Real ales at the double for Scarisbrick military vehicle event

A WEST Lancashire pub has teamed up with a brewery and a brigade of military vehicle owners to create two beers specially for a celebration of wartime machines next month.

The owners of the Heatons Bridge, in Scarisbrick, told The Champion they are working with Burnley-based Moorhouses Brewery to create two beers specially for the Military Vehicle Invasion event being held there on April 12 and 14 in memory of Mark Lancaster, who spearheaded two similar events at the pub but passed away last year.

Two real ales will be on offer, including one called Just Jane, which is named after a restore Avro Lancaster bomber which now has a photo of Mark in the cockpit. A stronger real ale, called Tanked Up, will also be on offer and plays on the connection with the military vehicles being brought by members of the South Cumbria and North Lancashire military vehicle trusts to the pub.

Steve Winrow, landlord at the Heatons Bridge, said: “I'm hoping that these two beers will be a hit with visitors to the show, especially as they play on the pub's existing military connections, including our longstanding association with Lancaster Bomber bitter and the World War Two pillbox which we have on the site.

"We're also redesigning our food and drinks menu to have a bit of a military theme on the weekend - chicken nuggets and chips, for example, will be called muck and bullets. It's quite a poignant tribute to Mark, particularly the ‘Just Jane' beer and its connections to Mark and the Lancaster bomber."

Both real ales will be brewered by Burnley-based Moorhouses Brewery, which brews several of the beers already on offer at the West Lancashire pub, including the Lancaster bomber bitter.

While the range of military vehicles on display, ranging from Jeeps and Land Rovers to tanks and trucks, will remain similar the event will have an additional poignant touch, having been named the Mark Lancaster Memorial Weekend in tribute to the organiser of both of the previous military invasion events, who passed away last year.

The event, which takes place on Friday, April 12 through to Sunday, April 14, is free to visit. For more information send an email to pconnolly@btinternet.com or or call 01704 545786.

Military vehicle fans plan second invasion of West Lancashire pub

MILTARY machine enthusiasts are drawing up plans to invade a Scarisbrick pub for the second time at a special show later this summer.

Members of the North Lancashire and South Cumbria Military Vehicle Trust said that a showcase at the Heatons Bridge Inn of vehicles going back to the Second World War had been such a success that they are now planning a second event on August 4 and 5, and are teaming up with their comrades at the West Lancashire Military Vehicle Trust to make the show even bigger and better than before.

Organiser Mark Lancaster told Life On Cars: “Due to the great success of the first military vehicle weekend at the beginning of April at the Heatons Bridge, we are going to hold our ‘Second Invasion' in August.

"This time we are teaming up with The West Lancs trust to put on what will be a bigger more impressive event with a more diverse selection of Military Vehicles for the public to see. It will be free admission again to the event, but we will be collecting again for Help For Heros and any voluntary donations would be appreciated."

Among the exhibits being planned for the show at the West Lancashire pub are Ferret armoured cars, army Jeeps, Land Rovers, trucks and tracked vehicles. The trust are also planning to bringing back the tanks which provided an eye-catching sight to visitors during the first show in April, and to host another road run on the country lanes of West Lancashire.

The event, called The Second Invasion, will also take advantage of the pub's own links to West Lancashire's wartime past, and will once again incorporate an original World War Two pillbox at the rear of the site into the military displays.

For more information about the event send an email to Mark Lancaster at lancaster798@btinternet.com

Heatons Bridge Military Vehicle Show 2012

IT'S not often you get to see a brace of tanks defending a pub in the West Lancashire countryside.

But if you've been anywhere near Scarisbrick this is the surreal sight you might have seen, as a host of military machines from decades gone by invaded the grounds of the Heatons Bridge pub.

Thanks to the enthusiasts of the South Cumbria and North Lancashire Military Vehicle Trust visitors could check out everything from Willys Jeeps and Land Rovers, through Ferret armoured cars right up to the massive trucks and tanks used by armies across the world.

Life On Cars took these pictures at the show:

 

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West Lancashire pub to host military vehicle weekend

MILITARY machines from as far back as the Second World War will invade West Lancashire this spring for a major public display.

The event is being hosted by Heatons Bridge Inn, near Scarisbrick, on the weekend of April 14 and 15, with enthusiasts from as far afield as Cumbria bringing machines to display on a field behind the pub.

Steve Flitcroft, secretary of the South Cumbria and North Lancashire Military Vehicle Trust, which is organising the event, said: “At other events in other parts of the region we see a lot of people turning up to take at look at the military vehicles because they generate quite a lot of interest.

"We are the largest military vehicle trust in the UK and Europe, with vehicles going back as far as the First World War, so we're hoping that over the weekend we'll be able to show off quite a good cross section of military vehicles from conflicts going right up to the present day."

Although the exact details of the displays included in the event have yet to be confirmed, the public can expect to see vehicles Willys Jeeps, Ferret armoured cars, Saracen personnel carriers and larger ex-military machines.

The club will incorporate a second world war pillbox, which still stands near to the pub, into their display.

Steve Winrow, manager of the Heatons Bridge Inn, told Life On Cars he was looking forward to seeing the event taking place in April and to seeing the variety of vehicles expected to attend.

"It's not something we've ever done before, but a couple of the trust's members approached us and asked if the big field at the back, and the pillbox, could be used to host the weekend show.

"I'm really looking forward to it - it should be a brilliant event which will offer the people of West Lancashire something a bit different."

The event, which will also include a road run, takes place throughout the day on April 14 and 15 at the pub, situated on Heatons Bridge Road. For more information contact Mark on 01704 545514.