Today marks the 30th anniversary of a fatal shooting at a pub, which remains unsolved three decades later.

Stan Gordon Nicholls had been drinking at The Anchor Inn in Yalding on the evening of September 26, 1994.

At about 11.40pm, he asked the barman to unlock the door and let him out, but as he went to leave the pub in Hampstead Lane, two men wearing masks and carrying a sawn-off shotgun attempted to force their way in, screaming at the pair. They shot Mr Nicholls in the temple.

Mr Nicholls worked at the Zeneca Agrochemicals plant (later Syngenta) in Yalding, as did his brother Gordon and sister Jane. He lived only half a mile from the pub in a house he shared with his father and brother. He has been divorced for two years.

Police investigated all lines of inquiry, including whether Mr Nicholls had been the targeted victim of a murder, or whether the shooting had been the result of an attempted robbery that went wrong.

The attack came before the 2003 Licensing Act which liberalised pub hours, allowing them to stay open as long as they wanted.

In 1994, pubs were still required to close at 11pm. Some landlords operated a lock-in system whereby they would lock the pub’s doors at 11pm but allow regulars they knew to carry on drinking.

There were still around a dozen customers inside The Anchor at the time. Some said that when the masked men forced entry, the barman had moved back, but Mr Nicholls appeared rooted to the spot with fear.

The witnesses disagreed whether the gun was pointed and fired at Mr Nicholls or whether it simply went off accidentally. Mr Nicholls, who was 37, died at the scene.

Many argued that if Mr Nicholls had been the intended victim, wouldn’t it have been better to wait until he was clear of the building before ambushing him, instead of the gunmen trying to force their way in and carrying out the shooting in front of a dozen witnesses?

Forensic tests carried out by police at the scene and on a balaclava found outside the pub revealed nothing and no satisfactory explanation for the murder has ever been found.

Officers were never able to identify three men seen in a blue Ford Sierra parked in a nearby lay-by minutes before the killing.

Nor did they identify a stranger seen hanging around the war memorial in a distinctive black bomber jacket with an eagle motif days before Mr Nicholls was shot.

Eight years after the killing, police issued a new appeal for information, with Det Supt Dave King, saying: "Someone knows what happened that night and they could hold the key to solving the whole affair.

“There is a significant chance the people who committed this crime live, or lived, locally."

Mr Nicholls’ father said at the time of the appeal that he never gave up hope that one day someone would be caught for his son's cold-blooded murder.

Already 73, Mr Nicholls senior said: "Eight years on and we still do not have a clue what happened.

'It doesn’t get any easier...'

“All I know is the people that did it are walking around breathing and Stan is 6ft under. You try to come to terms with it but it doesn't get any easier."

Mr Nicholls' brother Gordon said: "I reckon it was going to be a robbery but there were so many people in there, the robbers panicked.

"I think Stan was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. “

But he added: “It was the first time he'd gone to The Anchor on a Sunday and I'll never understand why he went."

Mr Nicholls’ death had tragic knock-on effects for his family for years.

His mother, Doris, and father, also named Stanley, both died without ever seeing their son’s killers brought to justice.

Then on October 6, 2012, Mr Nicholl’s brother Gordon was found dead in his home by police.

The 54-year-old had been badly affected by his brother’s death and had become a loner and recluse.

Neighbours alerted police after they realised they had not seen him for a month.

It was said his mental health had been further affected after he became the victim of bullying by a gang of yobs. He had resorted to leaving his house in Perry Street, Maidstone, by the back door to avoid them.

On August 31, he attended A&E at Maidstone Hospital, saying he couldn’t cope, but he was discharged as he had no medical problems.

That was the last time he was seen alive. When his body was found five weeks later it was so badly decomposed the exact cause of death could not be determined and the coroner at his inquest recorded an open verdict.

Gordon had been found on the living room floor beside an upturned chair, suggesting he may have fallen, the inquest heard.

Money and valuables left in the house, suggested he had not been the victim of a robbery.

His sister, Jane Coombes, told the inquest her brother had always struggled with social interaction, but had become even more introverted after the murder of his brother Stan, whom he was very close to, 19 years previously.

The coroner, Andrew Campbell-Tich, said it was not possible to determine exactly how Gordon had died, leaving the deaths of both brothers shrouded in mystery.

Henry Long had been the landlord at The Anchor Inn from 1986 to 2015.

After he retired, the pub’s new owner, Shepherd Neame, carried out a £1.3 million refit, and it was reopened as The Boathouse in May 2018.

Detective Chief Inspector Neil Kimber, of the Kent and Essex Serious Crime Directorate, said: “The murder in Yalding of Stan Nicholls, in September 1994, remains unsolved.

“Our cold case team carries out periodic reviews of unsolved murders, and other serious offences and it is important to remember that no case is ever truly closed.

“It is never too late to give information which may help us identify new lines of inquiry in this case and we continue to urge anyone who may be able to help to call us on 01622 604100, quoting reference 46/SC/40/07. You can also call Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111 or complete the online form.”