A RAILWAY village pub that has attracted drinkers from across Europe is celebrating its tenth year in the pages of the beer lovers’ bible.

Emlyn Square boozer the Glue Pot has again won a place in the Good Beer Guide.

The guide – now in its 45th year – is published by the Campaign for Real Ale and lists 1,700 of the best pubs for beer aficionados.

Ex-tank commander turned pub landlord Jonathan Crisp said he was “very pleased” to still make the cut.

“For us, it’s more important to stay in the Good Beer Guide than to have got in it in the first place,” he said. “People would notice if we suddenly disappeared from the Good Beer Guide.”

While Railway Village pubs The Bakers Arms and the Cricketers have been forced to close, the Glue Pot has remained as a snapshot of life in the historic Swindon community.

Jonathan, 55, who has been at the Glue Pot since 2008, said of his pub: “It’s just a traditional English pub, as pubs used to be – nice wooden seating and wood panelling on the walls.”

At any one time the pub has eight real ales on tap, a host of other beers from around the world, and at least eight ciders.

The Glue Pot is a “destination pub” for drinkers, Jonathan said – with visitors coming from as far afield as Norway for a pint in one of Swindon’s quirkier watering holes.

Jonathan said: “We used to have a Norwegian chap come in. He wrote sports articles for the newspaper, he was based in Swindon and he used to drink in here.

“He’d tell people back home about us, so we have had people come in here from Norway.”

Former soldier Jonathan served as a tank commander with the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment, before leaving to run pubs. He came to the Glue Pot in 2008 and has been licensee for the past four years.

He said: “I suppose the army drinking experience comes in handy, but the ability to kill people is less important.”

He called the life of a landlord “long but enjoyable”: “You start early and finish late.”

Landlord Jonathan said that “traditional” pubs like his could weather the problems affecting the wider pub trade. According to beer group CAMRA, Britain has lost 28,000 pubs since the 1970s.

He said: “I think the losses are swayed by the fact that a lot of these pubs closing belong to pub companies. The companies get a bit greedy with the rent until eventually the landlords can’t pay anymore.”

The landlord, who has two grown-up children, he’ll celebrate his pub’s success by raising a pint of his favourite Entire Stout – a beer by Hop Back, the brewery that owns the Glue Pot pub.

“It’s a lovely stout,” said Jonathan. “It’s nice and smooth, with chocolate notes and a hint of coffee.”

The Glue Pot is at 5 Emlyn Square. For more, call: 01793 497420.