The roof of a pub built in the 12th Century has been destroyed by fire.

Fire crews were called to the Lamb Inn in High Street, Old Town, Eastbourne, shortly after 1.30am on Sunday to tackle the 15ft flames.

The fire was caused by an electrical fault. It took 45 firefighters and six engines more than three hours to extinguish the inferno.

Nobody was hurt in the blaze and the bar area was unaffected. The pub's function room will be closed for the rest of the year.

Landlord Steve Hume, 46, evacuated the pub after trying to fight the flames using a fire extinguisher.

He said: "We heard the smoke alarm but when we couldn't put out the fire we got out the building.

"Having the function room closed affects business but we hope to open the main pub in a few days."

Eastbourne borough commander John Drinkwater said: "It was quite a big fire in terms of its potential to do damage.

"It was a good effort by the firefighters."