text: A devastating fire has caused serious damage to a world-famous hotel used as a setting for television’s Inspector Morse. The Randolph, in Oxford city centre, went up in flames this afternoon, with smoke billowing from the roof as dozens of firefighters battled to bring the inferno under control. The extent of the damage to the Grade II listed Victorian building remains unclear but aerial pictures of the scene showed gaps in the roof and exposed beams. The Randolph Hotel, in Oxford, used as a setting for television’s Inspector Morse, caught fire today . A devastating fire has caused serious damage to The Randolph Hotel, in Beaumont Street, today . Plumes of black smoke was seen coming from the hotel by those on the Ashmolean Museum's roof terrace . The fire's  cause is not known and the extent of the damage to the Grade II listed building remains unclear . The five-star hotel, run by the Macdonald chain, includes the Morse Bar, named after being used as a frequent setting for many scenes where Morse and Lewis deliberated on complex cases. Cast and crew also stayed there while filming the detective drama. The Morse Bar has featured in episodes of the follow-on TV series, Lewis, too. Roads were closed around the hotel as fire crews fought to stop the flames spreading, while its staff and guests were evacuated. Firefighters will remain overnight at the scene of the fire, which is not believed to be suspicious and is thought to have started in the ground floor kitchen. An aerial view over the historic hotel shows massive plumes of smoke billowing over Oxford city centre . The fire is not believed to be suspicious and is believed to have started in the ground floor kitchen . The extent of the damage is unclear, but pictures of the scene showed gaps in the roof and exposed beams . No-one was believed to be injured and guests and staff evacuated to the nearby Oxford Playhouse theatre . Eyewitness Anabel Bacon, who was on the roof terrace of the Ashmolean Museum opposite the imposing, gothic hotel, said there was an initial plume of smoke, which stopped very quickly - but “all of a sudden it resumed again with just as much force”. She said: ‘The fire service was there very quickly after the second plume erupted, within five minutes. Everyone was surprised… no one knew what was going on.’ No-one was believed to have been injured in the fire, with guests and staff quickly evacuated to the nearby Oxford Playhouse theatre. It was not yet known how many people were inside the hotel at the time. An Oxfordshire fire service spokesman said: ‘The call was received by fire and rescue at 4.39pm and a total of 14 fire engines have been sent to the hotel - including two high-reach appliances. ‘Firefighters have not had to rescue anybody from the blaze and the building has been evacuated. 'Roads nearby have been closed as firefighters deal with the incident.' The Randolph was built in 1864 by William Wilkinson, an architect who also designed many other buildings in North Oxford, and first opened in 1866. There have been many attempts to preserve the grandeur of the building with major refurbishments taking place in 1952, 1978, 1988 and most recently in 2001, at a cost of £4 million, which saw the redecoration of 119 bedrooms and the creation of three new meeting rooms. Firefighters have been battling the blaze at the world-famous in the centre of Oxford, since around 4.30pm . A total of 14 fire engines have been sent to the Beaumont Street hotel - including two high-reach appliances . Beaumont street has been closed in both directions to allow emergency services access to the building . Smoke was seen billowing from the roof as dozens of firefighters battle to bring the inferno under control .
target: Witnesses reported massive plumes of smoke billowing above the building .
  Famous for being used a filming location for TV show Inspector Morse .
  Firefighters have been battling fire at five-star gothic hotel since 4.30pm .
  Blaze is not believed to be suspicious and is thought to have started in ground floor kitchen .