The Butterbowl, on Butterbowl Drive in Farnley, is set to reopen under new management with a weekend of events and entertainment. 

 Following an investment of £67,000, the pub has benefitted from a range of refurbishments in time for its grand reopening on Friday 28th January, and has had a new sound system fitted, new beer taps installed, and a new pool table brought in. The exterior of the pub has also been fully repainted, and the fencing has been repaired around the five-a-side football pitch, which will be painted – along with the outdoor tables – as soon as the weather permits.

The Butterbowl is part of Proper Pubs, the Operator Managed platform of Hawthorn, The Community Pub Company. Proper Pubs owns more than 130 local, community pubs across England, Scotland and Wales. 

Keen to get the pub on the map as a family-friendly community hub, pub Operator Elisa Cole, a local who has lived in the area her whole life, has organised a series of events to be held over the course of the opening weekend. A soft launch will take place on Thursday 27th January, where complimentary nibbles will be available from 5pm, and locals will be given information about the pub’s reopening and upcoming events. 

The pub will then officially reopen on Friday 28th January, and punters will be treated to a disco and karaoke to celebrate, while a Family Day will run from 2pm on Saturday 29th January, featuring live music from local singer Robert Hiscoe. 

Elisa said: “I want to make the Butterbowl more than just a pub – I want it to be a real family pub for the community, where everyone is welcome, and hopefully people will see that the more they get to know us. We’re really looking forward to the reopening weekend and we’ve got lots going on to get everyone involved. Having Robert Hiscoe perform at our first Family Day is really exciting, as he’s a brilliant local musician and vocalist who recently raised over £16,000 for the NHS, so he is an asset to the community. 

“We’re also running a games afternoon on Sunday 30th January which will include bingo and other games for all the family. We’re hoping to keep events going throughout the year, and we’re planning a Family Day for the last Saturday of every month with a different vocalist each time. We can’t wait to get started and hope to see everyone there.”

A competition will also be running on the pub’s Facebook page, where locals will be encouraged to like and share the pub’s launch celebration post. A winner will then be selected at random to win a £50 bar tab.

Matthew Gurney, Operations Director, Proper Pubs, said “We’re delighted to welcome Elisa and the team and can’t wait to see what they have planned. We want our pubs to be at the heart of the community, and our operators to be real community heroes, and judging by everything she’s already got lined up for the reopening weekend, it looks like Elisa is already well on her way! I’d like to wish her the best of luck on behalf of everyone at Proper Pubs.”