Punch Starz shine at last night's pub awards
After an exhaustive search the 2006 Punch Shine Award winners have been found - they are Colin and Emma Spry from Starz in Exeter.
Speaking after their win Colin said: "We are overwhelmed and extremely proud to win the title. Our efforts in building up Starz to a successful business over the last two years earned us a place in the final, but we knew the only way of winning the Shine awards was to gain the backing of customers and encourage them to vote.
"We are grateful to everyone who has supported us along the way, plus our team of 30 staff at Starz who work so hard to constantly deliver high standards with flair and passion."
The couple, who appeared on Channel 4's Wife Swap to generate some publicity for their bar, said: "We didn't realise at the time that we were participating in probably the most famous episode of the series."
The Sprys starred alongside Lizzy Bardsley - the mouthy mother of eight who appeared topless in the Sunday Sport.
The publicity worked wonders and their 90-seater restaurant is now accompanied by a cocktail lounge.
"We think Starz is a concept with real potential, we're looking at other cities at the moment. We're proud of what we've achieved here - our Starz continues to shine brightest!" added Colin.
The glitzy ceremony took place at Gleneagles in Scotland last night and the winner was announced during a gala dinner at Stirling Castle.
16 national finalists attended and the winners were chosen following a telephone and text voting system. The winners are believed to have received over 6,000 votes.
David and Tricia Fisher from the Crown Inn at Alvechurch, Worcestershire and Rose Gargiulo from the Dukes Head in Tadworth, Surrey were highly commended.
