When is a story not a story? When it is as old as the hills but hits the headlines for no good reason.
Bemused Wetherspoons has been on the edge of some sharp media interest at the BBC after a couple complained that they could not have more than two alcoholic drinks each because they were with a child in a pub in Merseyside.
This is a policy that exists in all 683 Wetherspoon pubs in the UK which has been part of management guidance "for years" said an exasperated Wetherspoons spokesman adding that the media storm had surrounded a policy that was "nothing new at all".
However over-zealous the policy may first appear it is intended to stop children from becoming bored and disruptive while their parents are boozing, particularly in an environment where there are no entertainment or play facilities for young ones.
The story was generated after the couple in question were told that they could not have more than two alcoholic drinks each because they were with a child, even though the child's mother was only drinking water, took their complaint to the BBC.
Wetherspoons remains astounded at the interest the policy has generated with its spokesman claiming to have taken over 50 calls during the course of the morning. As Caterer editor Mark Lewis rightly points out there is a debate to be had about both responsible drinking and children in pubs. It is a shame the BBC has not put the new in news to start this debate.
