Publicans Colin and Emma Spry have been crowned king and queen of the Punch Taverns estate at a gala awards dinner held at Stirling Castle.

The couple, who run Starz, an American themed bar, cocktail lounge and restaurant in Exeter, were named winners of the pubco’s annual Shine awards, beating off competition from 15 other finalists at Punch sites across the UK.

The result was decided by a public telephone and text message vote, with all proceeds donated to charity.  Out of the 26,161 votes cast, an impressive 5,240 went to Colin and Emma, securing their position as Punch’s shining stars for 2006.

Colin said: “We are overwhelmed and extremely proud to win the title.  Our efforts in building up Starz to a successful business over the last two years earned us a place in the final, but we knew the only way of winning the Shine awards was to gain the backing of customers and encourage them to vote.

“We are grateful to everyone who has supported us along the way, plus our team of 30 staff at Starz who work so hard to constantly deliver high standards with flair and passion.”

Votes in the Shine awards cost £1, which means £5,240 will be donated to Colin and Emma’s designated charity Dream-A-Way, an Exeter based organiser of holidays and day trips for people with physical and learning difficulties.

Colin added: “It was so important for us to raise as much money as we could for Dream-A-Way and we are sure this donation will be put to good use.”

All Shine awards finalists were invited to choose their preferred charities, which included local hospitals, the British Heart Foundation, Royal National Lifeboat Institution and Macmillan Cancer Relief.

More than 1,200 licensees entered this year’s Shine awards, Punch’s annual reward and recognition scheme.

The grand final was held in Scotland, with a reception and overnight accommodation provided at the prestigious Gleneagles Hotel and the awards ceremony staged at Stirling Castle.

Nicola Highton, Punch’s head of communications and Shine awards coordinator, said: “All our finalists have done incredibly well to create award winning pub businesses.  There had to be one winner and Starz Bar is undoubtedly a most deserving one.

“We are especially delighted with the level of support from retailers, colleagues and pub customers during the voting stage.  We shattered last year’s record and when you combine votes with money raised in the build up to the final and on the night itself we have collected over £35,000 for good causes across the country.”

As Shine champions, Colin and Emma receive a two week luxury holiday to South Africa’s Sun City resort and a cheque for £1,000.  The remaining finalists all receive a £500 prize.

Two further entrants were also highly commended by Punch.  They are David and Tricia Fisher from the Crown Inn, Alvechurch, Worcestershire, and Rose Gargiulo, who runs the Dukes Head in Tadworth, Surrey, with her daughter Angela.

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