The Old Cottage Pub in Margate dubbed 'longest Homes Under the Hammer project ever' could reopen by summer.

A 370-year-old inn which was once decaying into ruins could be open by summer, after a painstaking 14-year restoration project.

The Old Cottage Pub on Margate's High Street was serving pints up until 2007 when the doors closed and the building was left in a sorry state.

Two years later, David Gorton snapped it up for a "bargain" £90,000 on an episode of Homes Under the Hammer.

He had initially planned to open the pub on the same date as the Turner Contempory back in April 2011.

But Mr Gorton has been beset by delays - caused by planning issues and, he admits, his own ambitious vision for the site.

Speaking to KentOnline inside the 17th century building this week, he said: "It must be the longest-running Homes Under the Hammer project ever."

David Gorton is the owner of The Old Cottage Pub in Margate.

When it finally reopens - hopefully by the summer - it will include features such as its own brewery in the basement, an upstairs restaurant and Airbnb rooms.

The Grade II-listed property was built as a home in 1650 and shortly after was turned into an off-licence, serving the bathhouses that stood opposite. It became a fully-fledged pub in 1760.

Among its punters over the years was someone who dropped an Oliver Cromwell silver shilling dating back to 1658.

It was discovered in May last year after it was sucked up into a hoover and is valued at more than £12,000.

The Old Cottage Pub on Margate's High Street could be open by summer.

But by the time The Old Cottage featured on Homes Under the Hammer in 2009, the building was "collapsing all on its own".

"If we had left it a few more months, I think the ceilings would have been on the floor and it would have started imploding on itself," Mr Gorton said.

The 67-year-old told how the project has been plagued by delays.

"We had a few problems initially getting space in the car park to empty all the rubbish out of the pub which had accumulated over the years," he said.

"Consequentially we didn’t actually get going until 2014.

The brewery in the basement.

"We’ve had a few issues and delays, because I’m paying particular attention to the quality of the work and conserving everything I possibly can."

Another hidden gem discovered during the restoration was an impressive 1650 fireplace, previously concealed behind a wall in the pub's kitchen.

"We have re-pointed it and cleaned the timber work." said Mr Gorton.

"We have left it exactly how it was other than that." he added.

Once open, the pub will have various interesting and original features including "pour your own pint" stations, which customers can access with a digital members card.

Within the basement of the building, is its own brewery.

A 1650 fireplace was discovered in the Margate pub.

Named The Margate Brewery, it will supply beer to the pub and other local businesses.

The retired firefighter has designed an innovative system, in which beer will come up from the basement through pipes, to copper tanks above the bar.

Pints will be poured straight from these, meaning the alcohol doesn't mix with air until it hits the glass.

A fifth floor has also been added to the property, giving Mr Gorton and his wife a second home with a sea view.

Ambitious extra features like this and failed planning applications have led to the lengthy time frame, he explained.

A coin valued at £12,500 was found during restoration.

"It has turned into a labour of love, so I’m partly to blame for the time it’s taken," the dad-of-four admits.

"But, it hasn’t always been plain sailing - it’s been hard to get everything done.

"Now I just want to get the job finished and get it open."

The kitchen will be on the first floor along with an upstairs restaurant and bar for private functions, and the main pub will be at street level.

There will also be an Airbnb and chefs' living quarters on the second floor.

Mr Gorton said: "Providing there’s no more obstacles along the way and it is purely a case of knuckling down, finishing the practical work and opening the doors - I could probably finish it within two to three months."

The restoration has not been cheap.

Repairs to the collapsing basement alone cost about £155,000, over the initial budget for the whole project.

"It was a bargain to buy," said Mr Gordon.

"But, if I looked at the final figures I could expect on day one - I probably never would have done it.

"It’s worked out to be very very expensive but honestly, if you’re going to do it, you’ve got to do it properly."

Presenter Lucy Alexander was the one to interview the owner at the time of filming, and then returned almost five years later, hoping to show off the finished product.

"I made them promise if they let me do the second film when we weren’t finished, they would come back and do the finale," he said.

Pints will be pulled from copper tanks above the bar.

"They said 'yes, so long as were still in production'.

"It must be the longest-running Homes Under the Hammer project ever."

Mr Gorton, who's main home is in Sidcup in Bexley, added: "I have to finish it.

"The truth is I have no idea how much I’ve spent on it.

"It’s a work in progress, and if I kept score it would frighten the life out of me.

"I have to keep going - I have to finish it.

"The idea is not to do it within a budget or a sum of money - it’s got to be done because its historic and very special."

From the https://www.kentlive.news By Mary Harri, 19 January 2024.

Kent pub dubbed 'longest Homes Under the Hammer project' could finally open this year.

The news about The Old Cottage Pub in Margate has thrilled its loyal band of followers.

A couple who bought an almost collapsing pub in Margate at auction on the BBC's Homes Under the Hammer nearly 15 years ago say 2024 could be the year it finally opens. The news about The Old Cottage Pub from owner David Gorton has thrilled his loyal band of followers, who have congratulated him and his artist wife Dennise for sticking with the project.

David, from Sidcup, has previously joked this project could be the longest running one from the show. His latest bulletin to the people of Margate and beyond, many of whom are itching to get in there and have a drink and see the work for themselves, not only gave the news about opening but also about the pub's future name.

The couple revealed they were going to "respectfully retire" the name The Old Cottage Pub and instead call it "Gorton's," to honour David's mother and father "who loved and lived in Margate".

Taking to Facebook, David said it could be "THE year" the pub opened its doors, saying apart from the commercial kitchen, the building work was complete and decorating was going well. The Old Cottage Pub is one of the last remaining half-timber and half-flint cottages in the town.

David, who is retired from the fire service, told Homes Under the Hammer at the time he had wanted to "add to his portfolio". But he said he had been looking for residential property, not a pub or to run one.

But he said the pub found him, as he tried to switch his computer off in the early hours, the details of the pub appeared on his screen, and he was immediately hooked. "It was flukey. Yes, it found me and I ended up with a pub. It was a gift really, in several ways," he said.

David and Dennise Gorton - in 2009 on Homes Under The Hammer - after buying a property in Kent which they believe is the show's 'longest project'

He bought the Grade II long-closed pub for £90,000 - all on camera of course. And the couple were also filmed, excitedly walking arm in arm to the boarded up pub.

He had originally hoped to reopen the pub in 2011 but there have been many issues, including clearing the site and a council wrangle over a footway running beside the building. The couple got going on the restoration work three years later and their attention to detail has been painstaking.

As mentioned, David has joked his project - which started with a £150,000 budget that was swallowed up by just fixing the basement - must be longest running on Homes Under the Hammer. The couple have also just shared a fascinating potted history of the pub.

They said it started as a cottage, with one room for sleeping accessed by a ladder, and a downstairs living area with a kitchen. A doorway and pulley system was added for the delivery of imported wines and spirits, and later an off licence was built. An "infill building" to join the cottage and off licence was built in 1850, and they were properly connected in 1924.

Later in the building's history, the family who owned the property, the Wastalls, granted a lease to tenants to run a pub from there. It had been a home and business for a staggering 360 years.

The Gortons bought the freehold of the building from the Wastall's descendants via Clive Emson auctioneers. There was a mountain of work to do including fixing the collapsed basement.

David said at the time he bought it, the ceilings were close to falling in. A fifth floor has been added for the Gortons to stay in.

David said: "We are therefore the only single freehold owner of this incredibly historic building, since the first family in c1650. That is the reason why this project is not simply a proposed business and building restoration.

"That is why it is so treasured, loved and respectfully cared for by us, like never before. It has undergone this restoration work because the building deserves it, regardless of time and money."

He and several locals refer to the place fondly as "the old girl". One said: "I am looking forward to the day, after 50 years, to get back inside the pub, and with my old friends, raise a glass and drink, as you say, to the next 350 years!"

And another person wrote: "Fascinating piece of Margate history and heritage restored. Looking forward to seeing you open for business and having all the success you deserve for your efforts."