The future of a troubled pub in Wolverhampton where a man was shot dead was uncertain today after it emerged that a new landlord who had been due to reopen it has pulled out.

The Bagot Arms was expected to be up and running again at the end of April, a few weeks after it suddenly shut. But today Scottish & Newcastle (S&N) Pub Enterprises said it was again looking for a landlord after one waiting in the wings backed out.

Last March, Leighton Cohen fired a revolver into the crowded pub in Newhampton Road, killing father-of-two Luke Harris, aged 26, of All Saints.

Cohen was later jailed for life, and police called for the pub’s closure. Council chiefs allowed it to remain open with added security and earlier closing times.

Last month, a court ruling prevented music being played at the pub after inspectors heard songs on the sound system without a licence from music royalties collectors the Performing Rights Society.