An award-winning pub has been stripped of its accolade after it was revealed “Nazi memorabilia” was on display.
The Hole in the Wall in Bodmin scooped up the award for the best pub in Cornwall by CAMRA Kernow.
The pub was given praise by the judges for its quirky decor, which features curios, including a stuffed lion, historic guns and a picture of Winston Churchill.
However, the pub received a complaint after it reportedly had on show a Nazi armband, about four inches by one inch in size, had been in a glass cabinet on top of a pillar in a dimly lit part of the pub.
The Bodmin pub had its award rescinded
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Landlord Steve Hall has hit back, telling CornwallLive that the display was “taken out of context completely”.
He said: “This is really upsetting. I’m upset and annoyed about this and so are my staff.
“It has really tarnished my image when that piece of military memorabilia has been in the pub since it opened 80 years ago. There are a lot of curios in the pub. There’s a lot of stuff on display.”
“The item is no longer on display. I took the decision to remove it as soon as this complaint was shared with us. I’m not even sure the person who complained ever stepped foot in the pub. He must have seen it online.”
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The Cornwall pub received a complaint about the armband
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Hall added he thought it was ironic that the title of Pub of the Year had now been removed from the Hole in the Wall as the pub won it twice before in the last 15 years, even though the item had been on display the whole time.
He said: “It’s been taken out of context completely by CAMRA at national level. It has nothing to do with CAMRA Kernow. Bodmin was a garrison town.
“These soldiers came back from the war with spoils of war memorabilia. It was not to hero-worship Hitler or the Nazis but to celebrate the victory over fascism and to remember their comrades who died fighting against evil. You can’t whitewash history.”
The complaint had came from Truro resident Colin Curless who told CornwallLive: “Not just a stuffed lion on show. I actually spoke with the staff and they have a swastika armband on show in the pub. I have informed CAMRA as having a swastika armband on show in your pub is not a good advert for Cornwall, let alone a stuffed lion.”
A spokesperson for CAMRA Kernow said: “CAMRA’s National Campaigns and Communications Committee has taken the decision to withdraw the Cornwall Branch Pub of the Year award for 2024 to the Hole in the Wall.
“In the light of this, there will now be no Cornwall Pub of the Year Award made for 2024.
“This follows a complaint relating to an item on display. The item has now been removed by the pub owner, but it did contravene nationally agreed CAMRA policies.
“On this occasion, CAMRA volunteers did not spot the item at the point of judging. However, national policy states no pub or club should be considered for an award if it displays signs or objects that could be offensive to consumers due to their discriminatory nature.”
Source Agencies
