Tan Hill Inn
A historic public house and accommodation venue in North Yorkshire, reputed to be the highest inn in the British Isles.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Tan Hill Inn is a historic public house, restaurant, live-music venue and accommodation business at Tan Hill in North Yorkshire, England. The inn stands at approximately 1,732 feet (528 metres) above sea level and is commonly described as the highest inn in the British Isles. Its elevated and isolated location has been central to its identity, its commercial appeal and its recurring appearances in national and international news. The building dates from the seventeenth century. During the eighteenth century it served workers associated with the local coal industry and was known by the earlier name The Kings Pit. The inn also welcomed farmers, pedlars and drovers moving cattle toward the coal pits. Although the surrounding mining settlement disappeared after the closure of the last mine in 1929 and the demolition of nearby miners’ cottages in the early 1930s, the pub remained viable through the support of local farmers and the increasing use of motor cars by visitors. Tan Hill Inn operates as a free house, allowing it to serve beers from different breweries rather than being tied to a single brewing company. Sources identify beers from Black Sheep and Theakston among its offerings. In addition to food and drink, the venue has offered guest accommodation, wedding and civil-ceremony facilities, camping and camper-van pitches, and live music. Its remote setting and distinctive historic character have made it a destination for tourists, motorists, walkers, music audiences and television production crews. The inn became the first public house in the United Kingdom to receive a licence for weddings and civil ceremonies in 1995, following legal changes that permitted marriages outside churches and register offices. It has also hosted visiting performers including Arctic Monkeys, Mark Ronson and British Sea Power. Its profile has been reinforced by appearances in advertising and television programmes, including work for Everest and Vodafone, as well as programmes such as Top Gear, The Fast Show, All Creatures Great and Small, Vera and Beyond the Yorkshire Farm. Weather-related incidents have become part of the inn’s public image. Guests celebrating New Year’s Eve in 2009 were unable to leave for three days because of heavy snow. In November 2021, Storm Arwen left customers and staff snowbound over a weekend, generating widespread media coverage. A reunion for those affected was held in December 2022. In January 2025, six bar staff and 23 guests were rescued after remaining at the inn for five days following New Year celebrations because snow blocked access. The business has also undergone efforts to modernise and expand its facilities while retaining its historic character. Landlady Louise Peace and her husband Mike put the pub on the market in 2017 after operating it for 13 years. From the middle of 2018, owner Andrew Hields was associated with restoration work. Reported plans included converting a barn into a carvery, adding another bar, developing facilities for touring vehicles and campers, and potentially introducing a rustic spa and outdoor pool. Guest rooms were refurbished and electrical work was completed in 2019, while some broader improvement plans remained under development. Tan Hill Inn’s positioning therefore combines heritage hospitality, rural tourism, food and drink, events, accommodation and the unusual experience of staying at a remote, high-altitude British pub.
History
Tan Hill Inn occupies a seventeenth-century building at Tan Hill in the North Yorkshire countryside. Its early commercial history was closely tied to the coal industry. During the eighteenth century, the establishment operated as a hostelry for workers digging nearby coal pits and was known as The Kings Pit. Its customers also included farmers, pedlars and drovers transporting cattle toward the coal workings. The inn’s remote position was therefore originally connected to extractive industry and rural movement rather than solely to tourism. The last local mine closed in 1929. Associated miners’ cottages were demolished in the early 1930s, leaving the inn increasingly isolated. It nevertheless continued operating because local farmers patronised it and the growth of motor-car travel brought new visitors. Its survival illustrates the transition from a mining-supporting public house to a rural roadside and destination venue. Administrative boundaries briefly altered the inn’s county identity. From 1974, boundary changes placed it within County Durham. Following local opposition and a review in 1987, it returned to the Yorkshire boundary. The inn later gained a notable place in British hospitality history when, in 1995, it became the first UK public house licensed to host weddings and civil ceremonies after legal reforms expanded the locations where couples could marry. Tan Hill Inn is a free house and has served beers from breweries including Black Sheep and Theakston. Over time it expanded beyond conventional pub service into accommodation, food, weddings, live music and rural tourism. The venue has hosted or welcomed visiting acts such as Arctic Monkeys, Mark Ronson and British Sea Power. Its rooms, event facilities and remote setting have also attracted film and television productions. The property’s distinctive surroundings have repeatedly generated publicity. An Everest replacement-window advertisement featuring Ted Moult filmed at the pub in the 1980s, and the inn appeared in Vodafone’s first advertisement in the 1990s. Everest returned in 2008 for another advertisement featuring Craig Doyle and installed new windows and solar panels. The venue was later shown in Oz and James Drink to Britain, and appeared in programmes including The Inspector Lynley Mysteries, Murder in Mind, Top Gear, The Fast Show, Wish You Were Here...?, All Creatures Great and Small and Jude the Obscure. It was also used for ITV’s Vera, filmed in May 2019 for an episode broadcast in January 2020, and for Channel 5’s Beyond the Yorkshire Farm, with scenes filmed in August 2022. The pub has periodically pursued improvements. Louise Peace and Mike Peace, who had run the inn for 13 years, placed it on the market in July 2017. From mid-2018, Andrew Hields was associated with restoration and plans to recover the building’s character while developing its commercial offer. Proposals included a barn carvery, a second bar, expanded provision for camper vans and caravans, live-music use, a rustic spa and an outdoor pool. Guest rooms were refurbished and electrical work completed in 2019, although not every proposed development had been completed at that time. Weather emergencies have become a particularly memorable part of the inn’s modern history. Snow prevented New Year’s Eve customers from leaving for three days in 2009. In November 2021, Storm Arwen trapped guests and staff for a weekend, an incident followed by a reunion in December 2022. In January 2025, six employees and 23 guests were rescued after a five-day enforced stay caused by snow following New Year celebrations. These episodes have reinforced the Tan Hill Inn’s identity as both a functioning hospitality business and an unusually remote British landmark.
- 2025
Five-day snowbound stay ends in rescue
[1]Six staff members and 23 guests were rescued after snow blocked departure for five days following New Year celebrations.
- 2021
Storm Arwen snowbound incident
[1]Heavy snowfall trapped patrons inside the inn over a weekend.
- 2019
Accommodation and electrical refurbishment
[1]Guest rooms were refurbished and electrical work was completed while further development plans remained under consideration.
- 2017
Property placed on the market
[1]Louise and Mike Peace put the pub up for sale after 13 years of operation.
- 2007
KFC trademark dispute abandoned
[1]KFC decided not to pursue threatened legal action concerning the phrase "Family Feast" on the inn’s Christmas menu.
- 1995
First UK pub licensed for weddings and civil ceremonies
[1]Tan Hill Inn became the first public house in the United Kingdom granted a licence to hold weddings and civil ceremonies.
- 1987
Returned to Yorkshire boundary
[1]After protests and a review, the inn reverted to the Yorkshire boundary.
- 1974
Temporary boundary change
[1]Administrative changes placed the inn within County Durham.
- 1929
Last local mine closes
[1]The closure of the last mine ended the inn’s direct relationship with the local mining economy.
- 1800
Coal-industry hostelry
[1]During the eighteenth century, the inn served workers, farmers, pedlars and drovers connected with the local coal pits and was known as The Kings Pit.
Products and positioning
A heritage rural hospitality destination distinguished by its isolation, altitude, historic public-house character, accommodation, events and exposure to severe-weather experiences.
Food service
Pub food
Tan Hill Inn operates as a traditional British public house and serves food alongside drinks. Its food offer forms part of the broader destination experience, appealing to visitors travelling through the remote North Yorkshire landscape as well as overnight guests and event attendees.
Beverage service
Beer and drinks
As a free house, Tan Hill Inn can offer beers from multiple breweries. The inn has been associated with beers from Black Sheep and Theakston, rather than operating under the exclusive supply arrangement of a tied pub.
Hospitality
Guest accommodation
The inn provides rooms for visitors seeking an overnight stay in an isolated high-country setting. Its accommodation has been refurbished, including work reported in 2019, and supports the property’s role as a rural tourism destination rather than only a daytime pub.
Events · 1995
Wedding and civil-ceremony venue
Tan Hill Inn has hosted weddings and civil ceremonies since receiving a notable licence in 1995. The offering uses the inn’s historic building and remote landscape as an alternative setting for marriage celebrations and related events.
Outdoor hospitality
Camping and touring-vehicle stays
The property has encouraged stays by campers, caravans and camper vans. This extends the inn’s accommodation proposition to outdoor and touring visitors who want to use it as a base in the surrounding rural area.
Entertainment
Live music and events
The venue has operated as a live-music location and has hosted visiting performers including Arctic Monkeys, Mark Ronson and British Sea Power. Entertainment programming complements the pub, accommodation and destination-venue businesses.
Controversies
Marketing campaigns
- 2017Waitrose Christmas advertising campaign
United Kingdom
Tan Hill Inn featured in television coverage connected with Waitrose’s Christmas advertising campaign.
Outcome. The appearance further established the inn as a recognisable seasonal and rural media location.
- 2008Everest return advertising production
United Kingdom
Everest returned to the inn for a later advertisement featuring Craig Doyle and installed new windows and solar panels during the production.
Outcome. The campaign renewed the inn’s association with memorable location-based advertising.
- 1990Vodafone launch advertising
United Kingdom
The inn appeared in Vodafone’s first advertisement, broadcast during the 1990s.
Outcome. The campaign brought the remote venue into a national telecommunications advertising context.
- 1980Everest replacement-window advertisement
United Kingdom
Tan Hill Inn appeared in an Everest replacement-window advertisement featuring Ted Moult during the 1980s.
Outcome. The appearance contributed to the inn’s long-running visibility as a distinctive British location.
Brand decisions
2018
Restoration and facilities-development programmeStrategyBackground
Following the property’s 2017 sale process, new ownership was associated with efforts to restore the inn’s character and develop additional revenue streams.
Action taken
Reported plans included a barn carvery, a second bar, expanded camping and touring-vehicle provision, live-music use, a rustic spa and an outdoor pool.
Aftermath
Guest rooms were refurbished and electrical work was completed in 2019; the status of all proposed expansions was not established in the reference material.
1995
Expanded into weddings and civil ceremoniesStrategyBackground
Changes to UK marriage licensing rules allowed ceremonies to be held in venues beyond churches and register offices.
Action taken
Tan Hill Inn obtained a licence to hold weddings and civil ceremonies.
Aftermath
The inn became the first UK public house to receive such a licence, broadening its role from pub to events venue.
Recent events
- 2025
Guests and staff rescued after five-day snowbound stay[1]
Other
Six bar staff and 23 guests were rescued after snow prevented them from leaving for five days following New Year celebrations.
- 2022
Snowbound guests return for Tan Hill Inn reunion[1]
Other
People affected by the 2021 Storm Arwen incident attended a reunion at the inn in December.
- 2021
Tan Hill Inn guests stranded by Storm Arwen[1]
Other
Snow associated with Storm Arwen trapped patrons inside the inn over a weekend, producing extensive media coverage.
- 2009
Snow traps New Year’s Eve visitors at Tan Hill Inn[1]
Other
Heavy snowfall prevented revellers at the pub from leaving for three days after New Year’s Eve celebrations.
Sources2 sources
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