Fact Check-Wetherspoon says 'Reform members only' pub poster image is not genuine

By Reuters Fact Check

An image of a poster purporting to bar non-Reform UK party members from entering a J D Wetherspoon JDW.L pub is not genuine, a spokesperson for the British chain told Reuters.

X and Facebook posts sharing the image in mid-January praised Wetherspoon founder Tim Martin and said the “woke-left” could “DRINK SOMEWHERE ELSE”.

Comments under some of the posts criticised the pub group.

The image shows the poster stuck to a glass doorway underneath a “WETHERSPOONS” sign.

The poster, which uses the white and aqua branding associated with the party, says: “REFORM MEMBERS ONLY.” It says membership details may be requested and “unauthorised access is not permitted”.

A J D Wetherspoon spokesperson said in an email to Reuters that the image was “absolute twaddle” and “absolutely not Wetherspoon”.

Reuters did not find any public evidence that the company had introduced entry restrictions based upon Reform UK membership to any of the nearly 800 pubs it operates across the UK and Ireland.

Reform UK declined to comment when asked about the image by Reuters. There is no evidence of Reform UK officially announcing any such policy.

The Reform UK logo on the poster is also warped and incorrect. It shows an indefinable blue shape inside a white circled background, as opposed to the party’s white arrow on a blue background.

Martin has in the past donated to Reform UK, according to electoral commission records, which publish donations over £11,180 ($15,405) made to political parties.

Martin donated 25,000 pounds ($34,440) to the party in 2021, which is his most recent donation published by the commission.

Martin told The Telegraph in June 2024 that he had decided not to back any party in the general election the following month, nor had he made donations to any political parties that year.

VERDICT

No evidence. A J D Wetherspoon spokesperson told Reuters that the image is not genuine. The poster in the image uses a warped and incorrect logo for the Reform UK party. Reuters found no evidence of J D Wetherspoon introducing a Reform-linked entry policy at its UK pubs.

This article was produced by the Reuters Fact Check team. Read more about our fact-checking work.

($1 = 0.73 GBP)