HAMPSHIRE balloonist Colin Prescot has ambitions to reach space but has now turned his attention to stars closer to home.

Mr Prescot has taken a stake in the award-winning gastro-pub The Greyhound in Stockbridge, close to his home.

The Greyhound is run by Darron 'Bunny' Bunn, a chef who used to work for the legendary chef-entrepreneur Marco Pierre White in London.

Since taking it over, Bunny, as everyone calls him, has made an immediate impact on the local restaurant scene, attracting rave reviews from the national press and winning a coveted Michelin star earlier this year.

Colin has sunk funding into the pub on Stockbridge High Street.

He said: "Living locally I was interested in the start-up.

"Then the previous management team fell apart. Bunny used to work for Marco Pierre White and is excellent. We decided to help back him, and it is going very well."

He is able to pop in for lunch more often, having moved his Flying Pictures company from Surrey to nearby Chilbolton.

The company, which specialises in aerial filming, has recently worked on a large number of Hollywood films, including Sahara, starring Penelope Cruz, Kingdom of Heaven, Ridley Scott's new film, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Ocean's Twelve, Bride and Prejudice and The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy.

Flying Pictures also uses airships to film sporting events such as the Olympics, Grand Prix and golf tournaments.

Meanwhile Colin is preparing for a second attempt on the balloon altitude record. A bid in 2003 was scuppered during the launch off Cornwall when the balloon suffered a tear.