Pubs in Wokingham are experiencing a fairly busy Christmas period this winter, with many already getting booked up for Christmas day and taking on other holiday bookings.

The manager at The Lord Raglan Mr Tom Wakeford said that their pub is busy, which he thinks is expected as during the colder months people want to be inside.

“We’re doing very well at the moment,” he said. “We are very busy Christmas day and are almost already booked up completely.”

Mr Wakeford also said that all the weekends leading up to Christmas were booked up.

When asked if the pub is hosting many Christmas parties, he said “To put it bluntly, I have Christmas parties coming out of my arse.

“It’s mainly been corporate ones until a week or two before Christmas which is when families start coming in.”

The general manager of the Broad Street Tavern Mrs Lili Collier said that business has been up and down during the festive period, but that she is remaining optimistic.

“It’s been so up and down,” she said. “We don’t know if we’re coming or going from one day to another. We have a few bookings but not as many as last year.

“When we think it’s going to be busy, it’s quiet, and when we think it’s going to be quiet, it’s busy. It’s crazy.”

Despite this, she remains optimistic for the Christmas period. “We do have lots of events that we organise and have live bands every Friday.

“The second weekend of December we had a karaoke night, and we have a DJ every Saturday.”

Mrs Collier confirmed that her pub is not open for Christmas day as they want to spend time with their families.

Land Lady at the Queen’s Head Carol Williams said that the Christmas period is always busy at her pub.

She said: “People that are retired are meeting up for a drink at the pub and were doing that before Christmas. We had big groups meeting up on weekday afternoons.”

The Queen’s Head doesn’t serve food, but Carol Williams confirmed that they are still open on Christmas Day and that people love to come for drinks.

“We’re very much a meeting house for friends to meet up,” she said. “On Christmas day we are open from 11 pm till 2 pm for locals and everyone.

“I like to buy my customers a drink on Christmas morning.”