THE owner of an historic Somerset village pub has stepped down after 19 years as landlord, describing pub life as "unpredictable".
Matthew Nicklin, 39, has been the proud owner of the Anchor Inn at Combwich, in Somerset, ever since he was just 20 years old. The Anchor is the only pub in the village of Combwich, Somerset.
Matthew explained his parents were a "huge part" of his early years as a landlord, helping fund and build the pub up back in the early 2000s.
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Matthew said: "Was buying a pub at just 20 years old a good thing to do? Would it be heaven or hell — great fun or a hard, long lesson? Looking back now, it’s fair to say it was a bit of both.
"When I first took on The Anchor Inn in Combwich, Somerset, I was young, full of ideas, and had no clue what was coming.
"My mum and dad were a huge part of those early years. Mum painted half the pub when we first opened, and Dad covered countless shifts over the years — especially when staff were short or I needed a break.
"He also did loads of building work around the place. And over the years, I was lucky to have some fantastic staff who gave their all to help keep the doors open.
"I owe everything to my mum and dad, who invested over £100,000 to help me buy the pub when I was just 20. They helped me get the mortgage and kept funding the losses for seven years until we finally made our first profit — at great sacrifice to themselves and the whole family."
The Anchor Inn at Combwich has years of history to its name before Matthew even took over, with the pub saved in 1999 after more than 100 people signed a petition against plans to convert the 18th-century ale house into a private home.
It's the only pub in the village of Combwich, and is located just five miles away from the Hinkley Point C nuclear power station.
Matthew has reflected on the challenges he faced over the years as a young pub owner.
"Taking on the pub so young meant every mistake was a lesson learned the hard way," he said.
"At one point, things got so tight that I had to rent out my own bedroom to contractors and sleep on a fold-out couch in the bar, for six years, just to keep things afloat."
This eventually led to a breakthrough for Matthew, though, as the former landlord eventually built 14 letting rooms at the pub, which pushed the business into profit after "years of struggle", he said.
Matthew added: "The challenges didn't stop there. There were also moments that made me question everything.
"Once, I was threatened with a samurai sword — thankfully, only threatened, not attacked — and that really brought home how unpredictable pub life could be.
"Then came the credit crunch years, when people just weren’t going out spending money like they used to."
Matthew found himself working at Hinkley Point B for a total of five years, working as everything from a fire watcher, chef, and later as a fitter’s mate for Wire Engineering - all just to have a flow of income to keep the pub running.
"And of course, there were the national challenges," said Matthew. "The smoking ban, the COVID lockdowns, and the energy crisis — each one hitting pubs hard.
"During the lockdowns, the stress was unreal.
"When the energy crisis hit, winter power bills were up to £1,000 a week, forcing us to completely rethink how we heated the place and cooked food. We even had to scrap the pizza oven because it cost too much to keep running all day."
As well as paying homage to his parents, Matthew is forever grateful to his wife during his time owning the Anchor Inn, who moved down from the big city to support him with the village pub.
"Through all this, I had my girlfriend — now my wife — by my side," he added.
"She moved all the way down from London to help and support me when things were toughest. She covered bar shifts, helped with cleaning, admin, and customers, and stood by me through every late night and early morning.
"It wasn’t an easy life — and to be fair, she did have a few well-deserved moans now and then, lol — but she still stuck with me through it all.
"She got stuck in, helped wherever she could, and never walked away. Having her by my side made all the difference."
People who visited the pub may remember the various events held over the years from things like hog roasts, race nights, casino nights, and more.
"For all the hardship, there were so many good times. We hosted live music, casino nights, race nights, weddings, and village pig roasts," Matthew said.
"One of my favourite traditions was helping with the OAP Christmas dinner each year. The OAP Association paid for the ingredients, and I cooked the turkeys for free — usually two giant birds — while they prepared all the sides. Most years, I’d even head down to the village hall to help serve it up to nearly a hundred people. It was a real community effort and something I was proud to be part of."
Alongside the challenges of running a pub, there was also the influence of 'rumours'.
Matthew said: "Along with council issues, I had to deal with rumours.
"[Including] people saying the pub was badly run, that I didn’t care, and even that we served bad beer. That hurt more than anything, because there wasn’t a single day in nineteen years that I stopped caring.
"Every decision, every long night, every bit of stress — it all came from wanting to keep The Anchor Inn alive and part of the village.
"Another battle I faced was a personal one, my struggle with reading and writing.
"Being dyslexic made running the business even harder, especially in the early years. I lost count of the number of times I made spelling mistakes on menus — things like 'pork raped in bacon' or 'bear batted fish and chip'.
"It gave people a laugh, and sometimes me too, but underneath it was a constant challenge. Still, I never let it stop me. I learned to laugh at myself, take the jokes on the chin, and keep moving forward."
The Final Chapter
The new owners were announced after one final day of last orders last month (September 18), but the pub has not reopened yet. On the final day, Matthew made all pints £2.50 for the night as a send-off to the community.
"The sale [of the pub] finally went through in 2025, after taking more than a year from offer to completion — one of the most stressful times of my life," he explained.
"But I stayed behind that bar and kept the doors open right up until the very last day.
"When it was done, I felt something strange — a feeling I hadn’t known in decades. Relief.
"For the first time in twenty years, I wasn’t worrying about staff, stock, or the next bill. I wasn’t waiting for the next kick in the teeth from the economy or the government. I’ve got this weird feeling now — I think it’s being relaxed, de-stressed, and genuinely happy for the first time in 20 years.
"I feel like I’m no longer standing on the edge of a cliff, waiting for the next gust of wind to blow me off. Now, there are no cliffs — just flat land ahead, open for me to explore and conquer."
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