A pub landlord has called time on his bachelor life by marrying a woman he met more than 18 years ago.

And the Oxford Mail's sister paper, the Abingdon Herald, played a part in helping Peter Kidd from the Fox at Steventon, and his bride, Jenny Burton, tie the knot.

Mr Kidd first met Jenny when he worked as a barman at The Nags Head in nearby Abingdon in 1988.

Their lives went separate ways in the intervening years but a report in the Abingdon Herald three years ago rekindled their relationship.

It was Miss Burton's father who spotted the familiar face in the newspaper when we reported The Fox was under new ownership.

She said: "I always knew Peter would continue working in pubs but I had no idea he would end up buying one."

Mr Kidd bought The Fox three years ago and since then, has received regional and national awards for the way he has transformed the pub.

He said: "To say Jenny had her doubts about my new career wouldn't be far from the truth.

"But now she has seen how much The Fox means to me, she understands why I gave up a comfortable nine-to-five job for this lifestyle.

"Frankly, I'm amazed she puts up with the ridiculous hours publicans work."

The new Mrs Kidd works as a production manager for publishers Taylor and Francis at Milton Park, but she still finds time to give husband Peter a hand behind the bar.

Mr Kidd said his wife had a successful career of her own, so it would have been unfair to ask her to be a pub landlady too.

But he added: "Only a week after our wedding, she was peeling potatoes for 80 Sunday lunches, so you never know!"

The couple were married at Fallowfields Hotel in Southmoor. So far, they've had no time for a romantic honeymoon because Mrs Kidd said they were too busy running a pub.