A fire which caused thousands of pounds of damage at a pub today is being treated as arson.

There were signs of a break-in and the theft of drinks when firefighters arrived at the scene just after 1am.

Landlord Ian Harradine, 55, was just glad no one was in the building when the fire broke out.

He said: "My daughter was living upstairs until two weeks ago and had fortunately moved out."

There was severe damage at the Millers Arms in Windmill Street, Brighton, and the pub is expected to be closed for at least two weeks.

The flames damaged carpets and fixtures in the bar and filled the rest of the building with smoke.

Mr Harradine, who has run the pub for 18 months, was the victim of a blaze at another pub he ran last December.

Then, firefighters tackled a chimney fire at the Wellington in College Place, Kemp Town, Brighton.

Scenes of crimes officers were investigating today's fire and witnesses or anyone with information should call Brighton CID on 0845 6070999.