Landlord ticked off over pub sign ‘banter’

A landlord who joked about obesity and the death of Orville entertainer Keith Harris on his pub’s billboards has been given a slap on the wrist after residents complained to the police.

One of the pub’s signs that caused offence

Mick Quinn, of the Fleming Arms pub in Ryde on the Isle of Wight, has made a habit of composing humorous notes on billboard signs outside of his pub, intended to to entice patrons into the pub. Verging into the realms of black humour, their tone has been taken the wrong way by some of the town’s residents.

Recent headlines include “‘fat people are harder to kidnap! Stay safe! Eat lots here”, while another referenced the death of entertainer Keith Harris, known for his sketch routines with puppet bird Orville.

Three days after the entertainer’s death the pub put up a sign which read: “Keith Harris RIP, Orvil KFC.” Another made fun of a nearby town ahead of Father’s Day, implying that is has a problem with incest reading: “Happy Brother’s Day Wroxall”.

Quinn insisted that the signs “make people smile”, however one resident, Andy Bailey, didn’t see the funny side and complained to the police.

As reported by The Express, Bailey said: “Keith Harris had not even been buried when the sign went up and I was not the only person annoyed by it. At best is it tedious, at worst offensive. He also wrote one about incest. Are incest jokes likely to get you go into the pub for a family meal or a drink?”

Mr Quinn, who has run the pub for the last 12 years, said the boards were just harmless pub banter.

“I had a call from the local constabulary asking me to take that one down and replace it with something else as it would make their life easier.They were not happy about the use of the word kidnap. I was making a joke about Orvil. I didn’t know Keith Harris the person, only the entertainer who liked to make people laugh.”

Entertainer Keith Harris, who died earlier this year, and Orville