IT is fair to say that murder, robbery and kidnapping are a rare occurrence in the fine gastro pubs and eateries which dot the Stroud Valleys.

The most traumatic experience most customers are likely to encounter today is an overdone steak or a sunken soufflé.

However, a new book by historian and author James Moore revisits a time when pubs were more spit and sawdust than free wi-fi and expensive merlot.

Murder at the Inn: A History of Crime in Britain’s Pubs and Hotels published by the Stroud-based History Press is the first ever guide to historic crimes in Britain’s pubs and hotels.

According to James, more than 250 inns and taverns are linked to gruesome tales of murder and mayhem.

“The history of Britain’s pubs, inns and hotels has gone hand in hand with the history of crime,” said James, who lives in Cheltenham and grew up near Cirencester.

“Now, for the first time we link pubs that can still be found today with captivating and sometimes horrifying tales from their past.”

Besides featuring well known criminals like Dick Turpin and Jack the Ripper, the book also reveals details of a bloody murder linked to pubs near Stroud.

The Butchers Arms in Oakridge Lynch and Stirrup Cup in Bisley both feature as scenes in the tale of a brutal murder in 1893 which involved one too many pints of cider and a double-barrelled shotgun.

In the case of ‘Cider and patricide in the Cotswolds’, James retells the story of fiery bailiff and butcher Frederick Wyndham, who disapproved of his father’s choice to take another wife – the not so virtuous Virtue Mills.

After a childhood of abuse and cruelty, he also finds out that that Wyndham senior has thrown his own sisters out of the family home and even tried to run one of them down with his horse and cart.

Fired up after boozing at the Stirrup Cup and the Butchers Arms, Frederick borrowed a shotgun from the pub landlord and headed over to his father’s farm.

An argument ensured which ended with Frederick shooting his father.

He was later sentenced by magistrates in Stroud and was sent to gallows.

Murder at the Inn is published by The History Press (£9.99). ISBN: 9780750956833.