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Britain’s “wonkiest pub”, which dates back to 1765, has been gutted by fire just days after being sold to a private buyer for alternative use.

Firefighters were called on Saturday night to The Crooked House pub, in Himley near Dudley in the West Midlands, which gained its name after it started sinking into the ground due to mining subsidence in the area.

Roads around the area were closed as smoke and flames could be seen pouring from the Grade II-listed building.

A spokesperson for Staffordshire fire and rescue service said several crews attended a severe fire at the pub and tried to extinguish the blaze. An investigation into the cause of the fire was already under way, they said.

The building was originally a farmhouse, and became a public house in about 1830, originally named The Siden House, with “siden” meaning “crooked” in the local Black Country dialect.

It was deemed unsafe in the 1940s and was scheduled for demolition, before it was bought by Wolverhampton and Dudley Breweries which used buttresses and girders to make the structure safe while maintaining its lopsided appearance.

It had been a tourist attraction ever since, thanks to its distinctive appearance and optical illusions created by the wonky structure, such as coins and marbles appearing to roll uphill along the bar.

It’s former owner, the British pub and hotel operator Marston’s, put the pub up for sale this year with a guide price of £675,000.

An update post on the pub’s Facebook page on 27 July said: “The Crooked House has been sold. Unlikely to open its doors again. Marston’s have sold the site to private buyer for alternative use, that is all we know. This is just to update the page so nobody makes any wasted journeys to the site.”

A petition to save the pub from redevelopment, launched on 29 July, had attracted more than 3,500 signatures.