Man to deny arson over fire at 14th-century Michelin-starred restaurant

Charles Birkett appeared at Scarborough Magistrates’ Court on Monday following the blaze at the Star Inn at Harome, near Helmsley
Charles Birkett, 28, from Helmsley, spoke only to confirm his name, address and date of birth (Danny Lawson/PA)
PA Wire
Katie Dickinson14 August 2023
WEST END FINAL

Get our award-winning daily news email featuring exclusive stories, opinion and expert analysis

I would like to be emailed about offers, event and updates from Evening Standard. Read our privacy notice.

A man will plead not guilty to arson over a fire which caused more than £2 million of damage to a well-known Michelin-starred restaurant, a court has heard.

Charles Birkett appeared at Scarborough Magistrates’ Court on Monday after being charged in connection with the blaze at the thatched 14th-century Star Inn at Harome, near Helmsley, North Yorkshire, in November 2021.

The 28-year-old, from Helmsley, spoke only to confirm his name, address and date of birth during the brief hearing.

Birkett was not asked to enter a plea to the charge of arson with recklessness as to whether property would be destroyed or life endangered, but his solicitor Damien Morrison indicated that he would be pleading not guilty.

The defendant was granted unconditional bail until his next appearance at York Crown Court on September 18.

The Star Inn has regularly featured in lists of the best restaurants and gastropubs since the arrival of chef and patron Andrew Pern more than 25 years ago.

The inn was rebuilt and reopened on the anniversary of the fire in 2022.

No-one was injured in the blaze, which saw more than 40 firefighters fight to save the building.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in