West End news: 77 YEAR OLD GRANDMOTHER BARRED OVER HAT- Bayswater pub tells pensioner in beret they can’t serve her for ‘security reasons’

Published: 5 February 2010
by JOSH LOEB

A 77-YEAR-OLD grandmother was barred from one of the West End’s oldest pubs for “security reasons” after she refused to take off her purple beret.
Shirley Phelan described the strict dress code at the Prince Alfred in Bayswater as “stupid” after managers refused to serve her unless she removed her headwear.
The retired dressmaker to the Queen had gone into her local pub for lunch with her daughter wearing a hat which was a Christmas present from one of her grandchildren.  
“When we went in, one bar girl shouted to another not to serve us unless I take my beret off,” said Mrs Phelan.
“There was no sign anywhere saying ‘no hats’ and I couldn’t understand why they wouldn’t let me keep my hat on. Maybe they thought I had a gun or something.
“They should be able to use discretion for someone my age. I don’t think I look like a terrorist.”
Mrs Phelan, who lives in Bayswater, worked as an apprentice to Sir Norman Hartnell, the famous Mayfair dressmaker to the Queen, in the 1950s. She spent three decades as a clerk in the Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital in Marylebone before retiring aged 70.
Mrs Phelan recently had a hip operation and had walked into the pub on crutches. She said the staff never explained to her why the Prince Alfred would not let customers wear hats – but a spokesperson for Glendola Leisure Group, which runs the pub, said the policy was in place so clear CCTV images of customers could be obtained. 
Mrs Phelan’s daughter Maria said: “I never thought that at 55 I would be thrown out of a pub with my 77-year-old mother because of a beret.”  The Prince Alfred has been in Queensway since the 19th century. After a recent refurbishment it has become a popular gastro-style bar with regular live music and features a flashy sofa bar and rooftop garden.
A supervisor said the hats policy had been in place for several years but admitted there was no sign up warning punters about the rule.
He said: “We have the policy because of CCTV. We get a lot of bag snatchers around here and if someone’s bag gets stolen the police need to see people’s faces clearly on the tapes. 
“We ask people to remove their hats otherwise we cannot serve them. We ask nicely but some people do not want to remove them so we tell them they cannot drink here.” 
A spokesman for Glendola Leisure Group said: “It is the policy at the Prince Alfred in Queensway to ask people to remove their hats when being served. This is for customers’ safety and security to ensure that clear CCTV images can be obtained if necessary.”