Blackie Boy bans boozer in a kilt

Aug 24 2008 by Ken Oxley, Sunday Sun

HE’S been a Friday night fixture in his favourite Northern bar for more than a decade, where he was famed for wearing his traditional Scottish kilt.

But Paul Robson was left stunned when he was told by bosses at his beloved Blackie Boy: "You’re not coming in dressed like that".

The 47-year-old, of Byker, Newcastle, has Scottish relatives and spent £1700 on a kilt specially made in his family’s tartan. Proud of his roots, he’d worn the outfit every Friday night in the Bigg Market bar, becoming renowned among regulars and staff.

But the pub, which has recently changed owners and undergone a refurbishment, banned Paul because it has new rules for dress code since becoming linked with the nearby Perdu bar and now only allows smart dress at the weekend.

Paul said: "I think it is completely racist towards Scottish people . . . I was staggered and furious! My kilt cost me £1700 and it is in the family tartan. I wear it because I’m proud of my heritage, not as fancy dress.

"I have been going to the Blackie Boy every Friday or Saturday for 17 years and I’ve worn my kilt every time I’ve been for the past two years.

"The new management have now banned me from wearing it. I turned up as normal at the door and the bouncer, who I know well from being a regular, looked really embarrassed and said he’d been told not to let me in with the kilt on. He was really apologetic.

"I’ve spoken to the manager about it who said they were trying to ‘better the clientele’ by banning fancy dress and football shirts and not letting groups of men in.

"It used to be one of the main pre-match drinking spots but now they’ve banned anyone coming in dressed in a Newcastle shirt. It’s ridiculous . . . it’s the Bigg Market for goodness sake!

"The bar has changed so much. They’re not bothered about the local people who come week in, week out. They say they want only smart dress in on a weekend. I bet my kilt cost a lot more than anything anyone dressed smartly is wearing."

Famous for its dark interior, cosy atmosphere, prominent Coffee Jonny picture and Dick and Fanny toilet signs, the Blackie Boy was taken over by the owners of Perdu and given a top-to-toe revamp.

But it appears the bar doesn’t just want to change its decor, but its customers as well.

The pub’s manager said: "The dress code at the weekend has changed since we had the refurbishment three weeks ago.

"We now don’t allow any kinds of fancy dress as it’s now smart dress only. We are now linked to another bar, Perdu, which has always had a dress code. As our customers can go between each bar when inside, we had to change too.

"Everyone gets refused entry in any type of fancy dress and that has nothing to do with the fact that kilts are Scottish."

:: IS the pub right to ban kilt wearers? Click here to go to our forums and leave your views