Stay
13 rooms, each with its own character. Some with four-posters, some with roll-top baths — all comfortable and a bit different.
Eat & Drink
Seasonal menus, Sunday carvery, pizzas on the terrace. Great wines and local ales in a proper pub atmosphere.
Gather
Birthdays, anniversaries, wakes, corporate events. Our spaces flex to fit, from intimate dinners to 100+ celebrations.
Our Spaces
From cosy snug to sun-drenched courtyard — the right setting for every occasion.
Restaurant
Our main dining space, filled with lanterns and warm light. Perfect for intimate dinners or larger celebrations.
Courtyard Terrace
Our vine-covered courtyard terrace — a hidden garden in the heart of Goring. Lovely in summer.
Bar Snug
A cosy corner of the bar with its own fireplace. The perfect spot for drinks, catch-ups and quiz nights.
Where history meets hospitality
Set in the village of Goring-on-Thames, once home to George Michael, The Miller of Mansfield sits between the Chiltern Hills and the North Wessex Downs.
Step out of our door and onto the Thames Path, follow the ancient Ridgeway, or spend the afternoon on the river. When the day winds down, a comfortable room, good food, and a warm welcome are waiting.
The Ballad
Our name comes from a popular English ballad dating back to the 17th century. In the tale, King Henry II becomes lost while hunting in Sherwood Forest and stumbles upon the home of an honest miller named John Cockle.
Not recognising the king, the miller offers him a bed for the night and feeds him venison poached from the royal forest — swearing his guest to secrecy. When the king’s nobles arrive the next morning and kneel before their monarch, the terrified miller expects the worst. Instead, the king rewards his plain-speaking hospitality, dubbing him Sir John Cockle and making him overseer of the very forest whose deer he’d been stealing.
The story became one of the most popular ballads of its age and was later adapted into a hit play at Drury Lane in 1737. It belongs to a rich tradition of English folklore in which a disguised king discovers that honest hospitality matters more than ceremony.
Our Story
Our 17th-century coaching inn stands at the meeting point of river and route, in a village shaped by the Thames crossing and the ancient paths that converge here. The Ridgeway and the Icknield Way — two of the oldest roads in Britain — meet the river at Goring, and travellers have been stopping here for thousands of years.
Today that role remains much the same. Upstairs, 13 individually designed rooms combine period features with modern comfort. Downstairs, the bar is at the heart of the pub — local ales, seasonal food, and a fire in winter. It’s still a place where locals settle in for the evening, walkers stop off mid-route, and visitors feel at home.
Find us
High Street, Goring-on-Thames, RG8 9AW
Just a 7-minute walk from Goring & Streatley station, with direct trains to Reading (15 mins), Oxford (25 mins), and London Paddington (45 mins).