Wetherspoon bans poppy wearers from Gosport pub door

Staff at a JD Wetherspoon pub barred a group of six people from entering this afternoon because they were wearing poppies, telling them the symbol could be “perceived as political”.

The stand-off unfolded outside The Star in Gosport, Hampshire. A clip shared on social media first shows a confrontation with security, then what appears to be a manager. The bouncer tells the group: “I’m just doing my job.” He adds that if they put their poppy on inside they would be “asked to leave”.

The member of staff believed to be the manager said a “blanket ban” had been put on anything that could be “perceived as political”. He stated: “It’s fair for everyone. It’s blanket. Full stop.”

Reform UK councillor for Portsmouth City Council, George Madgwick, told GB News that founder and owner Sir Tim Martin will “go ballistic” when he finds out. “I can’t believe it. If it wasn’t recorded, I wouldn’t believe it’s true either.” Mr Madgwick said the group were members of Reform UK and had been out campaigning, but carried no visible sign they were representing Nigel Farage’s party.

Ash, a witness who attended the protest and the pub, described the moment: “As we approached the pub, the doormen at the door stared at me and put his finger out and said, ‘You’re wearing a poppy, you’re not coming in’. And it sort of took me by surprise, to be honest.”

A poppy is not a placard and it is not a party badge. It marks the dead who served this country. Turning people away at the door for wearing one treats remembrance like a risk to be managed. Britain should be able to honour its own without a security script getting in the way.

Protests nearby and the chain’s record

On the same day around 400 anti-migrant protesters gathered in the area after two small boats arrived at the nearby shore. A counter protest was also present. Hampshire Police said both protests passed without incident and no arrests were made. The force issued a ban on face-covering and a dispersal order.

Sir Tim Martin founded the pub chain in the 1970s. Founded by Sir Tim in 1979, Wetherspoons publicly supports the Royal British Legion’s Poppy Appeal and has raised tens of thousands of pounds annually for the charity. Red poppies have been used for Remembrance Day since the 1920s.

The chain previously drew criticism after a woman wearing a Union Jack dress was refused entry to The Picture House in Sutton-in-Ashfield, Nottinghamshire. The business appears to operate a general no-flags, no-placards policy in its establishments to keep a neutral atmosphere and manage licensing obligations. In 2017 the company was forced to clarify it has not banned staff from wearing poppies after a spoof Twitter account claimed it had.

What happens next

JD Wetherspoon has been contacted for comment. The footage leaves little room for spin: customers in poppies were stopped at the door of a high-street pub that raises money for the Poppy Appeal. Locals and campaigners will want a clear answer from the company on whether remembrance now counts as politics on its premises, and whether Sir Tim Martin will reverse a rule that treats the poppy as a problem.

Original source: GB News

Have your say below 👇