A WELL-LOVED chip shop with a century-old history in Kilbirnie has been destroyed following a fire.

Benny’s Fish and Chicken Bar, owned by Benedetto ‘Benny’ Roselli, was damaged when a fire broke out in the empty flat upstairs just before 5.30am on Saturday, October 15.

Firefighters battled the blaze on Main Street for almost eight hours, during which time the roof collapsed in on the iconic chippy.

Following news of the fire, members of the public took to social media to express their sadness at the loss of their local chippy.

But manager Luigi Mancini Angiolillo insists that the destruction of the shop does not signal the end of an era.

He told the Herald: “There’s been a chip shop owned by Italians here for about 100 years. One of my customers is 93-years-old and he said he remembers it way back.

“We’re waiting for the report from the police, CID and fire department to give a full analysis.

“We will have a complete update in the next week or fortnight.

“I can assure people that Benny’s will come back. We will have a new shop, a new everything.

“Bricks and mortar can get fixed and equipment reinstalled. Benny will be back.

“If there’s anyone I need to thank for their bravery towards a drastic and highly dangerous situation it’s the firefighters.

“They went beyond their call of duty and worked really, really hard to put out that fire.

“I also want to thank Kilbirnie Police Department, Police Scotland, CID and North Ayrshire Building Standards.

“I speak in first person as I witnessed the sad event that devoured through one of Kilbirnie’s symbolic and meaningful locations.”

A spokesman for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) said: “There were no casualties. Firefighters tackled the well-developed fire using hose reel jets.

“At around 6am the roof collapsed and the fire began to spread to the shop below.

“The SFRS requested the attendance of Police Scotland, Scottish Gas, Scottish Power and local authority building control.

“The fire was thereafter contained. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service left the scene at 2.20pm.”