A RANGERS pub has banned mobile phone recording and bigoted chants to stop punters breaking the Hate Crime Act – and risking the closure of the bar.
The Bristol Bar handed out flyers before last weekend’s Celtic match threatening to boot out anyone caught filming – and a ‘zero tolerance’ to sectarian and offensive chants.
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The boozer has also kyboshed so-called ‘add-on’ to songs where fans often add sectarian slurs like ‘F*** the Pope’ to Ibrox anthem ‘The Best’ by Tina Turner.
The bar, in Dennistoun, Glasgow, began to clamp down on the unsavoury singing some months ago but ramped up the rules at the weekend following the new laws coming into force.
It regularly hosts flute bands, an act called the Prodclaimers and promises ‘classic cultural tunes’ every Saturday night.
The flyer read: ‘The Hate Crime Act came into force 1st April and we have now implemented new rules for customers.
‘Customers are now banned from using their phones to record anything within these premises. This includes entertainment, making personal videos and recording conversations.
‘Please don’t let us down for the sake of a couple of likes on social media.
‘We have to protect our business and licence and we will remove and bar anyone, regular or not.’
The flyer added there was now a ‘zero tolerance to sectarian chants, song add ons or offensive singing.’
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Yesterday, the pub landlord, who declined to be named, said bar staff and DJs had been coached on how to nip sectarian behaviour in the bud.
He said: “If we play Simply the Best and there are ‘add-ons’ we’ll just kill the music.
“The regulars all know now what we won’t accept and for Old Firm games it is ticket only and regulars only.
“Last Saturday, we had a flag day and we had people from all over the world – visitors from Northern Ireland, America and Australia.
“So because of the Hate Crime Act coming into force, and people that weren’t usually in the bar, I decided to print off flyers to remind everyone.”
He denied the move was designed to keep any bad behaviour ‘in house’ and away from prying eyes after only one side of the flyer was shared on soclai media.
He added: “The flyer began to go viral on Twiiter but it only showed one side – and it looked like the bar condoned sectarianism, add ons or offensive singing as long as you turned your phones off.
“That’s categorically not the case and we have been clamping down on that kind of thing for quite a while now.
“If you are seen filming or video recording, the staff will ask you to stop.
“If someone were to film themselves or someone else and it goes online, it’ll be me and the bar that gets the problem.”
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The Bristol hit the headlines two years ago after the Queen’s death by renaming the bar the Queen Elizabeth Arms in her honour.
It was also the scene of an extravagant display for Her Majesty’s Platinum Jubilee.