A VILLAGE pub has bucked the trend of closing doors because of lack of custom and instead had a half a million pound investment because it is so popular.

The White Hart Pub and Restaurant in Chalfont St Giles, which also provides bed and breakfast accommodation, has had to extend the number of bedrooms it has and double the size of the bar and restaurant due to popular demand.

Licensee Gerald Wolfenden explained: "This area is really in demand, probably because it is near to London and other business centres in Buckinghamshire but it is totally under-catered for."

He and his wife, Erica, have been running the pub in the area of Three Households for more than eight years but have come to a point where they could no longer cope with the demand.

He said: "We found that we were spending half our time phoning up and organising accommodation for people to stay elsewhere because we didn't have the room for them, so we thought it was about time to expand."

The turn-of-the-century coaching inn has been given a £500,000 boost through the owners, Green King Pub Partners.

Now it boasts an addition of seven ensuite bedrooms to make a total of 11 and has even had a mystery visitor from the Southern Tourist Board who has promised to give it the four-diamond standard because he liked it so much.

Mr Wolfenden added: "We have supportive customers and I think that is through bloody hard work and making sure we don't lose the cosy atmosphere of the place."