One of the most remote pubs in the UK has announced they've cancelled their Halloween party after the Harry Potter theme had 'proven dividing'.
The Old Forge Pub is located in the Scottish village of Inverie, which itself is situated on the Knoydart peninsula in the highlands, and it can only be reached by boat or walking for miles on a lengthy hiking trail.
You can't just drive along a road to visit the village or the community-owned pub, but many who've made the journey have been glad they reached it, as people have said the pub is a 'cosy and extremely friendly place'.
Sadly, The Old Forge recently announced that their planned Halloween party set for the end of the month would be called off after some members of staff got 'inappropriate grief' over the Harry Potter theme.
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In a statement published to social media, the pub staff explained that they'd taken the decision to call off the dinner party, though they would still be holding a kids' party in one section.
Unfortunately for fans of Harry Potter, the story about the boy who went to a school for wizards has been unable to escape the views of its creator, JK Rowling.
To say she has been outspoken on the transgender community would be an understatement, as Rowling has previously said she'd rather go to prison than use a transgender person's pronouns.
Her views have led to a significant wedge appearing between her and the trio of stars who played Harry, Ron and Hermione in the Harry Potter films.
Daniel Radcliffe, Harry Potter himself, released a statement via The Trevor Project saying 'trans women are women', while Rupert Grint said he 'firmly stands with the trans community'.
Emma Watson said in 2020: "Trans people are who they say they are and deserve to live their lives without being constantly questioned or told they aren’t who they say they are."
As such, the Harry Potter brand has become quite associated with Rowling's views, and the pub that was planning a Potter-themed Halloween party said they wouldn't be going ahead with it.
"Hello all, The pub management team has decided to cancel this year's Halloween dinner party," The Old Forge said in a statement as they pointed towards their support for the trans community.
"It was always meant to be just a fun night, but unfortunately using Harry Potter as a theme has proven dividing, and some of our staff have received inappropriate grief as a result. We thought it was clear how we feel about everyone's rights, especially given our recent support of the amazing Knoydart Pride celebrations - we had also planned a charity collection for trans youth on the night.
"Any upset caused by our theme choice was most certainly unintentional. We will continue to host a kids party in the Wee Bar from 5:00pm, but all other service that day will be as normal including in the restaurant.
"Finally we would just like to reiterate that the pub cares about everyone in our community, and we would ask folk to be kind and respectful to each other, and our staff. Should anyone have an issue please reach out to the management committee direct through appropriate formal channels.
"Cheers!"
Topics: Halloween, Harry Potter, JK Rowling, UK News
Joe Harker