is doing great and we have a lot of support in the village. Great drinks, great music, great people, great pub. This is not a private event; everyone is always welcome."

The pub will open at 2pm on Saturday before the celebrations kick off around 7:30pm. In the meantime, you can watch sports on the TV or enjoy a game of pool in the back room, and if the weather is nice, head out into the beer garden to savour a pint while gazing across the Duddon Estuary towards the distant fells.