Police struggle to assert control as riots and looting take place in Birmingham. Reuters / PA

Courts have sat through the night to deal with criminal charges from four nights of looting and rioting in English cities.

In London many of the accused are thought to have been remanded on bail with curfews. Extra court sittings were being arranged elsewhere as David Cameron gave carte blanche to the police on manpower and tactics, including the use of water cannon. This was despite comments on Tuesday from the home secretary, Theresa May, playing down the likelihood of their use.

The prime minister said he expected anyone convicted of violent disorder to go to prison. More than 1,100 people have been arrested in centres including London, Birmingham, Manchester, Nottingham, Bristol and Leicester.

Cheshire police said eight people in their area had been arrested on suspicion of inciting public disorder through the use of social media sites. One, a 20-year-old man from Northwich, has been charged with intentionally encouraging the commission of an offence. He will appear before the town's magistrates.

The Metropolitan police arrested 81 people on Tuesday night in the capital, where it was much quieter with 16,000 police officers from forces around the country on the streets. The Met said a 21-year-old man had been arrested in connection with a large fire that destroyed a furniture store in Croydon on Monday.

Manchester, Birmingham and Nottingham bore the brunt of the latest rioting and looting, with trouble also erupting in Liverpool, Salford, West Bromwich, Wolverhampton, Bristol and Gloucester.

In Birmingham a murder inquiry is under way after three British Asian men were killed by a car in a suspected hit-and-run. Police had not established whether there was any direct link to disturbances in the city apart from the sheer numbers on the streets.

In Manchester police warned looters: "We are coming for you," and in London a senior police officer said vigilante groups set up to protect shops and homes were hampering police operations.

There were reports of people seeking to prevent looting in suburbs including Enfield and Eltham, where there were supporters of the English Defence League present, and Southall, where Sikhs protected their temple.

Downing Street rejected an appeal from the London mayor, Boris Johnson, to think again about cutting police numbers after the unrest. It said cuts had to be made to deal with the UK's deficit.

In Manchester groups of young people repeatedly evaded police from the late afternoon onwards, breaking into upmarket shops and setting a branch of the Miss Selfridge clothing chain on fire. As evening fell up to 200 youths raided an off-licence and other shops in the main shopping precinct of Salford, a couple of miles to the west.

The violence ebbed in Manchester city centre around midnight and police regained control.

Assistant Chief Constable Garry Shewan of Greater Manchester police criticised "unprecedented" criminality and on Wednesday warned: "Hundreds and hundreds of people, we have your image, we have your face, we have your acts of wanton criminality on film.

"We are coming for you from today, and no matter how long it takes we will arrest those people responsible."

Nazir Afzal, chief crown prosecutor in the north-west of England, said: "Prosecutors have been working with police to prepare for just such an outcome, and charging those who committed crimes during the disorder last night is our top priority.

"We have arranged for increased capacity in the courts to deal with these cases and will seek remands in custody wherever appropriate.

"We are also advising on the charging of those caught in possession of property that was stolen. Anyone who handles stolen property is just as guilty of an offence as those who steal in the first place."

At Highbury magistrates court in north London, two district judges presided over scores of cases throughout Tuesday night. According to one lawyer about 100 defendants had appeared since 11.30pm on Tuesday, and at one point three custody vans were queueing up outside because there was no room in the lock-up.

A 31-year-old primary school worker from Battersea, London, charged with trespassing, was among those before the court.

Greater Manchester police said they had arrested more than 110 people overnight, while West Midlands police arrested 109 people after scenes of disorder in Birmingham, Wolverhampton and West Bromwich.

Shops including a branch of Marks & Spencer and a hi-fi store were again targeted in Birmingham, with reports of a gun being fired, while there were reports of large groups of people in West Bromwich town centre and vehicles being set on fire.

In Nottingham a police station and college were firebombed with more than 90 people arrested, while in Leicester officers detained 13 people following disturbances in the city centre.

Thames Valley police made 15 arrests linked to trouble overnight, including five people who were held in Milton Keynes for alleged criminal damage and public order offences.

On Tuesday night businesses and shops across London had shut down early in a bid to avoid attack from the gangs of youths who ransacked buildings across the city over the previous days.

There was trouble in the south-west of England with police coming under attack from gangs. Mounted officers were sent to combat groups of youths, some with their faces covered, who were smashing shop windows in Gloucester city centre overnight, while a fire broke out in the Brunswick area. Gloucestershire police said nine arrests were made.

In Bristol police arrested 19 people following a second night of trouble.

There were small outbreaks of disorder reported by Thames Valley police in Reading, Oxford and Milton Keynes, while 200 missile-throwing youths gathered in the south Liverpool area of Toxteth, causing disorder and damage, according to Merseyside police. The force said 35 arrests were made.

Parliament will be recalled for a day on Thursday to discuss the situation. Cameron will also chair another meeting of the government's emergency committee, Cobra.