National Pub of the Year, Original Swan, Oxbrew and more
Tamworth Tap is top pub in the UK
Micropub the Tamworth Tap in Tamworth, Staffordshire has won CAMRA’s National Pub of the Year 2025 title, winning the award for an unprecedented third time.
The award is the highest honour the Campaign gives to a pub, helping to showcase top-quality locals across the UK. Beating thousands of entries, the Tamworth Tap was judged on its atmosphere, decor, welcome, service, inclusivity, overall impression and, most importantly, top-quality cask beer, real cider and perry.
Home to Tamworth Brewing Company, the multi-award-winning pub boasts a range of eight cask beers from both local brewers and across the UK, along with a wide selection of ciders, gins, wines and bottled beers.
The Tudor building with a 16th-century shop front and historic courtyard beer terrace offers views of Tamworth’s Norman castle.
The pub is the centre of its community, hosting a huge range of events from craft clubs, painting nights, and faith groups to sell-out tutored tasting sessions. Owners George and Louise Greenaway were awarded the town’s Freedom of the Borough in recognition of their commitment to the community.
Tamworth is easily reached by rail from Oxford via a change at Birmingham New Street, with a typical journey time of around two hours. The town has three other Good Beer Guide pubs.
Original Swan, Cowley
What might appear to be one of the most neglected pubs in Oxford has been made available to let by Swindon brewery Arkell’s. Occupying a prominent position on the corner of Between Towns Road and Oxford Road in Cowley, the Original Swan may need considerable investment.
The lounge bar alongside Oxford Road was disused for years, but the pub does a brisk trade in keg beers and lagers in the public bar at the rear where live sports are shown. Real ale has not been offered for a long time, but there may be an opportunity for a fresh start under new tenants, the only other pub in the immediate area being Wetherspoon’s William Morris.
Arkell’s describes it as a “favourite ‘haunt’ of Cowley locals for decades — and literally the favourite haunt of the resident pub ghost for about 50 years.
During the mid-19th century there were two pubs with the name ‘Swan’ at Temple Cowley. The present pub was originally built in 1854 and changed its name to the Original Swan in 1880 to avoid confusion (even though the other Swan was built first). The pub was rebuilt in 1930 and was bought by Arkell’s in 1997.
“One of Arkell’s more down-to-earth pubs on the boundary between Cowley and Oxford, it has a lounge and public bar — and is one of those pubs that is an essential part of the local community,” says the brewer.
Arkell’s has two other pubs in Oxford, both leased to Dodo Pub Co. The Rusty Bicycle in East Oxford and the Rickety Press in Jericho both serve Arkell’s real ales, but not usually guest beers.
Talkhouse, Stanton St John
This is the latest of three pubs taken over by Mark Miles and Stephen Williams in the past year. Their first pub was the Plough in Witney, and they have since added the Chequers in Weston-on-the-Green and the Talkhouse, both in villages to the east of Oxford and both owned by Fuller’s. They have also added the Fox Inn in Boars Hill, owned by Heineken’s Star Pubs division.
“We are looking forward to welcoming you all to the Talkhouse,” said Mark. “Harry Pattinson is our new manager and we are working very hard to clean up this stunning pub and give it a new lease of life. The new menu involves Brets Burgers, tapas and British pub classics, with huge open fires and much more to come.
“We will work extremely hard to give Stanton St John and the local surrounding area the best pub with all your help. We are a customer-led business and want everyone to walk away having the best experience possible.”
Brets Burgers of Cowley Road was famous for quality burgers going back to the 1980s, and also operated a take-away close to Oxford station.
Rose and Crown, Oxford
This much-loved traditional pub in North Parade Avenue has installed a new retractable roof over its patio which will make it warm and cosy in the winter, unlike under its previous roof. It effectively doubles the space available year-round, with outdoor drinking and dining in fine weather.
Greene King
The brewer sold more than two million pints of seasonal cask beer in 2025, demonstrating there is strong demand for fresh releases. Its 2026 Fresh Cask Releases calendar features 12 limited edition beers, such as Fireside, the 4.5% ruby winter beer and Abbot Reserve, the 6.5% premium ale.
Making its annual return in February is the sport‑inspired Scrumdown, a 4.1% golden ale reflecting the upcoming Six Nations Rugby tournament. Scrumdown will be available until the end of April.
All seasonal cask beers will be available in firkins and smaller pins (36‑pint units), providing pubs with greater flexibility and helping them manage throughput.
Oxbrew to return?
Aaron Baldwin, co-founder of Oxbrew before it was merged with Little Ox, is planning to open a new brewery and taproom at Osney Mead, West Oxford.
According to the Oxford Clarion news feed, he has applied to operate the Oxbrew Taproom at Symm House, saying: “It will be more than just a place to enjoy excellent beer and locally sourced food prepared freshly on-site; it will be a cornerstone for social interaction, community engagement and fostering new business.”
Plans include food and drink festivals, markets, cycling and running clubs, plus co-working spaces and meeting rooms. Live and recorded music would be played. Symm House was formerly the headquarters of Oxford builder Symm & Company.