Formerly a Hardy's & Hanson's pub. The settlement which the Royal Oak serves was formerly known as Watnall Cantelupe, the neighbouring hamlet being Watnall Chaworth. RAF Watnall housed the now flooded Operations Room for Fighter Command's No. 12 Group between 1940 and 1946.

In 1832, the Royal Oak was fully licensed under Elizabeth Raven (White's Diectory), in 1855 it was run by J.Raven and in 1876 the licensee was given as John Raven (Post Office Directories).

During WWII, the Royal Oak was popular with members of the RAF based over the road, as described by Margaret Scribens in 2013: "1940 - I had joined the W.A.A.F in London and chose to be posted to Nottinghamshire; I was just 18 and my posting was firstly to Hucknall and then to Watnall when the Ops room was ready. 1940 was a dreadful winter but thanks to the snowfalls the whole area was transformed. Our huts, we were told by the locals, had been built on the site which had been the local village pond. The Royal Oak was our local pub, just a few yards from the camps main gate, which was quite useful as it was within the area if one was confined to camp" (www.francisfrith.com).

As at November 2017, the freehold for the Royal Oak (NT443670) was held by Greene King Retailing Limited (Reg. No. 5265451).

[Broxtowe Borough Council; Watnall & Nuthall West Ward / Broxtowe Parliamentary Constituency]