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The Building had no work carried out on it for some considerable years, not even general maintenance work.
Planning was granted for the renovation work and also to put a thatched roof on, as it had originally in 1910.
January 2007:-
Work had now started. The work was being carried out by Shire Oak Construction of Knightwick, Worcestershire, who have a great deal of experience in restoration and refurbishment works for old period properties and listed buildings. As at Dec 06 the Timbers were being worked on, the roof had been removed with scaffolding in place ready for re-roofing and thatching.
21/02/2007:-
Shire Oak Construction were going full steam ahead with the renovation works (see up date of photos). The front of the pub was taking shape nicely. The roof rafters had been replaced with green oak on the round, from the Whitfield Estate, Wormbridge, Hereford where they are grown specifically for this purpose. Snow stopped work for a few days, but soon the rafters were on, the special fire retardant material had arrived for the 'thatch', the roof will be covered in the coming few days.
The inglenook beam for the fireplace is enormous (see picture) and will be the next back breaking job to be done taking 6 people to pass it through the window opening and put in place.
Update on Track:- In the new year the track was re-serviced by the commoners. Kevin James organised stone and machinery for the track. The Council had apparently agreed to pay 25% of the cost of the repairs and issue stone at 12 month periods for repair.
23/04/2007:-
Shire Oak Construction was doing a remarkably good job and the resurrection of the 'Live' was now well under way.
The oak frame had been replaced or made good by using old timber from elsewhere in the pub it had been sandblasted and treated for insects and looked stunning, the new and old timbers blending together well. (see images titled 'sandblaster'). Reclaimed Tudor bricks had been used on the front elevation to infill the oak frame.
The roof was now complete, with willow weaved in-between the rafters to create a lovely feature which will be seen on the inside in the upstairs restaurant, the thatcher finished today he had also done an excellent job (see 'finished thatch' image).
The stone part of the pub had been repointed using lime mortar and upstairs the original lath wall has been exposed, this part of the building had to be underpinned as it had no footings, it was built directly on top of soil. The original lath wall was now to be left as a feature in the upstairs restaurant (see images 040, 041and 074).
Work had started on the car park with it being levelled and hard core being put down (thankfully it was a dry day).
Above is Live and Let Live owner Sue Dovey viewing the progress of the pub with Ian Steele owner of Shire Oak Construction
15/07/2007:-
It was time for an update on the work at the ‘Live’:
The exterior of the building was nearly complete with just the windows left to do. Inside the re-claimed flagstones had gone down in the two bar areas, over insulation and the underfloor heating. Originally these floors had Victorian quarry tiles, which had been re-used in the cellar and behind the bar. All the floors downstairs and upstairs were now laid.
Upstairs, the restaurant had a new elm floor. The tree was felled some 7 years previous, cut into planks with the bark left on, some of these planks are 18” wide and the character of this timber is clear to see. What could be saved from the original oak floor had been fitted in the ‘Stone Room’
The master carpenter had started on the oak staircase and oak windows, these were being made from oak planks, the carpenter Paul Gregory, had moved his machinery into the barn to make them onsite. The walls in the kitchen and toilets had been plastered and were ready to be fitted out. First fix electrics and plumbing was complete.
The panels upstairs in between the oak frame had been insulated and had wood wool boards and lime putty haired scratch plaster used, this helped the building ‘breath’. These materials were purchased from Calch Tŷ-Mawr lime in Wales, who manufacture materials for traditional and ecological buildings.
The Pub sign had been painted by a local well known artist and it has been based on the old sign with an added twist of a mouse. Hence the straw mouse on top of the thatch.
We were now waiting for the good old British weather to improve so as work could start on the beer garden and we could complete the work on the car-park. We were very much Keeping our fingers crossed!
