Pub at centre of petition to save Birmingham street given listed status

The Crown Inn on Station Street in Birmingham, which helped launch the career of Black Sabbath, has been made a grade-II listed building.

It comes as almost 19,000 people have signed a petition to save the street from development following the closure of the Electric Cinema, which is thought to be the oldest working Cinema in the UK.

The petition said: "The Crown is Birmingham's Cavern Club. Black Sabbath's first gig was here and it's the birthplace of Heavy Metal. It should be restored from its current delict state. Given life as a small music venue, music education centre and bar for experimental and interesting music to thrive."

The Mayor of the West Midlands, Andy Street, described the move as "fantastic", saying it will have "significant ramifications for any planned development on Station Street."

First for all the latest news from across the UK every hour on Hits Radio on DAB, at hitsradio.co.uk and on the Rayo app.