IT was a historic pub with an international reputation and a local heart.

Much loved by residents in the Hampshire village where it sat on the edge of the Solent, The Bugle sparked a rescue campaign when developers announced plans to demolish it and replace it with luxury homes.

Now it could be back in business within a couple of months, either as a pub or a high-class restaurant.

The shutters went up on the pub - said to be famous around the world in sailing circles - in October 2003 after a long-running crusade by villagers to save it.

Previously, Linden Homes Southern had won planning go-ahead for redevelopment of the site with 14 luxury homes to include part demolition and alterations to the Grade Two listed public house, demolition of the 1960s restaurant extension and other outbuildings.

However, the developer was forced to bow to local pressure and leave part of the building as a pub or restaurant. Following demolition of the restaurant extension in the winter of 2003, construction work started on site last February and restoration of The Bugle began in May. That was after a detailed structural survey confirmed that the building - parts of which are thought to be 800 years old - was in poor condition due to its age.

Now, work is nearing completion and Linden Homes' sales and marketing director Rob Lambie told the Daily Echo: "The pub has been on the market and we already have interest in it." He explained that the pub would be handed over as a shell for the new owner to fit out, and added: "The shell could be handed over as early as mid April."

Traditional methods and materials have been used in the restoration which has cost in excess of £150,000.

"We have pretty much taken it apart and put it back together using as much of the original material as we can," said Mr Lambie.

Sally Frampton, who manages potential buyer interest for Linden Homes, said restoration had been a "very delicate operation." She added: "The focus was to retain as much of the original pub as we possibly could and I think we have achieved that."

Site manager Tony Austin said Linden Homes' craftsmen and experts in medieval timber-framed buildings from Hampshire Oak Carpenters had carried out the restoration. He added: "It was something that was quite new and we have learned from it."

Meanwhile, construction is well under way on the 14 luxury homes, ranging from large two-bed apartments priced at £500,000 to a four-bedroom top-of-the-range home with a double garage at £900,000. Five of the new homes have already been sold and Mr Lambie said the first new owners were likely to move in during July or August.

Hamble Parish Council was at the forefront of the campaign to save The Bugle.

Parish clerk Kate Cullen told the Daily Echo: "The feedback I have had is that people are pleased to see it rising again from the rubble and we look forward to it running again as a public house."