Locals held a 'sit out' vigil outside their village pub last night to protest about the fact it has been closed for a year.

The Sam Smith's-owned Castle Inn in Sheriff Hutton closed at the end of August last year when the landlord left, and has never re-opened.

Villagers who gathered on the village green in front of the pub last night to share a drink and mount a protest 'sit-out' say it has been part of village life for more than 200 years.

Former regular and Sheriff resident Dave Smith, 60, said: “Pubs are central to the life of a village and The Castle, being located on the village green, is literally central to the village.”

He added: “People loved The Castle and its special ambiance. It was a place of conversation, gossip, laughter and even the sticky carpets - and is terribly missed.

“We hope that Sam Smith's will look urgently at re-opening The Castle as soon as possible.”

Local Paul Nelson, 62, said he was the fourth generation of his family to drink in the pub.

“My great-grandfather, Robert, drank here in the late 1800s," he said. "If he knew what was happening with the pub now, he’d be spinning in his grave.”

The protest vigil passed off peacefully, other than a spilled bottle of Prosecco.

The Castle Inn's status is listed online as 'temporarily closed'.

A member of staff at Sam Smith's brewery said this week there was 'no update' on the status of the pub.