Crooked House bricks locked away to 'ensure safety'

A "padlocking ceremony" has taken place at the site of the Crooked House pub in the Black Country.

It was well-known for its "wonky" appearance before it set alight on 5 August and was then demolished less than 48 hours later.

The Save the Crooked House campaign group said it had talked to contractors who agreed to secure the bricks from the building.

The group said it wanted the pub to be rebuilt and "rise from the ashes".

Paul Turner, its leader, said about 200 people turned up for the ceremony and to see padlocks put on the containers.

One of the keys to the padlocks would be kept by the contractors and the other by the campaign group itself, to ensure their safety, he said.

"We want it built brick by brick," he said.

"It was a lovely building and we want it to be as close as possible to how it was."

Ahead of the event, he said local singer and comedian, Johnny Cole, would perform and police would be on hand, in case more people than expected turned up.

The 18th Century building, in Himley, was known for its sloping walls and floor due to mining subsidence in the area.

Protesters angry at the demolition have camped out at the site to make sure the bricks were not removed.

Mr Turner first went to the pub with his parents as a child and afterwards used to cycle from Womborne to Himley to see it.

Later he would take friends visiting the area to see the pub.

"They were impressed by its unique weirdness," he said.

Mr Turner said campaigners had developed a good relationship with contractors, who had been "fantastic" and cleaned and gathered thousands of bricks.

South Staffordshire Council is conducting its own investigation into the demolition.

Two men arrested on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life over the fire were released under conditional bail, Staffordshire Police said.

Follow BBC West Midlands on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Send your story ideas to: [email protected]