This Iconic Coastal Pub is Celebrating 25 Years
Celebrating 25 years and counting, The Ship Inn at Low Newton knows how to build a legacy
From creating menus and pulling pints, to interior decorating and connecting with locals, running a pub is no mean feat, never mind running an iconic pub and successful brewery for 25 years. But for Christine Forsyth (and her daughter Hannah) the chance to move north and take over The Ship Inn was the perfect opportunity for a fresh start.
Originally from the south of the country, Christine happened across an ad for a coastal Northumbrian pub and jumped at the chance after a recent personal loss. ‘I needed to earn a living,’ she says. ‘We always loved the North East and used to come here endlessly on holiday.’ After seeing The Ship Inn for the first time, she fell in love with its unrivalled position, the quaint white-washed village square, the views out to sea and the wide open spaces.
Over the course of a whirlwind summer, Christine and her daughter moved up and began to settle in, and although she had no prior experience, she was ready for the challenge. ‘It needed a lot of tender love and care as it was in a bit of a state,’ she explains. ‘The kitchen was unbelievable. There were cupboards on the wall and I remember opening one, shutting it quite firmly and the thing just fell off the wall. I’d done a five day inn-keeping course and I’d only pulled two pints before I arrived.’
Twenty-five years on, it’s safe to say the pair have settled in and then some. ‘Hannah and I just started doing our stuff. We improved the food and we did the kitchen out so it’s no longer recognisable,’ she says. The food at The Ship Inn is one of the things that has kept visitors coming back for more, year after year. The kitchen may be small, but Christine runs a tight ship and all of the food here is cooked freshly to order. The team pride themselves on simple cooking done extremely well and the menu changes regularly to make the most of the best local ingredients. Nearly all the fish served here is caught by local fishermen, and from early summer until October they serve lobster straight from Newton Bay. If you stop by at the right time of day you can even catch ‘The Lobster Man’ coming straight up to the pub carrying buckets of lobster.
The kitchen wasn’t the only thing the pair improved. ’We took the wood panelling off the walls and found lovely old stone and we took the fireplaces out and found the old fireplaces underneath. We didn’t want it to be pampered or fussy,’ Christine says. For newcomers to The Ship Inn, fuss-free, friendly fun is certainly what you’ll find. Beyond its food, the pub hosts regular music nights (including a folk night on the fourth Monday of every month and Sunday sessions dedicated to local live musicians). Even after 25 years, the team are still thinking of new ways to connect with the community, like their brand new quiz night (with a break half-way for bratwurst and beer, of course). As the seasons turn, they plan on reintroducing film nights from October, with classic comfort food available to order for the movie.
‘The pub’s well-used and very well-loved. I feel incredibly attached to the building because when I came, life was sad and the building has looked after me,’ says Christine simply.
Looking to the future, Christine hopes for more of the same as The Ship Inn passes through the generations. ‘I hope it carries on and stays true to itself,’ she says. ‘It’s not fancy and I think that’s what is so lovely about it.’
Low Newton, Northumberland NE66 3EL
01665 576262
shipinnnewton.co.uk
