'Is the Crooked House still open?' DJ Vernon Kay shocks campaigners with his Radio 2 blooper
Campaigners seeking to get The Crooked House rebuilt were dealt a surprise this week when radio presenter Vernon Kay asked whether the pub was still open.
As part of Thursday's (January 29) BBC Radio 2 show Vernon's Vault, where he looks into the archives at events from years gone by, the DJ played a 1974 news clip about the famous pub at Himley, near Dudley, where a reporter described how bottles appeared to roll uphill, and the 'perfectly perpendicular' grandfather clock 'appears to stand at a crazy angle'.
After playing the clip, Kay said he would be interested in knowing if the pub was still open, and thought it might be worth a visit.
The report was met with bemusement from listeners who were campaigning for the pub to be rebuilt, after it was severely damaged in a suspected arson attack in 2023, and demolished without planning permission three days later.
Paul Turner, who set up the Save the Crooked House - Let's Get it Rebuilt campaign group in the wake of the news, was one of a number of people who contacted the BBC following the broadcast.
He told the Express & Star he was surprised that the presenter did not remember the story about the pub, given that it made headlines around the world.
"Maybe he did remember, but he didn't put the two together," he said. "I have sent a message asking if he would be interested in giving me an interview, so we can explain the story.
"If it keeps the story in the public eye, that may not be a bad thing."
But Dawn Jones, writing on the group's Facebook page, was less impressed.
"BBC Radio 2 should be ashamed of themselves! No research carried out about The Crooked House before their article about it today," she posted.
"He even encouraged people to visit The Crooked House! No idea about everything that has happened!"
Fellow campaigner and Sedgley councillor Ian Sandall said he had also emailed the presenter to inform him of the pub's plight.
A spokeswoman for BBC Radio 2 declined to comment.
Two men, aged 44 and 23, and a 34-year-old woman were arrested in 2023 on suspicion of conspiracy to commit arson with intent or being reckless as to whether life was endangered, and three other men, aged 66, 51 and 33, were held on suspicion of arson with intent to endanger life. They were all later released and investigations are continuing.
South Staffordshire Council issued an enforcement notice on the pub's owner, A T E Farms, ordering that it should be rebuilt to its original state. The company appealed to the planning inspectorate, which has said it will not rule on the matter until the criminal investigation was concluded.
