The Aporia · Centuries-old Grade II-listed pub where Pepys and Defoe drank burns down in 'heartbreaking' fire as man in his 20s is arrested for arson

Centuries-old Grade II-listed pub where Pepys and Defoe drank burns down in 'heartbreaking' fire as man in his 20s is arrested for arson

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Rossiter, J. (2026, September 25). Centuries-old Grade II-listed pub where Pepys and Defoe drank burns down in 'heartbreaking' fire as man in his 20s is arrested for arson. Daily Mail. https://www.dailymail.com/news/article-16159617/pub-fire-man-arrested-arson.html?ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490&ito=1490

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Quick Summary

A historic Grade II-listed pub called The Worlds End in Tilbury, Essex, was severely damaged by fire on Wednesday, November 8. The pub, which dates back to around 1667 and has been visited by notable figures like Samuel Pepys and Daniel Defoe, suffered its fourth fire-related incident within a week. A man in his 20s has been arrested for suspected arson but was released on bail until November 18. Essex councillors described the loss as "heartbreaking," emphasizing the pub's importance to local heritage.

Written by AI on 2026-09-25, from this article's own text only (the story summary below draws on all the coverage).

AI analysis

Story summary

On Wednesday afternoon, fire crews responded to a blaze that destroyed The Worlds End, a Grade II-listed pub in Tilbury, Essex. Built around the late 1600s and known for visits by diarist Samuel Pepys and author Daniel Defoe, the pub was closed for months due to tough trading conditions. A man in his 20s has been arrested on suspicion of arson and released on bail until November 18. This fire marks the fourth incident within a week in the Tilbury area, with previous blazes involving containers, rubbish, and waste materials. Essex councillors described the loss as heartbreaking for its "incredible heritage."

Written for “Pepys Pub Fire Arson Arrest” on 2026-10-31, grounded in this article and the 0 other(s) covering the same event.

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This article reads unscored and hedges 8% of its claims. Each row says how that neighbour differs.

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“The articles describe different fires and locations involving separate historic pubs, one in Himle and another in Tilbury.”

How this article was measured signals, leaning charts, publisher record, byline, topics and claims

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sentences that state something as happening or true

Uncertain

1 of 13 hedged ("reportedly", "may", "according to")

Leaning

not political

takes no side on a contested political question

Publisher signals

68/100

Daily Mail's corrections and hedging, across everything collected from it. Not a measure of accuracy.

Outlets on this story

Crime & Law

Same framing elsewhere

articles that frame the event the way this one does

Analyzed 2026-09-25 · how these are computed

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Running correction rate · 20 correction(s)

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Joe Rossiter

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Topics

Daily Mail Essex Historic England Thurrock Tilbury

Subjects

Tilbury ORG · 6× Essex GPE · 3× Daniel Defoe PERSON · 2× Samuel Pepys PERSON · 2× Thurrock GPE · 2× Daily Mail ORG · 1× Historic England ORG · 1× Lamb PERSON · 1× Pepys PERSON · 1× Russell Cherry PERSON · 1×

Narrative

A man has been arrested on suspicion of arson after a fire gutted The Worlds End pub in Tilbury, Essex The centuries-old pub is understood to have been visited by diarist Samuel Pepys and author Daniel Defoe Built around the late 1600s, the pub lies close to Tilbury docks Fire crews pictured at the pub, which was destroyed by the fire, on Wednesday afternoon Wednesday's blaze was the fourth fire within a week in the area Pepys visited Thurrock twice while writing his diary between 1660 and 1669 and drank at an alehouse close to Tilbury Fort – which would have been on or close to the Worlds End – at least once. Grade II-listed by Historic England since 1974, the pub has been closed for months after a difficult trading summer, its owner said.

framing: assertive · carried by 1 article(s) · first seen 2026-09-25

🔮 A man has been arrested on suspicion of arson after a fire gutted The Worlds End pub in Tilbury, Essex The centuries-old pub is understood to have been visited by diarist Samuel Pepys and author Daniel Defoe Built around the late 1600s, the pub lies close to Tilbury docks Fire crews pictured at the pub, which was destroyed by the fire, on Wednesday afternoon Wednesday's blaze was the fourth fire within a week in the area Pepys visited Thurrock twice while writing his diary between 1660 and 1669 and drank at an alehouse close to Tilbury Fort – which would have been on or close to the Worlds End – at least once. Grade II-listed by Historic England since 1974, the pub has been closed for months after a difficult trading summer, its owner said.

2026-09-25 · Daily Mail

Centuries-old Grade II-listed pub where Pepys and Defoe drank burns down in 'heartbreaking' fire as man in his 20s is arrested for arson · assertive framing

Claims (13 extracted, 1 hedged)

A man has been arrested on suspicion of arson after the fourth fire in a week around a Grade II-listed pub gutted the building. asserted

fire → arrest → building

Fire crews were called to The Worlds End pub in Tilbury, Essex, at 3.30pm on Wednesday and brought the blaze under control by 6.30pm. asserted

crews → call → 6.30pm

A man in his 20s was arrested on suspicion of arson and has been released on bail until November 18. asserted

man → arrest → November

It comes after three other fires broke out near the pub in the last week. asserted

fires → come → week

Four fire engines were sent to Fort Road on Tuesday to fight a fire understood to have involved containers. asserted

engines → send → containers

It followed a deliberate fire set on Monday around 12.50pm using rubbish and grass while another blaze at the same site on Saturday last week burned pallets and general waste. asserted

blaze → follow → pallets

After the latest fire which destroyed the listed building, Essex councillors said it was a 'heartbreaking' loss of 'incredible heritage'. asserted

it → destroy → heritage

Diarist Samuel Pepys and author Daniel Defoe reportedly drank at the pub, which lies on the River Thames near Tilbury docks and was previously an inn used by sailors and travellers. uncertain

which → drink → sailors

owner → arrest → summer

Its listing described the pub as a two-storey, timber-framed, weatherboarded house built around the late 1600s with a grey slate roof. asserted

listing → describe → roof

Known as The Worlds End since 1667, it was previously called the Ferry House and the Lamb. asserted

it → know → 1667

Russell Cherry, a Reform UK councillor in Thurrock, said he hoped the pub – a 'clear and tangible connection to Tilbury's rich naval history' – would be rebuilt. asserted

pub → say → history

Vinnie Sullivan, a pub and history tour guide, said The Worlds End had been 'one of the few surviving pubs in the whole of Tilbury' and had a 'wonderful, decorative interior'. asserted

End → say → interior