Locals have set up a community group to help save a historic pub in Twickenham.

Rifleman Rescue Community is looking to secure the future of The Rifleman pub, located on Fourth Close Road, which first opened in 1870 and has been part of the West London community for over a hundred years.

Twickenham Fine Ales (TFA), which currently holds the pub's lease, originally stepped in during 2019 in order to keep The Rifleman open.

However, the brewery is not in a position to continue managing the pub and The Rifleman is therefore at risk of closure.

Speaking about the campaign, Rifleman Rescue Community member, Bert Bricusse said: "We are exploring a community-based approach, not seeking any radical changes, but building on the community base and to provide additional local social benefits.

"Please join our campaign to keep this asset serving the Twickenham community for the next hundred years."

Fellow member, Jim Mawer, added: "I first started using the Rifleman pub from 1972 when Tom and Lil were the landlords... I hand painted the original signage and swing sign back in the day...

"As a regular I bonded with many other regulars and made lifelong friends.

"When Tom and Lil retired, they kindly offered me first refusal to take over the tenancy of the pub, but I respectfully declined.

"I have retired to Spain but when visiting the UK I will try and get to the Rifleman at every opportunity.... Wonderful nostalgic memories."

A third member, Bob Heap, shared: "As locals who care about our pub, we started looking into what it would take to run it as a community venture.

"TFA have been supportive, sharing lots of useful info so we can build a plan for a community pub.

"We held a public meeting at the pub on 15 December—about 200 people came along and showed amazing support!

"Our survey closed with 229 responses. The message was clear: The Rifleman is hugely valued, and people want it to stay a proper, traditional pub.

"We've added the survey analysis documents into the Files section of this site for you to see the results for yourselves.

"What did we learn?

• Most people rated the pub 5/5 for community value.

• Many plan to visit weekly or fortnightly, with a core group coming 2 or 3 times a week, or more!

• There's strong support for keeping it wet-led (a real pub!), with simple, good quality snacks—not a restaurant.

• Loads of you are ready to help—buying community shares, volunteering, joining a steering group, fundraising, or offering your skills.

"Our vision is coming together:

• A traditional, well-kept pub

• Great beer and more drink options (including alcohol-free and decent wine)

• Simple, reliable food (snacks, toasties, sandwiches, pies)

• Fun events (quizzes, darts, live music, themed nights)

• Improved space inside and out

• More visible management presence and better communication

"We believe that allied to its already strong community atmosphere these things give the pub a unique selling point (usp) that we can build on and that sets it aside from local competition.

"Next steps: We've met again with the freeholder and made our views clear. The next big milestone is a condition survey in early January, which will help us work out funding, share pricing, and the legal framework. We're also getting advice from community business experts and other community pubs in London.

"We're aiming to take on the pub from April, but it's a tight timeline. The response so far has been incredible—thank you! There are still challenges ahead, but together we can keep The Rifleman at the heart of our community.

"Stay tuned for more updates and ways to get involved!"

As part of its campaign, Rifleman Rescue Community asked locals to participate in a survey "to shape how we[Rifleman Community Rescue]  support the pubs continued survival".

The survey is now closed but received 229 replies.

The results of the survey can be viewed here.

A local community consortium recently purchased and rescued The Lion pub in Teddington and another community group is currently working to save the Railway Bell pub in Hampton.