DRINKERS at a popular Hartley Wintney pub were dumbstruck when Hollywood superstar Johnny Depp dropped in for lunch last Saturday.

The heartthrob star of Pirates of the Caribbean, who is rumoured to be buying a property in the local area, has visited The Cricketers pub twice in the last month and staff are hoping he may become a regular.

General manager Mark Thornhill said that Depp arrived at about 1pm on Saturday, with a large group of people and stayed at the pub, in The Green, for about an hour.

The 49-year-old actor enjoyed a plate of mussels a la crème with a glass of white wine and read a newspaper, believed to be the Daily Mail, said Mr Thornhill.

He said: “We didn’t want to make a fuss and make a big deal out of it. Nobody bothered him.

“It was just one of those things where we were all thinking- is it or isn’t it?

“He was wearing a hat but I think he’s at that stage of fame where he can’t really not be recognised and when a massive Cadillac Escalade pulled up to collect him we knew it must be him.

“He was just very quiet and very private.”

Sightings of the actor, a father-of-two, famous for playing Captain Jack Sparrow and about to play Tonto in a remake of The Lone Ranger, have been reported across Hampshire in the last couple of months. Speculation is now rife that Depp has bought or is hoping to buy a property in the county.

The actor has strong links with the UK, and is said to own a townhouse in Bath and a stately home in Norfolk.

He also has residences in Paris, the Bahamas and Los Angeles.