Pub owner refutes pensioner hoody claims

Reports that a 61-year-old woman was asked to remove her pink Marks & Spencer hoodie in a Kent pub are wrong, according to pub owner Barracuda.

According to some versions of the story, Corinne Chapman who was eating lunch with friends, was asked by the manager of the Vineyard in Sittingboure to remove her hooded top because the dress code in the pub stated 'no hoodies.'

"I thought it was a joke,"​ she told the Medway Messenger.

"I just ignored it. I don't think I look much like a delinquent,"​ she added.

Minutes later, the manager returned to tell Chapman she could keep the hooded top on because "it wasn't a sports hoodie."​

But a spokesperson for Barracuda said: "The manager of the newly opened Vineyard pub in Sittingbourne had a very genial conversation with Corrine Chapman about their dresscode policy; he mentioned that the top she was wearing was fine but that they did have a no sportswear policy that included sports hooded tops. ​

"Corinne Chapman was never asked to remove her top or asked to leave the pub; she enjoyed a meal and drinks at the pub and then left without any complaint to the manager.

"She is welcome back at the Vineyard pub at anytime."

Some reports even suggest Chapman was thrown out of the pub.