Cheers, landlord!

IT'S NOT every day that when someone has the opportunity to invite anyone in the world on a VIP trip to a rugby international that they invite their pub landlord!

But this is what Max Lindsay-Johnson, from Blunham in Bedfordshire, did after he won a nationwide competition for a pair of VIP tickets to Twickenham to watch England defeat France earlier this month.

Max, a regular at the Salutation pub in Blunham, beat drinkers from more than 2,500 pubs across the country to win the promotion run by Greene King IPA. He said he had no hesitation in inviting his landlord when he found out he had won.

"His name is Keith Graham, he runs a great pub and serves a quality pint of cask beer," he said.

"The day itself was a treat and the team played superbly which was a real bonus. Keith and I had a really memorable day out and I hope that he remembers that when I visit the Salutation in months to come!"

The promotion, which ran throughout the RBS Six Nations Championship, gave Greene King IPA drinkers a scratchcard with every pint purchased.

Scratching the panel revealed either a unique text-to-win code for the VIP day at Twickenham or thousands of other instant win prizes to be claimed at the bar.

Fiona Hope, marketing director of Greene King Brewing Company, said: "Congratulations to Max on winning one of the most successful promotions we've ever run. We distributed over two million scratchcards with a chance of winning over 300,000 prizes to celebrate our sponsorship of England Rugby."

Last October, Greene King IPA, the UK's number one cask beer, became the official beer of England Rugby in a multi-million pound four-year deal.