One year on: Timeline of The Crooked House's demise, and the campaign to get it rebuilt
Here's a look back at the key events leading up to the demise of the much loved wonky pub The Crooked House in Himley, near Dudley, which went up in flames a year ago - on August 5, 2023.
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March 28, 2023
The Express & Star reports the unique Crooked House pub is one of 61 being sold by Wolverhampton-based pub chain Marston's, with a guide price on Rightmove of £675,000.
July 27
Lee Goodchild, landlord of the The Crooked House, announces the pub has been 'sold to a private buyer and unlikely to open its doors again.'
He adds: "Marston's have sold the site to private buyer for alternative use, that is all we know. This is just to update the page so nobody makes any wasted journeys to the site.
"Again, thanks all for your custom and support in the 10 months I had there and wish things could have been very different but unfortunately not. Keep supporting the great other local pubs to make sure they stay as they should be."
August 5
Firefighters are called to reports of a blaze at The Crooked House on a Saturday night, just over a week after it was sold.
Thick smoke and flames tear through the historic building, and can be seen for miles around, despite the fire taking place at night.
More than 30 firefighters tackle the blaze which is shown in dramatic pictures from eyewitnesses. Other pictures on the Express & Star website capture the aftermath of the blaze. A joint investigation by Staffordshire Police and Staffordshire Fire is launched immediately and road closures around the site continue until the next day.
August 6
As people wake up to the devastating news about The Crooked House and heartfelt tributes are left at the site, a petition is launched calling for the pub building to be saved. It also calls for the pub to be rebuilt at the Black Country Living Museum and attracts hundreds of signatures within just 14 hours..
August 7
The Black Country Living Museum rules out stepping in to save the pub, saying it is not a realistic option and that the museum is ‘not in a position to save, let alone relocate, the building.’ On the same day, a Monday afternoon, The Crooked House is demolished in broad daylight less than 48 hours after the devastating fire. Manned diggers leave a pile of rubble in their wake. Hundreds of people gather at the site in Himley, where the pub once stood and express their anger and upset at the news
August 8
Just a day after its destruction, West Midland's elected mayor Andy Street calls for The Crooked House to be 'rebuilt brick by brick'.
The same day South Staffordshire Council confirms the demolition of the pub and say it was 'not agreed or deemed necessary,' giving them the opportunity, they say, to take action against those who bulldozed it to the ground.
August 9
Staffordshire Police confirm The Crooked House blaze is being treated as arson. The force said: "Our investigation into a fire at the Crooked House on Himley Road last Saturday (August 5) continues as we try to understand the circumstances, which we are now treating as arson.
"This fire has shocked and upset so many given the, albeit not listed, cultural importance and heritage of the building. This is not lost on us and a robust investigation using all available information and forensic opportunities is being carried out.
"We’re conducting a joint investigation with colleagues at Staffordshire Fire and Rescue Service and are liaising closely with their fire investigators who have confirmed that the cause of the fire cannot currently be determined. But police are following up on a number of lines of enquiry."
August 15
The Express & Star names the new owner of the demolished Crooked House as Leicestershire-based A T E Farms, which specialises in the letting and operation of real estate.
On the same night, Dudley North MP Marco Longhi tells a packed meeting at Himley Hall that he wants The Crooked House to ‘rise from the ashes’ and backs the Save The Crooked House (Let’s Get it Rebuilt) group, which is growing in numbers. He pledged to campaign for a 'Crooked House Law' which would give more protection to heritage pubs and buildings and help rebuild the historic pub 'brick by brick'.
August 21
A stand-off takes place between contractors working at the former site of the Crooked House and members of a protest group, who block the road.
Workers from Putnam Construction Services move onto the site after the new owners contacted South Staffordshire Council, but they unlawfully block off a public access path from Himley Road.
At one point two protestors sat in the middle of the access road and blocked a lorry from the construction company until police intervened.
Police and an official from South Staffordshire Council are called, along with Mr Longhi, who acts as an intermediary between the parties.
August 22
South Staffordshire Council says it has reached an agreement to keep the bricks and foundations of the former pub on the site after talks with contractors and the present owner.
Meanwhile West Midlands historian, author and radio host Carl Chinn visits the site of the ruins with councillors Claire Sullivan, David Stanley and Bryn Challenor, They all pledge their support for the campaign to rebuild the pub
August 24
A 66-year-old man from Dudley and a 33-year-old man from Milton Keynes are arrested by police on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life. They are later released on conditional bail.
September 2
Thousands of bricks from the demolished remains of the pub are securely locked away in a container in a symbolic padlocking ceremony. Featherstone based company Squire Locks would later provide secure locks for the containers.
September 7
A 51-year-old man from Buckingham is arrested on conspiracy to commit arson with intent or being reckless as to whether life was endangered. He is released on conditional bail.
September 10
The unofficial Crooked House camp is left empty amidst reports of clashes between two rival groups on a Saturday night.
September 16
South Staffordshire MP Sir Gavin Williamson says he will do what he can to help people and groups who are campaigning for the pub to be rebuilt.
September 28
Two further arrests are made with a 34-year-old woman and a 44-year-old man, both from Leicestershire, detained on suspicion of conspiracy to commit arson with intent or being reckless as to whether life was endangered. Marco Longhi appoints two ‘pub champions’ to campaign with him to protect heritage venues in the Black Country and elsewhere. James Stevens, manager of the Chapel House Pub Lower Gornal and former landlord and an administrator of the Save the Crooked House (Let’s Get it Rebuilt) group Ian Sandell are chosen.
Meanwhile mayor Andy Street launches a 'List your Local' campaign in which pub lovers are being encouraged to help protect historic pubs and stop them being lost for good.
October 4
A 23-year-old man from Leicestershire is arrested in connection with the fire, making it five men and one woman arrested so far, with all being granted bail.
October 25
On a visit to the Express & Star, Andy Street once again calls for the pub to be rebuilt and for those responsible for its demolition to pick up the tab.
Marco Longhi hosts the leader of the House of Commons Penny Mordaunt in Dudley, which includes a trip to the former Crooked House site.
November 16
MP Marco Longhi airs the issue of the protection of listed pubs and other buildings in Parliament after he applies for a House of Commons debate.
November 24
Dudley Winter Ales Fair is dedicated to the famous pub, with hundreds of people turning out. Commemorative ‘wonky’ glasses were also on sale at the event.
November 29
Campaigners raise questions about the 'missing' antique grandfather clock which was a popular subject of photographs at the Crooked House when it was open as a pub. It was considered the only upright object in the pub's main wonky area. The public are urged to look out for the clock at auctions and car boot sales in case it was removed before the fire.
December 30
The Tilted Barrel in Tipton, dubbed Britain’s 'New Wonkiest Pub' since the demise of The Crooked House, opens once more for business following refurbishment
January 23, 2024
The Express & Star reveals how word of the campaign to re-build the pub is going worldwide through the work of Megan Wakeman.
Megan, 35, of Swindon, near Dudley, draws an image of the iconic venue on stones along with putting details of the group on them for people to take on holiday or elsewhere and leave for others to spread the word. They have been found in the Caribbean and South Africa amongst other places.
February 1, 2 and 3
Marco Longhi, Ian Sandell and members of the Save the Crooked House (Let’s Get it Rebuilt) campaign tour three under-threat Black Country pubs and meet once more at the site of the former Crooked House, marking the weekend prior to six months since the fire which destroyed it.
February 27
South Staffordshire Council issues an enforcement notice on Crooked House owner A T E Farms, instructing the company that it must rebuild the pub to its previous state. The notice set the company a three-year deadline to complete the work.
March 8
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak writes to Crooked House campaigners, praising the spirit of the Black Country people who 'help make the country strong'. He also condemned the 'appalling arson attack and the then unlawful demolition of The Crooked House pub'.
"The Crooked House clearly wasn’t just a place for a drink. It was, as you have often said, a home for the collective memories of tens of thousands of people from the Black Country and beyond.
"It has seen the Industrial Revolution, the coal mining, the limestone mining, and all sorts of steel manufacturing from nail-making to chain-making.
"Most of all, it has seen the labours of a people who together helped make this country strong but worked and lived in very tough conditions.
"I am not a Black Country man, but I absolutely understand why you and so many others are proud of your heritage, represented so uniquely by the Crooked House. “A united effort has resulted in this first milestone, the enforcement notice to rebuild served by South Staffordshire Council.I want to thank the campaigners and others for their combined efforts. Most of all, I want to thank a whole community that has come together in such an impressive and distinctly Black Country way – you should all be proud."
March 27
Staffordshire Council confirms that A T E Farms has lodged an appeal against the enforcement notice.
April 4
The Express & Star reveals that A T E Farms' appeal is due to open on July 23. An inspector has been appointed to oversee the public inquiry.
April 30
It is announced that the Planning Inspectorate has agreed to a request from A T E Farms to postpone the appeal hearing.
The inspectorate said it would be preferable, if possible, to deal with the planning enforcement appeal once any potential court action had been resolved.
However, the inspector said the inquiry should not be delayed indefinitely, and indicated a date should be set for spring 2025.
July 29
Staffordshire Police say that the six people arrested in connection with the fire at The Crooked House had been released from bail, although they remain under investigation.
