A SOMERSET inn could be named the UK's best pub of 2024 after making a short list of seven finalists in the South West for a national award.

The George Inn in Norton St Phillip, near Frome, has been named as a finalist for the National Pub & Bar of the Year award.

After being named the best in the south west, among six others, the historic pub could be crowned the nation's finest at a red-carpet celebration in London in June.

A spokesperson for the awards said: "The final will welcome all 94 County Winners to come together and celebrate their achievements, before discovering which venues will go on to become Regional Winners.

"The awards night will also crown the Pub Group of the Year, Bar Group of the Year, The Tyrrells Tyrrellbly Good Taste Award – presented by the event’s headline sponsor – and, finally, the overall National Pub & Bar of the Year."

Read more: Somerset inn near Frome named as one of the UK's best pubs

The Grade I listed George Inn is one of the oldest inns in the country, dating back to the 14th century, selling beer for over 700 years.

The Guardian included the pub in a list of the best country pubs with bedrooms for lunch and a winter walk.

Speaking of The George Inn, The Guardian said: "The bar, with its antique tables, majolica jugs and pewter tankards, has been moved to a bigger area, furnished with snug drinking corners and zhuzhed up with vintage paints and grand fabrics.

"The wood-floored dining room has a huge original stone fireplace, repurposed pews and cushioned benches, where diners can tuck into local pigeon or Butcombe beer-battered fish and chips, leaving room for sticky figgy pudding and local cheeses.

"The 13 luxuriously redecorated bedrooms are all different, some in a timber-framed gallery above the inn’s old courtyard."