A NEW pub and restaurant is due to open in the centre of Durham this weekend, after a seven-month delay.

Cathedrals, in the city's Victorian former police station, in Court Lane, was scheduled to start trading last November.

But businessman Richard Lazenby was unable to meet that date, because of delays in his application for a drinks licence.

Mr Lazenby, the former chairman of Teesside sausage-maker Mr Lazenby's, then pinned his hopes on opening in April, but the building was still not ready.

Now, the £3m scheme is due to come to fruition on Saturday.

The building, empty for several years, has undergone a major refurbishment.

Cathedrals, which will employ 100 people, will sell real ales brewed on the premises, and have a bistro and a restaurant offering food from local suppliers.

The plans ran into opposition from Durham University, Elvet Methodist Church and residents, who said it would cause noise and nuisance.

But the drinks licence for the pub element, delayed by a technical hitch, was granted.

A spokeswoman for the developer said the complexity of the project led to some difficulties, but Mr Lazenby never lost his determination to see it through.

"The drinks licence caused a knock-on effect to the funders, which created a few problems that took a little while to resolve," said the spokeswoman.

"Building work was delayed by the weather, and also when asbestos was found and had to be removed."