Wednesday 5 October 2022 10:13 PM EDEN CONFIDENTIAL: Tim Henman serves an ace to save local pub trends now
What to do if you're worried that your favourite pub is closing down? Well, if you're former British tennis No.1 Tim Henman, who earned more than £7 million in prize money before retiring in 2007, the answer is buy it.
Struggling from the effects of the pandemic, Henman's local watering hole The Chequers, was about to shut its doors for good.
I can reveal that the 48-year-old has bought the boozer in the Oxfordshire village of Aston Tirrold, located in a beautiful Grade II-listed building which dates back to the 15th century.
Grateful for Henman's help, the venue, which had been closed since last year, is back up and running as a gastropub, with just a slight tweak to the name. It's now called Olivier at The Chequers, with the pub's long-standing and renowned French chef Olivier Bouet continuing to run the kitchen.
I can reveal that the 48-year-old has bought the boozer in the Oxfordshire village of Aston Tirrold, located in a beautiful Grade II-listed building which dates back to the 15th century
Bouet's wife Stephanie confirmed Henman and his wife Lucy's involvement with the establishment: 'A small group of investors including the Henmans purchased the freehold of the pub. Olivier and myself are running the operations.'
Henman's career highlight was being the first male Brit since Roger Taylor in the 1970s to make the Wimbledon semi-finals. He was also the British No.1 from 1999-2005 and World No.4 between 2002-2004.
Nowadays, Henman enjoys a successful career as a pundit, as well as running his charitable foundation.
But it seems the former sportsman is a bit more of a wildcard off the court and celebrated a recent birthday with a 12-hour drinking session, saying: 'I hosted a big group of friends in a private dining room on Saturday night. We started drinking champagne in the garden at 5pm — and kept going until 5am.'
Grateful for Henman's help, the venue, which had been closed since last year, is back up and running as a gastropub, with just a slight tweak to the name. It's now called Olivier at The Chequers, with the pub's long-standing and renowned French chef Olivier Bouet continuing to run the kitchen
King Charles tells me he's planning to give up the throne.
'I want to take the best advice, but I'm now considering abdication,' says indie-folk musician Charles Costa, who has built a fanbase performing under the name King Charles.
'The death of the Queen was a great shock.'
He controls the official King Charles Instagram and Facebook domains. 'I was actually introduced to him as King Charles at a reception at St James's Palace,' he adds. 'He thought it was funny and didn't ask me to change my name.'
No one would dispute the authenticity of Ruth
