Carriage Driving Routes: Marlborough Downs

Silks on the Downs, formerly the Wheatsheaf Inn, is a restaurant and bar with rooms on the outskirts of Marlborough.

Silks has a long history of being somewhere to come and relax with a drink, or over a home-cooked meal, and Silks’ owners have captured the spirit of both good hospitality and the rich history of racing which is embedded in the area Silks has become renowned for its elegant menu with excellent and responsibly sourced ingredients, which is then delivered with warm service and a friendly smile all nestled in the village of Ogbourne St. Andrew. Silks is an ideal place for a special night out, a relaxing lunch, or even somewhere to bring the family!

In July 2017, Howard and Lucy Spooner became The Who’d A Thought It’s new landlords and are thrilled to begin an exciting new chapter for this well-loved village pub. The Spooner passion for providing quality meat, and other food and drink, goes back over generations of family butchers. The pub’s decor echoes this history with walls displaying meat cleavers, butchers’ hooks and bulls’ heads. Howard’s 25 years’ experience in creating and operating clubs and bars in London and Verbier, is evident in maximising the customer space and experience. The recent grand refurbishment to ‘The Who’d A’, as it has affectionately become known, has brought the bar and restaurant a relaxed elegance with the use of leather and hide prints, comfortable furnishings and atmospheric lighting.

A traditional English pub set in the Marlborough countryside

The Outside Chance was created in 2008 from the gambling winnings of Howard Spooner’s racehorse, Only Dreams, a 100-1 winner at Leicester. The OC is a traditional English pub in the picturesque village of Manton serving Wadworth fine ales and delicious classic food from top quality local produce.  It’s reputation as a racing brand attracts many of the local horse racing community and it was here where Sir AP McCoy OBE, the world’s greatest jump jockey and sporing legend, celebrated his remarkable achievement of riding 4,000 winners.

Open all day every day, everyone is made to feel welcome at the Outside Chance, be it the regulars, ladies who lunch, families and four-legged friends, or the impromptu visitor. We show all sports on request on our big flat-screen TV, including horseracing, rugby, boxing and football. We offer a fantastic Children’s menu and can provide high chairs. We also welcome well-behaved friendly family dogs.

Sister Pub – The Who’d A Thought It