Village locals appeal to Gen Z in bid to save historic pub which served Churchill and Cold War Spies
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The Elm Tree Inn in Langton Herring served pints to the inventor of the bouncing bomb and Cold War spies. Villagers fighting to save their historic local pub, which once served Winston Churchill and Cold War Spies, are making efforts to bridge generational divides to boost their campaign.
![[After launching in April of last year, the Friends of the Elm Tree have managed to raise half of the funds needed.]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/21/12/2Q5A0095_resized%5B75%5D.jpg)
The Elm Tree Inn, located in the Dorset village of Langton Herring, has been a hub of community life since opening its doors in the early 18th century. Over its 300-year history, the pub has welcomed a diverse array of patrons, from World War II heroes to local villagers.
![[Dorset-based Harry Houghton and his lover Ethel Gee were part of the infamous Portland spy ring]](https://static.independent.co.uk/2025/01/21/12/newFile-1.jpg)
However, after centuries of trading, the pub closed in 2023, spurring a determined group of locals to launch a campaign to bring it into community ownership. Since its launch in April 2023, the “Friends of the Elm Tree” campaign has raised half of the £650,000 needed to purchase the pub through donations and £1 shares purchased by investors. But with £300,000 still to go, the group is appealing to younger generations, including Gen Z, to invest in their mission.
![[September 1977: British aviation engineer Sir Barnes Neville Wallis (1887 - 1979), inventor of the bouncing bomb which destroyed the Ruhr dams, and of the Wellington bomber]](https://static.independent.co.uk/s3fs-public/thumbnails/image/2009/05/06/17/dambusters5.jpg)
In a TikTok clip that has garnered over 100,000 likes, members of the group made a playful plea: “Be an Elm Tree stan and help these boomers save their pub.”. The video opens with two villagers lamenting the pub’s closure, saying: “We’re feeling salty about our village pub closing down. We were shook when we found out it might be knocked down - along with its rich 400-year history.”.
