Oxford's Randolph Hotel reopening delayed

The fire is believed to have been sparked by a flambéed beef stroganoff

The reopening of the five-star Randolph Hotel in Oxford, which was damaged in a major blaze, has been delayed.

A fire at the 150-year-old building in Beaumont Street was sparked by a flambéed beef stroganoff in its kitchen on 17 April, ripping through three floors.

Management originally said the hotel would reopen on Saturday, before putting the date back to Monday.

It now says it will not be guaranteeing when it will reopen its doors.

The hotel has not given a reason for the delay.

Street closure

At its height, 14 fire engines were on the scene as crews battled the blaze whilst thick black smoke spread across the city.

However, only about 5% of the Victorian Gothic building is believed to have been damaged.

More than 80 people were evacuated, though there were no reported injuries.

Scaffolding has since been brought in to protect the roof gable ends from collapse.

A stretch of Beaumont Street remains closed to traffic, where diversions are in place.

The hotel was a regular feature in the TV series Inspector Morse, where it featured as one of the detective's favourite haunts.

Hundreds of onlookers watched the scene unfold in Oxford's city centre on 17 April

Smoke spread across the city from the fire at the five-star hotel