The UK's 'wonkiest pub' has burnt to the ground days after it was sold.
At around 10:00pm last night (Saturday, 5 August) fire services were alerted to billowing smoke spotted coming from the infamous wonky building The Crooked House - a.k.a. Britain's 'drunkest pub' - located near Dudley, England.
The fire comes just days after it was announced the building had been sold to a private buyer for 'an alternative use'.
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An investigation has since been launched into the incident by Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service and Staffordshire Police.
A local, Ash Smith, told the Express and Star he was checking on his horses when he saw 'a lot of smoke coming from the area of The Crooked House'.
Smith 'drove closer' to figure out what was going on when he realised the pub was 'on fire'.
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Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service were called at around 10:00pm and six crews attended the scene, the service confirmed.
The pub remained on fire until after midnight, with Smith noting the crews were 'pumping water all the way down the lane with hoses and pumping water from the local stream'.
Facebook page 'The Crooked House 2022' shared an image of the pub set ablaze.
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The post reads: "So after 10 months of hard work very long hours and constant obstacles it's quiet annoying to see your place of buisness end up like this ... time effort gone ,money gone ,and one of the greatest buildings / oldest pub and heritage gone.
"All for the sake of money. I'll let everyone else make their own conclusions on the recent events...
"Again thanks for the messages of concern and support."
The post follows shortly after a man named Paul Turner launched a Change.org petition addressing reports The Crooked House had been sold to 'a private buyer for alternative use' by independent brewing and pub retailing business, Marston's.
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The petition urged people to sign to help save the 'wonderful tourist attraction' from being 'demolished'.
The page reads: "Properly marketed, it will attract visitors from all over the world. To demolish it and use the site for another purpose would mean the loss of this iconic and beautiful building.
"There are many organisations including breweries, tourism companies, the National Trust, the local council and maybe other businesses who could rescue the Crooked House and all avenues must be exhausted to avoid later regret after it is lost.
"Once it is demolished, it will be too late to go back."
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Earlier today, Turner posted an update to the petition.
It reads: "Tragically, the Crooked House was destroyed by fire last night. I am sure that the fire service investigators will do their job and the police will become involved, if there is suspicion about somebody having an agenda but I don't feel it is helpful, right now, to speculate.
"The job of saving The Crooked House just became a lot bigger, but it is still possible. As can be seen by the photograph, the shell of the building is still standing and, although engineers would need to confirm this, it appears to be possible to rebuild it. Therefore, I believe that the petition should continue with the aim of restoring this piece of history.
"Let's not give up, please keep sharing the petition and asking your friends to sign it and share it too."
Featured Image Credit: TripAdvisor/Facebook/theonlywayisburnleyTopics: UK News, Social Media, Facebook
