The owners of an historic pub have spoken out after a huge fire in the early hours of this morning.

Eight fire engines were at the scene of the blaze at the Chequers Inn in Aylesford High Street after first receiving a call at 3.48am.

People living nearby were asked to close windows and doors due to the large amount of smoke being generated by the fire.

MP Tracey Crouch, who lives nearby, tweeted images of the fire and praised the fire service for their action.

She said: "Huge kudos to #kentfirerescue who in the early hours of the morning came to a fire at The Chequers, Aylesford and through their incredible efforts managed to stop the fire from completely ripping through the pub."

The pub said in a statement on its Facebook page: "We are very sorry to say that our beloved Chequers suffered a fire in the early hours of this morning. We are not sure on the extent of the damage yet but it’s safe to say we won’t be open today.

"We will be contacting all of our bookings as our sister sites The Hengist Village Bar & Dining Room and The Walnut Tree, Yalding remain open. Massive thank you to Kent Fire and Rescue Service for their help and we will update you all as soon as we know more."

There have been no reports of injuries and the cause of the blaze is not yet known.

The High Street remained close for much of the morning.