Drinker claims gay kissing couple were ‘over the top’
A drinker who complained about a gay couple kissing in a London pub claims they were “over the top”.
Gary from Richmond, who did not give his surname, called BBC 5 Live this morning to explain why he reported the couple to management at the John Snow.
He said: “I’m a 57-year-old man out with my wife. I thought they were over the top.
“I have gay friends and lesbian friends. They were asked by the barman to moderate their behaviour, which they didn’t do. It was more than a short kiss. It was a full on snog.”
Gary also accused the couple of “fondling each other” – something the couple strongly deny.
Jonathan Williams, 26, and Jamie Bull, 23, were on a first date in the pub on Wednesday night when a woman claiming to be the landlady allegedly ordered them to leave.
The couple say they were kicked out for quietly kissing in a corner and a witness backed up their claims.
A patron who was seated at the next table, Jamie Morton, told PinkNews.co.uk he too was asked to leave after questioning why the couple were being thrown out.
Mr Morton, who backed up Mr Williams’ version of events, said the couple’s kissing was “innocent, not raunchy”.
He said: “The woman was really aggressive, shouting at them. It’s outrageous, they weren’t doing anything wrong. I was shocked.”
The couple say they will attend tonight’s protest.
Yesterday, police confirmed they were investigating the incident.
Staff at the John Snow have refused to speak to journalists.
Hundreds of people are expected to join a ‘kiss-in’ protest at the pub tonight.
By 2pm, more than 600 people had pledged to join the demonstration.
Landlords have the right to eject anyone they wish. However, they must comply with equality legislation.
Leyla Razavi, a solicitor from discrimination lawyers Russell Jones & Walker said: “While landlords have a right to eject customers from their premises for certain kinds of behaviour, the Equality Act 2010 requires them to apply the same standards to straight and gay customers.
“The request to leave would be considered discriminatory if the landlord would not have asked a straight couple who were kissing like Jonathan and James to leave. “
