A BRIDPORT business has fought off competition from across the UK to be named the national wedding caterer of the year.

Sausage and Pear, which consists of husband and wife Ross and Claire Moore, scooped the title at the Wedding Industry Awards, held at Café Paris in London last week.

The title came on the back of the duo taking home the south west regional category in November.

Claire said: "We were up against hundreds of caters from all over the UK.

"We are so proud of this achievement and so proud of all our team who are incredibly passionate about everything they do."

The wedding caterer award was judged by Damian Clarkson from The London Kitchen. Emma Power and Paul King.

Sausage and Pear have enjoyed a successful 12 moths, making a name for themselves in West Bay. The duo transformed a former train carriage into a restaurant.

Claire said: "Our more recent venture has been The Station Kitchen in West Bay, which we have transformed into a beautiful restaurant in high demand.

"It secured a certificate of excellence on Tripadvisor and is sitting at number 14 out of 2002 restaurants in Dorset, within our first year, this is such an achievement for us."

She added: "We recently added our First World War carriage which was used during the Battle Of The Somme as a nursing carriage.

"Sausage and Pear have catered for many high profile celebrities including Spandau Ballet, The New Zealand All Blacks, Charlotte Church, Vivienne Westwood, Lenny Henry, Sir Patrick Stewart, Jeremy Irons, Olivia Coleman, David Tennant, David Haye, Paloma Faith to name a few.

"The restaurant also has some celebrity regulars, however to protect them we can not release their names."

After the First World War, the train carriage was used as a breakdown coach up until the 1980s. It was then withdrawn from service and stored in Swindon, where it was used as a workshop.

The Station Kitchen can also be hired for weddings, parties and private events, including photo shoots.

Claire and Ross were also judges on Celebrity Battlechefs - which featured Susannah Constantine from Trinny and Susannah fame, Keith Duffy from Boyzone, James Martin and many others. The duo also got to meet Marco Pierre White, who runs the show.

For more information, visit sausageandpear.co.uk