Mum, 73, and son banned from pub quiz for ‘offensive’ ‘Maddie and Andrew’ crew title
John Cullen, 30, from Wallasey, regularly attends weekly quizzes in and around the city centre organised by event company, Sphinx UK
A mum and son duo from Wallasey, who thought they were banned from a pub quiz for being too good, were left gobsmacked when they discovered the real reason was their ‘offensive’ team name. John Cullen, 30, and his mum Valerie, 73, are regulars at quizzes organised by Sphinx UK in Liverpool city centre, often trying their luck at Lanigan’s Irish Bar on Ranelagh Street.
The civil servant told the ECHO that during their last visit on Monday, November 11, they were informed by a staff member that they couldn’t participate in the quiz. John, who has won four out of the seven quizzes he attended, believed it was due to their winning streak.
However, a spokesperson for Lanigan’s denied this and revealed to the ECHO that the pair were actually banned because of their “derogatory and offensive” team names, which included references to Madeleine McCann and Prince Andrew.
John’s hitting out after he and his mum were barred from their local quiz night – and he reckons it wasn’t for the reasons you’d think. He told the ECHO, “I can see how people could find it offensive, but we aren’t the first team to use these names in jest in quizzes.”
He added: “We are regular quizzers who compete every week for fun. I find it outrageous and ridiculous that anyone would attempt to limit or stop someone from winning a quiz when the aim itself is to try to win”, reports the Liverpool Echo.
Venue bigwig Andrew Carey spilled the beans to the ECHO about why they got the boot, explaining: “John and his mother, Valerie are two very smart individuals, the problem being that every time they won a round or were the fastest team to answer the question, their team’s name would appear on the big screen in our pub and be announced over the house system by the host.”
Because they kept causing a ruckus, Andrew said, “In the end, with the number of complaints raised, we chose to ask the mother and son couple to leave the venue as they were causing offence. We have the right to admission in our own venue, and we will not tolerate such behaviour.”
That said, John’s not alone in feeling hard done by. Others claim they’ve been shown the door for what smells like the same reasons.
However, Andrew’s calling foul on that score. He retorted: “As far as management are aware they are the only team to be asked to leave the venue to date. I’ve never even heard of the other teams till your phone call. “.
Liam Canning, a 31 year old from Bootle, has claimed that he was banned from a pub quiz at Lanigan’s in Liverpool after his team, International Frustration, won twice. The academic editor, who now resides in Old Swan, stated that the management initially asked him not to attend every week due to their regular winning streak, which he found “reasonable”.
However, on his third visit, he was told: “We were told we weren’t allowed to play at all because of our high-win rate. We were just like, ‘What is happening? ‘. I asked for a refund on my drink and I didn’t even get that. It was just a particularly funny situation to be in.”
He added, “We were banned from there because they said it was ‘unfair to the students in the quiz’. We left and have never gone back. We’ve gone elsewhere since.”
Another participant, who played solo under the name Here For The Beer, also claimed he was asked not to return after winning twice consecutively. He told the ECHO: “I have never had this treatment anywhere else. I feel discriminated against for two reasons. One, and most importantly, for being unable to return just for achieving two wins – it makes me feel that for being good at something – the entire purpose of a quiz – then I am unable to continue to do so.”
The punter expressed their dismay, saying: “Secondly, for them stating that it is a student vibe. I am in my early thirties and still very willing to join in with the overall vibe, but I feel that because I’m no longer a student, I am not welcome. This was not stated anywhere within the venue or at any point during the quiz.”
In response to the complaints, Lanigan’s group GM, Andrew Carey, mentioned he was unaware of the two latter teams. Sphinx UK, the organisation responsible for the quiz, shared with the ECHO: “The decision to remove John and Val from the event on Monday was solely down to the venue management team.”
“At Sphinx, we pride ourselves on running events which are engaging for everyone regardless of ability. John and Val always have been – and continue to be – welcome at our events. We are unable to comment on any venue’s admission policy.”
When further questioned by the ECHO about the exclusion of the other teams, Sphinx responded: “Any decision to remove people from Lanigan’s will have been made by the venue management team. Sphinx welcomes all players of any ability to play our events. We are unable to comment on individual venue’s admission policies.”
