TODAY the Malvern Gazette begins the search for the area's most popular watering hole for 2019.

Last year hundreds of pub-goers supported their favourite establishments, with the Wyche Inn winning.

Voting for the 2019 title is now open and closes on Friday, December 20, so use the slip in today’s newspaper to name your favourite pub.

The winner will be announced in the Gazette on December 26, and the landlord will receive a Pub of the Year 2019 trophy and be invited to the Houses of Parliament by MP Harriett Baldwin.

She said: ”I’ve always seen pubs as a vital community resource, whether they are in the centre of our towns or as the focal point of a village. I’m delighted to support the Malvern Gazette’s Pub of the Year awards and I encourage as many readers as possible to get on and vote for their local pub and reward the landlords and staff who work so hard to give us somewhere to gather and enjoy time together.”

Gazette editor Michael Purton added: “The Pub of the Year competition is about highlighting the importance of pubs in their community just as much as crowning a winner."

We will only accept slips cut from the newspaper as votes, not photocopies. Send them to Malvern Gazette Pub of the Year, Berrows House, Hylton Road, Worcester, WR2 5JX.

If you’d like your pub to be featured in the paper during the contest, email michael.purton@newsquest.co.uk.