The Conversation (0)
James Besanvalle
Jul 05, 2020
A London pub-goer has come under fire after admitting he and his group of friends were “clearly not social distancing” but “it’s kind of fun” during a TV interview.
It came about after pubs reopened on Saturday morning for the first time in more than three months and huge crowds flocked to central London to celebrate.
Surrounded by a group of friends in close proximity, the enthusiastic man was interviewed by Sky News on Saturday evening in Soho.
"We're clearly not socially distancing, but it's kind of fun." 😡 #SecondWave #Ridge #marr https://t.co/ViMy9K56wq— Haggis_UK 🇬🇧 🇪🇺 (@Haggis_UK 🇬🇧 🇪🇺) 1593933102
The response to the flagrant disregard for the one meter social distancing rule across England drew instant criticism on social media:
@Haggis_UK Pished up and partying during a deadly pandemic! What could possibly go wrong?— Tom Johnson🇪🇺💙#NotMovingOn (@Tom Johnson🇪🇺💙#NotMovingOn) 1593933432
Well, at the #NHS we'll be doing our best in a couple weeks to try and save yours and your beloved ones lives, if w… https://t.co/q9YdzvgmAc— carlOs ):) 🏳️🌈🇵🇹🇪🇺🇬🇧 (@carlOs ):) 🏳️🌈🇵🇹🇪🇺🇬🇧) 1593934052
@Haggis_UK I wonder if it will still be fun two weeks from now.— Homebird 159 (@Homebird 159) 1593933775
@Haggis_UK It seems the younger/stronger want to get back to “normal”, believing that the older/vulnerable should b… https://t.co/moRMU9MUtg— Heather (not cowering but cautious) #FBNHS (@Heather (not cowering but cautious) #FBNHS) 1593935238
While some placed the blame of large crowds in Soho not socially distancing squarely on the government:
This is a nightmare, but don't let it trick you into judging others. The government is to blame, and they absolutel… https://t.co/OpMUbssGXj— Caspar Salmon (@Caspar Salmon) 1593903109
Videos showing people passed out, throwing up, mass crowds and no social distancing on first night pubs open. I do… https://t.co/8ZxJnOa1pV— FulhamFCSteve (@FulhamFCSteve) 1593934695
And some rushed to clarify you can blame both the government, as well as individuals for not taking responsibility for their own actions:
The R rate rose to over one on Friday – meaning the number of Covid-19 cases is on a steady rise, as each individual is likely infecting more than one other person – just hours before the lockdown restrictions eased.
At the time of writing, 44,198 people have died as a result of coronavirus across the UK, but ONS figures push this number closer to 54,000 people.