Thomas hardy biography dorchester pub
Thomas hardy dorset.
Thomas hardy
Thomas Hardy's ode to local inn
Paul Conway is the landlord of The Rest and Welcome Inn in Melbury Osmond.
He has already discovered that the Sheaf of Arrows pub mentioned in Thomas Hardy's 1884 tale, Interlopers at the Knap, actually refers to his pub.
Now Paul is on a quest to track down a mystery man who appears in a black and white picture, photographed outside the pub in 1900.
There are some who say it is Hardy himself. And others who think the inn was one of the author's regular haunts.
Paul said: "It was a customer that asked me, 'Could it be Thomas Hardy?'.
"I pointed out that the man in the picture was a bit scruffy and dressed-down.
Thomas hardy biography dorchester pub
"They then pointed out to me that Thomas Hardy wasn't at the height of fashion, with regard to clothes.
"Also, at the time it would have been costly to take a picture, so I suppose it's possible.
"Of course I would love it to be Thomas Hardy, but I can't say f