The Royal Albert Hall has apologised to a concertgoer after he was stopped from entering the auditorium because he was wearing a Palestine flag pin.
Roger Cauthery, 81 and from north London, was attending a BBC Proms concert with his wife Angele last Friday, featuring the pianist Yuncham Lim performing Rachmaninov.
As the couple showed their tickets and had their bags searched in the foyer, two contractor staff spotted the lapel pin and said Mr Cauthery would not be allowed into the concert because he was wearing it, according to The Guardian.
One of the contracted staff then asked a colleague stationed at one of the entry doors not to let Mr Cauthery in. After the couple was left standing in the foyer for 15 minutes, a supervisor arrived and overruled the earlier decision, allowing the couple to attend the concert.
Mr Cauthery said the couple felt “extremely upset, not to say humiliated, by their behaviour”. He told the publication: “I’m a middle-class ex-public school boy brought up to believe that Brits are decent and law-abiding and that one can live one’s life freely.
“I was merely showing solidarity with the Palestinian people and expressing my support for what I believe, and the UN believes, is a legitimate state. My wife and I feel strongly that Palestine should be recognised as a state and indeed it seems that our government is finally about to do so.
“I have lived in London all my adult life and am very proud of the diversity of my city. It is tragic that this small pin badge should be seen as a threat to the Royal Albert Hall which surely should be one of the symbols of our democracy. The result of this incident was that we were too distressed to enjoy the concert and left at the interval.”
The Royal Albert Hall’s chief executive, James Ainscough, issued a full public apology, as well as a personal letter to the couple following the incident.
“I have written to apologise to Mr and Mrs Cauthery, who were initially halted at the door on Friday by one of our contractors,” Mr Ainscough said in a statement. “This isn’t in line with our policy and was a mistake. The duty manager who stepped in to resolve the situation was correct to authorise their subsequent entrance.
“As well as writing to apologise for an experience that was understandably upsetting and humiliating, we have offered a full refund and an invitation to return to the Hall as our guests, so we can give the couple the warm welcome that was sadly lacking on Friday.
“We have also spoken to our contractor to ensure that a similar situation doesn’t arise again.”
Mr Cauthery has said he will donate the refunded ticket fee to the charity Medical Aid for Palestinians, telling The Guardian: “I’m very grateful to the Royal Albert Hall for responding in this way. Of course we will continue to go and enjoy concerts there.”
In a letter of apology to the couple, Mr Ainscough said: “Music has an enduring power to bring people together, and we want the Hall to offer a warm welcome to all who come to enjoy our concerts. It is very sad to think that your experience with us on Friday was the very opposite of that. I do hope you will consider returning to the hall in the near future so we have an opportunity to give you the warm welcome you should expect.”
