Pubs Near Lacock Abbey

Pubs and inns near Lacock Abbey

After a day exploring Lacock Abbey, you deserve a pint of proper beer. Take a break at one of our nearby pubs, and enjoy a locally-sourced classic pub meal washed down with an award-winning Butcombe beer.

The Methuen Arms

Formerly a nunnery, just like Lacock Abbey, The Methuen Arms in Corsham was transformed into coaching inn and brewery from 1608. With a passion for great food and drink at its core, the pub serves up a mouth-watering menu of food crafted from ingredients sourced from its kitchen garden as well as a tasty range of award-winning beers and ales, perfect for sipping al fresco style in the pub’s spacious beer garden during the warmer months.

The Horse & Groom

A grade II-listed pub located in the picturesque village of Charlton, The Horse & Groom dates back to the 16th century and retains many charming original features, including its beautiful flagstone flooring and open fireplace. With a top-notch food menu and tasty beer selection, there’s something to tickle all taste buds, and with a tree-sheltered lawn and sun-trap paddock, the pub offers plenty of space for al fresco drinking and dining.

The Quarryman’s Arms

The Quarryman’s Arms is a family-friendly country pub and inn located in picturesque Box Hill. The boozer offers a mouth-watering menu featuring pub favourites crafted with the finest seasonal produce, as well as award-winning pies and sausage rolls, and the best Sunday roast in the area. Behind the bar, you’ll find a delicious selection of ales, craft beers, local ciders and wines, while outside the pub’s newly-covered and heated beer garden is ideal for al fresco drinking and dining all year round.

The King’s Arms

The King’s Arms is a charming, 18th-century pub located in picturesque Melksham. Whether you’re stopping by to sample their hand-pulled real ales, enjoy their menu of seasonal, home-cooked food or while away the hours in their inviting beer garden, you can be sure a very warm welcome awaits you.

The White Hart

Located in the village of Wroughton, The White Hart is a stunning thatched pub boasting bags of character. Expect traditional and charming pub interiors, large beer gardens, a menu packed with tasty seasonal dishes and a bar stocked with award-winning Butcombe ales!

The Smoking Dog

The Smoking Dog is a classic Cotswold-stone pub located in the heart of picturesque Malmesbury. Serving up delicious seasonal food and a great range of real ales, the family-friendly pub has developed a widespread reputation for its warm atmosphere.

Wiltshire Yeoman

Formerly a farmhouse dating back to the 18th century, The Wiltshire Yeoman is a vibrant, family-friendly pub situated in Trowbridge. The pub specialises in freshly-prepared home-cooked dishes, which are perfectly washed down with the excellent range of local ales on offer, and with both a roaring fireplace and extensive beer garden, you’re guaranteed to have a great time whatever the weather!

A brief history of Lacock Abbey

With roots dating back to the 13th century, Lacock Abbey is packed with history. The building originally began life as a nunnery, before being converted into a family home following the Dissolution of the Monasteries by Henry VIII in the mid-16th century.

The last owners of the Abbey were the Talbot family, who inherited the building in the 1700s, and it was William Henry Fox Talbot who established the Abbey as the ‘birthplace of modern photography’ after he captured the first-ever photographic negative in the building’s South Gallery in 1835.

Today, Lacock Abbey is a Grade-I listed building, lovingly maintained by the National Trust after being gifted to the charity in 1944.

What To See At Lacock Abbey

Thanks to its rich and varied history, Lacock Abbey boasts an interesting mix of architectural styles. From its medieval cloisters dating back to its time as a monastery to the Renaissance-inspired octagonal tower and Gothic-inspired entrance arch and Great Hall added by later residents, there are lots of interesting features for visitors to spot.

Those interested in photography should head to the Fox Talbot Museum, found on the Abbey’s ground floor, which celebrates the life and achievements of former resident and inventor of the photographic negative William Henry Fox Talbot. The floor above the museum also holds a rotating photography exhibition throughout the year.

As well as the building itself, there are also the Abbey’s beautiful wooded grounds to explore, as well as the surrounding village of Lacock, home to picturesque cottages, a medieval tithe barn and lock-up and a whole host of interesting local shops.

Lacock Abbey on screen

Lacock Abbey is no stranger to the big screen, having stood in for many television and film productions over the years, including Harry Potter and Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald, as well as period dramas Pride and Prejudice and Downton Abbey.

Lacock Abbey and Harry Potter

The most iconic production to have passed through Lacock Abbey over the years has to be Harry Potter, with the Abbey transformed into Hogwarts for three of the franchise’s films. Potterheads looking to retrace the steps of their favourite characters should visit:

• The Abbey’s cloisters, aka Hogwarts’ corridors in both the Philosophers Stone and the Chamber of Secrets
• The Warming Room, which became Professor Quirrel’s Defense Against the Dark Arts Classroom in the Philosopher’s Stone
• The Sacristy Room, the scene of Professor Snape’s Potions Classroom in the Philosopher’s Stone
• The Chapter House, which was magicked into the room where Harry first discovers the Mirror of Erised in the Philosopher’s Stone, as well as the study hall where Harry listens in on his fellow students debating whether he’s the heir of Slytherin in Chamber of Secrets!

Lacock Abbey and Pride and Prejudice

When Jane Austen’s timeless novel was adapted into a mini-series by the BBC, Lacock Abbey’s interiors stood in as Pemberley, the country estate owned by Mr Darcy, was chosen as the backdrop for Pemberley, and also provided the backdrop for flashback scenes showing Mr Darcy’s time at Cambridge University.

Lacock and Downton Abbey

The beautiful village of Lacock, which surrounds Lacock Abbey, has appeared twice in the award-winning Downton Abbey.

The first occasion saw one of Lacock’s picturesque streets transformed into a bustling market complete with sheep, pigs and a 1-tonne long-horned bull, attended by the characters Lord and Lady Grantham, whilst the second time saw a spectacular royal parade descend upon the village, with real-life Lacock villagers stepping in to create the excited crowd!

See pictures of Lacock Abbey here.