The trial of John William Cooper, the man accused of murdering four people in Pembrokeshire, will begin on March 21 at Swansea crown court, it emerged today.

In preparation, the trial judge, Mr Justice John Griffith Williams, will hear two days of legal arguments starting on Monday.

The judge today granted a request by Gerard Elias QC, the barrister leading the prosecution, for an extension of the time limit that Cooper, aged 65, can be held on remand at Long Lartin high security prison, Worcestershire.

The limit was due to expire on Monday but Mr Justice Williams extended it to 4pm on November 26.

If the preparatory hearing goes ahead on Monday as planned the limit will no longer apply and Cooper will be held in custody until his trial without any further applications.

White haired Cooper today appeared via a video link between the prison and Swansea crown court, but only for a few seconds before a technical hitch caused a disconnection. The hearing proceeded in his absence.

Cooper is accused of the murder of brother and sister Richard and Helen Thomas at Scoveston Manor in 1985.

Cooper, who lived at Spring Gardens, Letterston, near Haverfordwest, before his arrest, is also charged with the killings of Peter Dixon and his wife Gwenda four years later.

In addition, he is charged with a rape and indecent assault, unrelated to the murders, and to several attempted robberies, all during the 1990s.

Cooper has entered pleas of not guilty to all the charges.

Richard Thomas was 58 and his sister was aged 54 when their bodies were found in the burnt out remains of Scoveston Manor.

Peter Dixon, 51, and his 52 year old wife, from Oxfordshire, were also shot dead. They were attacked as they walked the Pembrokeshire coastal footpath near Little Haven.