THERE was a pub in north Lowestoft, they called The Rising Sun. It had been the drinking hole of many a young man, but in November 1968, the sun finally set on its time in the town.

THERE was a pub in north Lowestoft, they called The Rising Sun. It had been the drinking hole of many a young man, but in November 1968, the sun finally set on its time in the town.

Last month Roger Smith, of Oulton Broad, sent in an image of the popular pub's memorable last night and one of the faces in amongst the crowd was a surprise sight to Janis Kirby, of Saxon Road, Lowestoft.

'I'm afraid I didn't recognise my own father in The Journal as is was so long since I'd seen him without a beard that I had to phone my mum Sheila to confirm it was him!' she said.

Mrs Kirby was also able to bring in another photograph from that memorable final night. Her father can again be seen standing far left, aged 47, with Roger Smith standing behind him.

Jim Culham and his wife Sheila were regulars at The Rising Sun - formerly known as The Japanese Embassy - and Jim even managed to keep a part of the pub in his family by making coffee tables from part of the bar and one of the venue's tables.

'That last night was a really busy night, not to mention a sad night as no-one wanted it to close. My mother was also present and as you can see it was a tightly packed pub,' Mrs Kirby said.

She never drank at the pub herself - as she was just 14 years old when it closed - but could distinctively remember seeing the story reported on About Anglia.

'I remember seeing the pumps being taken away on the television. Jock Stoddart, a local crane hire man, had the pumps and a bar installed in his house. Various other local people will probably also have pieces of the Rising Sun in their homes.'

In this photo of the final night jovial landlord Reggie Reynolds can be seen pulling the drinks while a solo female drinker can be seen on the right of the image, although there were apparently many more there on the night.

If you can identify anyone else in the image, or have any more fond memories of The Rising Sun email richard.wood@archant.co.uk