Campaigners battling to get the Crooked House pub rebuilt have appealed for help in finding an antique grandfather clock that was a key feature of the Black Country venue.
Members of the Save the Crooked House group said the remains of the clock were not found in the rubble of the building in Himley, Staffordshire.
They believe it may have been removed before the fire and demolition, which destroyed the famous venue in August.
The 19th-century clock was a beloved feature of the pub – it was placed on a stand so it stood straight, but appeared to be leaning to the side due to the wonky floor in the building.
“When you stood in the pub it looked as if it was leaning, but it was actually straight and it was the rest of the pub that was leaning,” said Paul Turner, who started a petition calling for the pub to be saved and helps run a 35,000-strong Facebook group seeking its recreation.
“There’s no evidence in the rubble that the clock had been there in the fire, so we’re hoping we can get it back. We’re thinking it could turn up at an auction or an antique fair. We just want to find out where it is.”
Turner said they knew little about the clock, other than that it was “an old grandfather clock from the 1800s”.
“We would love to find the original clock and have it back in pride of place when the pub is rebuilt but the whole thing is a bit unknown,” Ian Sandall, a fellow campaigner, told the Express and Star.
“We’d love to recover it, we have members trawling auctions and car boots just in case. It may be a long shot but one worth putting out there.”
The campaign group has also been selling Crooked House calendars and Christmas cards to help drum up support for their cause.
Police have arrested six people in connection with the fire that destroyed the 260-year-old pub less than two weeks after it was sold by Marston’s, the pub company, and investigations are ongoing.
The remains of the burnt out building were demolished two days after the building was ablaze, with South Staffordshire council later saying it was investigating planning breaches in relation to the demolition.
In September, 23,000 bricks that had been salvaged from the site were stored in locked metal containers with campaigners hoping they can be used in a rebuild.
