Squatters quit Guy Ritchie's £6m house... for a pub lock-in

Squatters evicted from a £6 million Fitzrovia house owned by film director Guy Ritchie have moved into a disused pub nearby.

After a judge ruled on Friday that Ritchie had the right to take back his Fitzroy Square house, the self-styled Really Free School took over the 200-year-old former Black Horse pub in Rathbone Place, which closed down last year.

A message on the Really Free School's website last night read: "We just moved into our new building! Hundred+ people carrying furniture through street!"

Ritchie bought the Fitzrovia house last year and planned to renovate it. Central London County Court issued an interim eviction order because the squatters' presence meant work couldn't proceed.

The four-storey Black Horse was recently bought by London and Central Estates Limited for £1.95 million, with the intention of redeveloping the residential accommodation.

Before moving to Ritchie's place, the Really Free School occupied a house in Bloomsbury. Members describe their bases as "autonomous space to find each other, to gain momentum, to cross-pollinate ideas and actions".

Linus Rees, chairman of trustees at the Fitzrovia Neighbourhood Association, recently defended the Fitzroy Square occupation.

It has emerged that Cambridge-educated trainee barrister Paul Powlesland, who works at Temple Garden Chambers, visited the squat at Ritchie's house to attend talks.