NEW life is being breathed into the Old Station Hotel at Giggleswick, which had stood empty since the previous tenant left in February.

The old inn, which has a stately presence adjacent to the A65 on the outskirts of the village, has been taken over by a mother and daughter who ran the Talbot in Settle for around 12 years.

Julia Thompson, who has many years' experience in the licensing trade, is hoping the pub will be up and running within the next few weeks, by which time the licence will be in place and the whole establishment given a complete facelift.

Mrs Thompson originally ran the Talbot with her husband, Robert. When he died she carried on as licensee with the help of her daughter, Maria Wild, until around five years ago. Since then she has worked in the licensed trade in London and Cambridge.

Her daughter will be the licensee of the Old Station and will be living there with her husband, Tony, and daughter, Charlotte.

The pub, owned by the Punch Tavern company, closed almost overnight in February when the previous landlord, Trevor Vine, walked out.

Mrs Thompson and her daughter have been working on the premises for the last few weeks in order to be able to present it to the public.

Another important member of the team is John Wild, brother-in-law to Maria, who is joining the Old Station as head chef.