16 February 2023 , 15:21
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A pub dubbed the “longest Homes Under the Hammer project ever” looks like it might be finally set to reopen after a painstaking 14-year restoration project.
The Old Cottage Pub in Margate, Kent, was welcoming regulars and serving pints up until 2007, when it was shuttered and left in a sorry state.
Two years later David Gorton, from Sidcup, Kent. snapped up the 370-year old inn for a “bargain” £90,000 on an episode of Homes Under the Hammer.
Initially, it was planned to have the pub back up and running again by April 2011.
But due to delays caused by planning issues and David’s own ambitious vision, work is still ongoing today, over a decade later.
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David Gorton outside his labour of love, The Old Cottage Pub (KMG / SWNS)Speaking from the 17th Century building, Mr Gorton said: "It must be the longest-running Homes Under the Hammer project ever."
Restorations of the centuries old pub has not come cheaply and repairing the collapsed basement alone cost around £155,000 over the initial budget for the entire project.
Mr Gorton said: "It was a bargain to buy. But if I looked at the final figures I could expect on day one - I probably never would have done it.
"It's worked out to be very very expensive but honestly, if you're going to do it, you've got to do it properly."
But when finished, the property will have is own brewery in the basement, a restaurant upstairs, and rooms to be rented out on Airbnb too.
An original 1650 fireplace was discovered in the Margate pub (KMG / SWNS)The Grade II-listed property was built as a home in 1650, three years before Oliver Cromwell became Lord Protector of England, Scotland and Ireland.
Shortly after it was turned into an off licence, serving the bathhouses that stood opposite, and in 1760 it became a fully-fledged pub.
One past punter dropped an Oliver Cromwell silver shilling, dated to 1658, that was discovered last May when it was sucked up the hoover. It is valued at more than £12,000.
When it was featured on Homes Under the Hammer in 2009, it was “collapsing all on its own”.
The Oliver Cromwell shilling valued at £12,000 (KMG / SWNS)Mr Gorton said: "If we had left it a few more months, I think the ceilings would have been on the floor and it would have started imploding on itself.
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"We had a few problems initially getting space in the car park to empty all the rubbish out of the pub which had accumulated over the years.
"Consequently, we didn't actually get going until 2014.
"We've had a few issues and delays, because I'm paying particular attention to the quality of the work and conserving everything I possibly can."
One of the reasons for the lengthy restoration project is some of Mr Gorton's ideas for the pub, like copper tanks above the bar where pints will be pulled from, which have taken time to implement (KMG / SWNS)One hidden gem discovered during the restoration was an impressive 1650 fireplace, previously concealed behind a wall in the pub's kitchen.
The 67-year-old said: "We have repainted it and cleaned the timber work. We have left it exactly how it was other than that."
Once open, the pub will have various interesting and original features including "pour your own pint" stations and the brewery in the basement will be named The Margate Brewery, supplying beer to the pub and other local businesses.
The retired firefighter also designed a system that sees beer piped up from the basement, straight into pint glasses, meaning alcohol doesn’t mix with air until it hits the glass.
The pub was once decaying and falling to pieces and will hopefully soon be open for business (SWNS)Ambitious extras like this, and adding a fifth floor to give Mr Gorton and his wife a second home, have added to the lengthy time frame.
The dad-of-four said: "It has turned into a labour of love, so I'm partly to blame for the time it's taken.
"But, it hasn't always been plain sailing - it's been hard to get everything done. Now I just want to get the job finished and get it open.
“Providing there's no more obstacles along the way and it is purely a case of knuckling down, finishing the practical work and opening the doors - I could probably finish it within two to three months."
Mr Gorton has been working for 14 years to try and complete the pub after initially hoping to open it in 2011 (SWNS)Former Homes Under The Hammer presenter Lucy Alexander interviewed the owner at the time of filming and she returned almost five years later, hoping to show off the finished product.
Mr Gorton said: "I made them promise if they let me do the second film when we weren't finished, they would come back and do the finale.
"They said 'yes, so long as were still in production'."
Mr Gorton added: "I have to finish it. The truth is I have no idea how much I've spent on it. It's a work in progress, and if I kept score it would frighten the life out of me. I have to keep going - I have to finish it.
"The idea is not to do it within a budget or a sum of money - it's got to be done because it's historic and very special."