The ruins of The King and Co’s deck

An unknown man set fire to the local Clapham pub and restaurant The King & Co and the restaurant Layali Lounge down the street. The man was arrested later that day when The King & Co’s owner Anthony Gunson spotted the man walking down the street outside his pub and called the police.

It was 3 am Monday morning when The King & Co’s owner Anthony Gunson and his housemate were woken up by the sound of glass cracking. The heat of the fire had smashed the pub’s windows.

He then looked outside to find a man setting fire to his wooden deck, umbrellas and benches. “I saw him setting fire to my big umbrellas and then left to the restaurant next door and did the same thing there. I immediately called the Fire Brigade and they were here were here within 2 minutes. They were amazing.” The London Fire Brigade had received multiple reports of the fire outside The King and Co on Clapham Park Road.

Mr Gunson lives upstairs of the pub with his housemate and the fire could have been fatal if it had not been discovered in time. “It could have turned out really bad if we hadn’t woken up as soon as we did,” Mr Gunson said.

Mr Gunson then later that day spotted the same man walking down the street outside his pub and called the police. “Me and my housemate followed him down the street until the police came. We were really lucky. It is very rare to catch these guys.”

The police have the suspect in custody now and are investigating the fire.

Layali Lounge’s damages were not as severe as The King and Co as their terrace was made out of concrete. Anthony Gunson estimates the costs of the damages to be £7000-10 000 to replace everything. “I am glad that no one got hurt, but it is not the best way to start off the week so to speak.”