Historically, this was one of Birmingham’s most famous hostelries. But it has suffered from the general decline of the area and is now boarded up in a bid to keep out unwanted visitors and waiting for someone to invest in the business.

This proud establishment was once at the hub of Birmingham’s boxing community and a mini-ring was mounted on the ceiling of the ‘back snug’.

The Greatest, Muhammad Ali, was a customer when he once visited Birmingham and it has served a pint of best to a steady stream of world champions.

This boxing venue has always punched above its weight but it received a knockout punch when trade dropped and it was forced to close three years ago.

The Birmingham Arms often served as a coroner’s court during the mid-Victorian period.

It would seem that the publican James Haynes spent as much time laying out the dead as he did heaving barrels of beer in the cellar. What effect such comings and goings had on the pub’s spirit or mood is a puzzle.

Customers would just be settling down with a pint of ale before witnessing the sight of another corpse passing through the doors.

One of its most publicised cases was the investigation into the mysterious death of local woman Sarah Busst, whose gunmaker husband was arrested for her murder.

However, Coroner W James Esq ordered that James Busst be freed after a jury in the pub controversially ruled that he was not responsible for her death.

The Birmingham Arms was eventually taken over by M&B and stayed in the hands of the brewery until its pubs were sold off to a pub company.

It was finally closed down and remains derelict despite various campaigns to preserve this piece of the city’s history.

Unfortunately the fate of the Birmingham Arms mirrors the destiny of many of the once-buzzing establishments that lined this important thoroughfare.

The Warwick Arms, the Wheatsheaf, Duke of Edinburgh, Park Tavern, Yorkshire Grey, Old Dock Tavern and Locomotive Engine have all pulled their last pints.

They have now been demolished or converted to community centres, fast-food takeaways or shops.

They have been lost to history, so pub preservation campaigners are desperate that the Birmingham Arms can be rescued.

Meanwhile, the Old Windmill, which fought for so long to become a fully-licensed public house, continues to thrive and has recently undergone a face-lift.

While its surroundings outside may have changed radically, very little is different inside this last remaining local on the city’s former golden mile.