The Bell in Church Street is the only one of Helmdon’s original licensed premises still trading today. It has always been what is called a "free house" which means that it was never owned by a brewery and thus tied to supplying the ales that the brewery produced. It was called The King William IV in the first years of its recorded life. King William IV reigned from 1830-37 so it is not fanciful to think that it was first licensed as a beerhouse during his reign, or, indeed, in the reign of William III. Maltster Edward Hill owned land around the present site of The Bell in the 1750s and in his will of 1794 he bequeathed, amongst other possessions, all his stock of "Malthouses Garners Mills and Implements belonging to the Malting Business unto George and Thomas Fairbrother". The presence of a maltster suggests that he could have been supplying the malt to the nearby beerhouse.

John Pratt was the first known beerhouse keeper and he was the landlord for at least 38 years, from 1841-79. A farmer with ten acres of land, he had six children to provide for. He was a JP so he must have been held in high regard. His family had been in Helmdon since the seventeenth century, and in 1688 his ancestor, John Pratt, Yeoman, left bequests to yet another ancestor by the name of John. The 1861 census refers to the beerhouse as "The Queen", presumably because Victoria was now on the throne, but the name does not occur again. As for ownership of The King William IV, Ann Wrighton was named as owner in the 1872 licensing records. Around 1884, it was taken over by the Leamington Brewery Co and about this time it changed its name to The Bell. This was a name that often had its origin in the fact that it was near to a church, and it was the pub in Helmdon that was the nearest to the parish church, which was situated in Village Street (later renamed Church Street). In 1934 it came into private hands and has stayed private ever since.

After John Pratt ceased to be landlord in 1879, landlords came and went in quick succession and it was not until the advent of Alfred Tribute at the end of the nineteenth century, who was at the beerhouse for over three years, that a landlord stayed long enough to bring some stability to its life. The Edden family, Thomas, Henry, and Emma followed Alfred Tribute. Then came George and Caroline Rose, with children Joyce and Aubrey, who were at The Bell until 1932, and, recollects Mary Turnham, were the local newsagents for a period. In 1934 David Barltrop bought the alehouse from Mrs Morris (the purchase price was £1,100 recalls Harold Seckington). When David Barltrop took charge of the premises Harold Seckington remembers that a lot of alterations were needed (although, says Carol Brookhouse, the roof of the pub was still thatched until 1939). A room with a marvellous sprung maple floor, which made the waltz and quickstep a delight to dance, was constructed by David Barltrop, with Harold’s help, at the rear of the car park. Called "the Bell hut" by George Turnham in his book, Mary Turnham recalls that she was never allowed to go to it as a youngster, her grandparents calling it a "den of iniquity". Instead she used to sit at her bedroom window and listen to the sounds of music coming across the fields. However, with the arrival of the evacuees, the service men and all the workers in the district employed on the construction of the many aerodromes in the district, she says such opinions changed, and in time the Bell Hut became the centre point of recreation and a focus point for all the youngsters in the village. Until the forties the establishment was licensed as a "beerhouse on" which meant that beer had to be consumed on the premises but in 1946 Brackley Magistrates Court granted a wine licence, the wine again having to be consumed on the premises.

After another period when most owners/landlords changed almost yearly, in 1953 Alfred and Doris Brookhouse bought The Bell. It was still a free house, with a beer and wine licence only. At that time there were comparatively few cars in the village to enable people to go far afield for their social activities, and considerable use was still being made of the hall which acted as a focus for the village. Apart from dances, it was also used for dinners for local organisations, meetings and even table tennis. Music was provided by 78s, using a single turntable, amplification being by two enormous speakers. The local band that were regular attenders at that time were called the Mellochords - they were the band of the day. Sadly the Bell Hut was replaced before 1970 and a bungalow was built in its place. During this time Regent petrol was served with a hand operated pump to anyone who required four gallons or more, a major as well as lengthy operation. In the mid-thirties the petrol sold for 11 d a gallon with one pump remaining there through the seventies. In time Albert obtained a spirit licence from Brackley magistrates and The Bell became a fully licensed establishment.

David and Carol bought The Bell from David’s father in 1972 and spent many happy years there. Carol told me that there used to be four rooms (it was Harold Seckingon who had helped with the work of making two of the rooms into one and lifting the beams holding up the ceiling) and that one of them was used by lacemakers as a schoolroom in the nineteenth century. She served up good food and when she and David ran the public house Hook Norton ales were the preferred "tipple". David recalls that they organised many activities during their time at The Bell including football, cricket, water polo, darts, pool, dominoes, golf, tractor pulling and banger racing. They also held over a number of years a Boxing Day charity event complete with marquee which attracted a large crowd from Helmdon and the surrounding area, the highest point in the seventies of these Boxing Day events being the performances by the American soul group, the now world-famous Gospelairs. The ground at the rear of The Bell, some of which was let as allotments, was where David started his poultry farm with twelve hens. He was probably the last person in Helmdon to use a work horse for chain harrowing, the horse belonging to Gerry Gascoigne. The poultry farm grew until it housed 50,000 chickens, the poultry food being delivered by goods train to the top station (Great Central) until it closed. The site of the farm is where the Bell Close development, built in the nineties, now stands. David and Carol Brookhouse still live in Helmdon, in the village where The Bell once absorbed so much of their time, but they sold the pub in 1988.

Today the owners of The Bell are Richard and Sally Phillips. They bought it in 1990 to run alongside their existing transport business but within their first year, due to circumstances beyond their control, they had to end the transport venture, leaving the pub as their only source of income. Today Bankes Beers have superseded Hook Norton Ales in popularity and although at the moment Richard and Sally do not provide regular food, the occasional barbeques and chilli and curry nights have proved popular. The Bell has snooker facilities, runs three darts teams, two pool teams, a Sunday morning cycling club and is currently trying to form a ladies darts team. In the winter there is the occasional musical evening and Karaoke night. The Phillipses say that their time in Helmdon hasn’t been easy, with problems coming at them from all angles, and at times they felt like re-naming the pub "Rorke’s Drift". However, unlike many villages who have lost their pub, in Helmdon The Bell remains, as Richard expresses it so succinctly, "full of character and characters, with a warm and friendly atmosphere". Richard and Sally are very happy in the village and say that their aim is to be the longest serving landlords. John Pratt was the alehouse keeper for thirty eight years, so there are only thirty years to go! As the last remaining public house in the village, The Bell deserves to be well supported.

Mary Turnham recalls the stables at The Chequers being used for the stabling of the magnificent shire stallions on their annual visits to the farmers’ markets in the district. It would be an overnight stop. She said it was a lovely sight to see these fine horses parading through the village. Mary can also remember an archway between the public house and the stables which stood by the side. She says that they were used by Christabel Lady Ampthill when she used to live at the Stone House, and kept many horses in the village.

The Jeacocks left The Chequers in l977. Reg told me that, sometime after he and his family had given up the pub, the new tenants installed a bar counter. He considered that was why the trade "went down". There was a succession of several more landlords until the public house ceased to trade in January 1992. Many Helmdon residents considered that the public house in its hey-day had been a very handsome building, and were very sorry to see it demolished.