Ship Anson pub on The Hard in Portsmouth reopens after being devastated in a fire

The Ship Anson in The Hard, Portsmouth, went up in flames on Sunday, January 8, with the blaze thought to have been started by a discarded cigarette. Since then, a major refurbishment has been undertaken, and punters have finally returned to their beloved local watering hole.

NOW READ: 13 pictures of the first night of the reopened Ship Anson

Known for its strong naval ties and community spirit, loyal customers rallied around the pub through this difficult period - and even queued outside for the grand reopening.

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Landlord Keith Newby said: ‘We’ve really missed pouring pints for everyone - the past five weeks have been the longest I’ve ever experienced. The past couple of days have been particularly hectic, we had builders in until just a few hours before we reopened so it was certainly a relief to get everything finished.

‘But overall I felt humbled by it all - the support from everyone in the community has been absolutely brilliant. From the fundraising to all the kind messages we’ve had on social media, everyone has been so kind and I’ll be going round giving everyone a big hug.

‘I’d love to thank Greene King for all their help too; they’ve kept all the staff on full pay, which gave us all peace of mind, and they spared no expense on the refurbishment work. It’s great to have such supporting and caring management.’

Friends Tina Willet and Cindy Hills, both from Portsea, are regulars at the pub and have been for years. Cindy said that while The Ship Anson was closed, the pair found themselves at somewhat of a loss.

'We come here every Friday and Saturday,' she said.

'We were devastated when the fire happened - we tried going to a couple of other pubs but it honestly wasn't the same.

'This is the best pub in Portsea. The staff are all so lovely, Keith is great and and everyone is just so happy to be back here.'

Tina added: 'Obviously this pub has a big naval history, so when we heard about the fire we were worried about all the memorabilia too - that's priceless. If the fire service had been just a few minutes later we'd have lost everything, so we're really grateful to them for saving the pub. Everyone knows each other here, and we'll be drinking late into the night.'

Rob Duffy, 51 from Portsea, was also pleased to be back at the historic watering hole.

'I've always described this place as being an extension of my own front room,' he joked. 'I've been coming here for years - Portsea is a close-knit community and so this has become our official pub, so to speak. It's become a big part of so many of our lives.'

Ceejay Miller is a DJ who plays at venues across the city - but says The Ship Anson is particularly close to his heart.

He said: 'The fire breaking out was a huge shame, but the refurbishment looks great.'

In the aftermath of the fire, an online fundraiser was launched for the pub, raising more than £800. The landlord has confirmed that this money will now be put towards a community defibrillator, which will be installed outside the venue.