A POPULAR town centre pub will be open for longer under its new landlord.

Daniel Harrison is now in charge of The Rolleston Arms after the previous boss Violet McLaren sold the Commercial Road tavern so that she could focus on its sister pub The Victoria in Old Town.

When the building first came on the market back in August, Mr Harrison called Stonegate Pub Partners straight away to let them know he was interested.

His family used to run The Clifton, he spent a decade working in Wetherspoons around Wiltshire, then spent five years managing The Waiting Room before this new opportunity arose.

Daniel told the Adver: "I've lived in the area for many years, this was my local. it's in a great location.

"I went to Level 3 when it was called The Furnace, I love the music scene, and have worked in pubs all my life so this seemed like a good fit.

"I've brought my team over from my previous job - along with my partner and five children - and recruited a few new staff. A lot of people got involved to help get everything ready quickly.

"It's been hard but we've hit the ground running."

The Rolleston Arms will continue having live music every Saturday while its neighbouring nightclub Level 3 hosts an array of events, gigs and club nights.

Extending the pub's opening hours became a top priority for the new tenant.

He added: "The opening times here used to be quite sporadic and I wanted to get them back to how they once were.

"If people walk past in the morning and you're closed, they'll lose the incentive to keep checking and you'll lose them for good.

"At Wetherspoons, it's all about getting the customers in, giving them cheap drinks, and kicking them out.

"I want this to be different, more of a social hub, a proper community pub, with no pre-processed rubbish.

"This is a friendly place, somewhere you can come when you're bored and enjoy good entertainment. In the long-term, the Rolleston and Level 3 will complement each other as separate entities."

The Rolly is now open seven days a week from 11am.

As for the future, there are plans to give the outside a facelift when the weather is more agreeable, add new beer and product lines to increase the variety of available tipples, get a few more screens in to show live sport such as Formula 1 and rugby.