ENTER the Chymorvah Private Hotel in Marazion, near Penzance, and in the bedrooms you will find open Bibles and Christian leaflets. The reception area features a mosaic that reads:
Jesus Christ is Lord.
On its website, the deranged hotel owners – Peter and Hazelmary Bull – declare:
The Chymorval Hotel, a haven for Christian fundies
Here at Chymorvah you will be met by a friendly welcome. Besides excellent food in plenty and comfortable beds, you will find a warm hospitality and much happiness, mingled with good service.
But only if you are heterosexual and married.
And this, according to that bastion of paranoia, the Christian Legal Centre, has landed them deep in the soft and smelly, for they are now facing a discrimination claim brought by a gay couple who were refused a double bed.
Martyn Hall and his civil partner, Steven Preddy, from Bristol, have lodged a claim for damages, alleging sexual orientation discrimination.
The couple are claiming that the refusal to allow them to share a bed was:
Direct discrimination on the grounds of sexual orientation.
They are relying on Equality Act regulations and are claiming up to £5,000 in damages against the hotel owners, who are now facing a civil action at Bristol County Court this coming Monday.
The Christian Institute, which is assisting the Christian couple, is outraged, and has issued a statement saying:
This case is about liberty of conscience. This guesthouse is Mr and Mrs Bull’s own home. They have rights too, and they should not be forced to act against their sincerely held religious beliefs under their own roof. Their guesthouse is not the only one in Cornwall, there is plenty of room for diversity of opinion. This Christian couple are being put on trial for their beliefs. Equality laws are being used as a sword rather than a shield.
The CLC points out that the the legal fees of the homosexual couple are being paid by the Government-funded Equality and Human Rights Commission, and that the hearing:
Could set precedent on what restrictions Christian B&B and hotel owners will be allowed to include in their business terms.
Mr Bull, 70, and his 66-year-old wife say that the policy, which has been in operation since they bought the B&B in 1986, is based on their beliefs about marriage and not hostility to sexual orientation. The terms of the policy are well advertised on the internet and on all booking forms, and are applied consistently to unmarried couples, whether heterosexual or homosexual.
In August 2008 a letter was sent to the B&B by Stonewall, a homosexual lobby group, claiming that its double bed policy was illegal.
On September 19, 2008, the Bulls received correspondence from Devon and Cornwall Police stating that an allegation had been made that the B&B policy was homophobic and went against current civil legislation. The police stated that the matter had been recorded as a “non crime homophobic incident”.
In May 2010, another Christian couple, who run the Swiss B&B in Berkshire, became subject to legal action by two homosexuals after they explained to them that the guest house had a policy of not offering double beds to homosexual couples. Mike and Susanne Wilkinson said that it was “against their convictions” to let the pair share a double bed in the home where they live as husband and wife with their children.
The gormless Anthony Rollins
A rare bit of good news for the CI and the CLC is reported in today’s Daily Mail, which says that police have been ordered to pay compensation to a Christian street preacher who was hauled off in handcuffs for saying that gays will go to hell.
A judge condemned the arrest of Anthony Rollins, who quoted the King James Bible on the subject of the “effeminate” as he preached in Birmingham.
The lunatic Rollins was handcuffed and then held in a cell for nearly four hours after a passer-by dialled 999 and complained that his language was “hugely offensive”.
The ruling – which ended with West Midlands police ordered to pay more than £4,000 in damages to the 45-year-old preacher – appears to set a new landmark in the battle between the gay lobby and Christians who want to say in public that homosexual sex is wrong.
The ruling was praised by the Christian Institute, which backed Rollins’ court claim. Spokesman Mike Judge said:
Street preachers may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but they are part of our Christian heritage. Most people just walk on by and ignore it. The police have no business arresting Christians for quoting the Bible.
Hat tip: BarrieJohn (Rollins report)
The Freethinker was founded in 1881 by GW Foote, an outspoken critic of religion. After the publication of 
December 10th, 2010 at 10:14 am
I couldn’t help but notice again (See previous comments re Birdshit Green) that Rollins-in-the-aisles-laughing is toting a copy of The Thompson Chain Reference Bible – ie one of the very biggest Bibles that one can possibly get one’s hands on – hahahahahahaha!!!
December 10th, 2010 at 10:27 am
Some wonderful comments on the Mail site!
1. About time the Gay Mafia where stopped in their tracks.
2. The wheels are turning in favour of the dispossessed majority.(In your dreams!)
3. It’s about time that Christians were once again allowed to act according to their faith in their own Christian country.
And the best:
4. Good. I am sick and tired of anti-Christian bigots deliberately persecuting Christians just because of their beliefs.
I am in favour of tolerance, respect and free speech.
Christians will have to fight hard to protect their rights. Much much harder than other protected groups. (My emphases again.)
Someone call the nurse!!
December 10th, 2010 at 10:43 am
While I agree that the christian (turn-the-other-cheek) couple are completely nuts and could probably put up a good defence by pleading superstitious insanity, it is worth noting that they are not threatening to throw their guests from a cliff. Neither are they demanding that gay people should be whipped before death, starved, fired, thrown in prison, etc.
I just wonder whether, if the couple had been muslim, would they have been able to plead ‘cultural necessity’?
Come on all you devout muslims out there – prove me bigoted – invite a gay couple to spend the weekend in your home!
December 10th, 2010 at 11:20 am
I thought the whole ‘home or business’ cop-out for godbothering B&Bs had been settled once and for all with previous cases. Really does make you wonder – are the CLC just incredibly incompetent lawyers or is fighting hopeless cases ‘on principle’ with American cash just a nice little earner for barristers too shit to actually win a legal argument.
As for street preachers – we had some persistent ones over here, the kind who don’t go away with a polite ‘No thank you’. After they pursued a friend with small kids down the street, reducing his kids to tears, I suggested half-jokingly in an open letter to the Chief Constable copied to the local paper that surely threatening people with hellfire and damnation counts as aggressive begging and they should be clearing up the problem. The godbotherers took the hint.
December 10th, 2010 at 11:34 am
What, they ask to see a marriage certificate every time a couple books? Something makes me doubt it.
Is it me or does Rollins look like they found him asleep next to a pile of Special Brew tins under a bridge, and hastily shoved him into a suit?
December 10th, 2010 at 12:29 pm
Yes, and its not as if the Christian Institute would ever…
force others to act against their views by suing a company that turned away its custom,
http://www.christian.org.uk/ne.....n-ad-case/
or get the law involved over an issue of personal taste that they could easily ignore.
http://www.christiantoday.com/.....s/3175.htm
Religious fundamentalism continues to breed its own special kind of hypocrisy.
December 10th, 2010 at 1:21 pm
Stuart: That statement from The Unchristian Institute reads like something that Sir Humphrey might have come up with in “Yes, Prime Minister”:
As a result of the court action and other representations made to Google in recent months, Google has reviewed its AdWords policy to enable The Christian Institute and other religious associations to place ads on the subject of abortion in a factual and campaigning way. (My emphasis)
Anyone else spot the contradiction in terms there?
There’s worse going on in America though:
http://www.secularnewsdaily.co.....-bullying/
Be very afraid!
December 10th, 2010 at 1:58 pm
What if we have lots of judges in this country who believe in all the evil in a bible or Koran,wont they be biased in favour of their own. BBC World Service is doing a documentary on Monday ‘Cross-examining the judiciary. which should be interesting.
December 10th, 2010 at 2:19 pm
Yes, and only Christians get to use the sword–the sword of the spirit to slash and hack at the rights of others. Gays need to be constantly on the defensive. They are not to take an offensive position in asserting their rights.
Glad we cleared that up.
December 10th, 2010 at 2:34 pm
There was a time when landladies used to display notices saying “No Blacks. No Irish” which is a big fat NO-NO these days. If it’s cash in the bank in these hard times, why discriminate against anyone? (Except, maybe, the Irish) Business, after all, is business. Crazy! Providing they are not actually threatening, I see nothing wrong with ignoring any street preachers after all, Desert Death Cult preachers with their explicit placards demanding the killing of all infidels are ignored every day by our wonderful police force.
December 10th, 2010 at 3:53 pm
I would have thought the hotel would have welcomed the sinners and then they would have had the opportunity to preach the Word. What’s the point of preaching to the converted!! Paul points out that women shouldn’t preach but keep their heads covered which I notice some people at CLC aren’t doing. I like the bit where Paul compares a nagging wife to a dripping tap. Very un PC. And who was the naked man that ran away from jesus in the garden of gethsemane, the disciple Jesus most loved, perhaps?
December 10th, 2010 at 4:35 pm
Who the fuck would want to stay in that asylum anyway? If there was no compensation paid to these terribly hurt individuals would they still gripe just the same? How did it go? Sticks and stones may break my bones but words can earn me a lot of money.
December 10th, 2010 at 4:57 pm
While i agree the policy is rediculous is it really worth a court case??
I remember when my sister and her boyfriend were trying to get away for a weekend but couldn’t reserve rooms in any hotels or B&B’s because they were younger at the time, could they have used discrimination laws to defend them against this blatant ageism?? either way they just found a place that was more than happpy for them to stay a weekend and they took their business there so why couldn’t this couple or any other couple for that matter just vote with their feet and take their business elsewhere and leave the bible bashers to go their own way (and most likely out of business) instead of jumping on the compensation bandwagon.
December 10th, 2010 at 5:00 pm
I was interested in the claim that “This guesthouse is Mr and Mrs Bull’s own home. They have rights too, and they should not be forced to act against their sincerely held religious beliefs under their own roof.”
Does that mean that Pentecostals should be able to beat the devil out of their young children and Islamists cut the hands off their children if they catch them stealing – as long as they do it at home, of course, and hold such religious beliefs sincerely.
December 10th, 2010 at 5:14 pm
No wonder Mary and Joseph were turned away from the Inn. Mary was pregnant and not even married.
December 10th, 2010 at 5:32 pm
I’m with zombie-hunter on this one: it should just be the law that any establishment that wants to exclude people for no good reason should be obliged to advertise that fact on their websites and, in the case of this B&B, a big sign on the lawn with a very clear message: “We only welcome bigots here!!”.
As for the preacher, who does look like a pillock: who pays attention to the ramblings of the village-idiot? Have a laugh and be on your way; now £ 4.000,00 of tax-payers’ money is wasted.
December 10th, 2010 at 6:27 pm
@ Newspaniard
Your remark about the Irish is offensive.
December 10th, 2010 at 6:45 pm
Anyone else seen this?
December 10th, 2010 at 6:48 pm
Yes, Newspaniard, what was the point of that remark? My paternal grandfather hailed from Connemara (Roundstone), and was the nicest man you could ever have hoped to meet – easygoing, jocular, and kindhearted to a fault (literally). He also served in the Royal Navy, 1914/18, as did many other Irishmen.
December 10th, 2010 at 7:22 pm
@ barriejohn
My granfather was an Inniskilling Fusilier although by the first war they were called the 10th Irish. Many people don´t know that these Irih regiments were made up of men from the south and the north of Ireland. Not all of the Irish people were anti-British during the “Emergency”
Sorry to get off topic but anti Irish remarks really bug me.
December 10th, 2010 at 7:42 pm
“they should not be forced to act against their sincerely held religious beliefs”
Erm, who forced them to use their abode as a guesthouse? No-one. Given that they’ve made that decision, they have to take all that goes with it. Or shall we go back to the days of signs saying “No Blacks allowed”?
December 10th, 2010 at 7:56 pm
David Anderson:
(Staying OT, sorry) I read a fascinating book* about that period of Irish history a few years ago. The main focus was the Easter Rising, but it covered the whole period quite well. The author actually made a fairly good case for most of Ireland not being particularly in favour of home rule at the time, and specifically pointed to the number who served in WW1 as support. Many were against the way they were treated, yes and quite rightly, but he reckoned it was the Brit response to the rising that really set the home-rule campaign going. I find it quite odd that most Brits know more about European history than they do about a country we share much closer ties with than most on the continent.
*Sorry, it was a library book, and title and author have totally disappeared from memory.
December 10th, 2010 at 7:57 pm
Daz: Why would that priest need to waste his money on a hitman? Doesn’t he read his Bible? All he has to do is speak with God and he will zap his enemies – it’s all there in black and white!
BTW I have come across incontrovetible evidence that God is all in favour of gay sex!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0bAyvYhtSYw
December 10th, 2010 at 8:19 pm
Barriejohn:
Well that seems convincing. I just mailed the link to my uncle who keeps sending religious-type ‘forward this to 5,000 people in the next ten seconds’ crap. I await the results with baited breath…
Why is God wearing a nappy?
December 10th, 2010 at 8:20 pm
I’m not sure which side I’m on when it comes to taking these people to court. On the one hand, they have broken the law and deserve the consequences. On the other hand I can see merit in the idea of simply taking your business elsewhere and maybe making sure that anyone thinking of staying there is fully aware of their attitude. That way heterosexuals who disapprove can boycott them as well.
The stupid street preacher, on the other hand, should not have been sanctioned by the law in any way. To me free speech is extremely important and our current society often seems to be unaware how important it really is. certain kinds of incitement maybe need to be illegal but this type of guy can be seen by everyone to be an idiot. I expect that even people who agree with him find him to be an embarrassement.
December 10th, 2010 at 8:32 pm
Someone has posted this comment about Rollins elsewhere, but I obviously can’t verify his claims!
I actually met this guy once!
He was walking around the city centre looking crazy and came over to talk to me and a lesbian friend.
When he found out we were gays he looked a bit shocked and didn’t really know how to respond; almost shy.
Then he told us about a ‘gay church’ around the corner where the vicar likes to dress as a woman.
To this day i have still not found that church…
It sounds feasible to me, as these loudmouthed bigots who fulminate against “sodomy” from the safety of “the platform” often, though not always of course, turn into quivering wrecks, and backtrack furiously, when actually confronted with a gay person!
December 10th, 2010 at 9:00 pm
Daz: I well remember that when I was a Christian there were endless, pointless arguments along the lines of “Is there waste in Heaven?”: ie as the Bible seems to describe the blest enjoying life much as they do on earth (what a surprise), do they eat, drink and shit like we do? If so, who deals with the effluent? Looks as if that clip goes some way towards answering their question!
December 10th, 2010 at 9:59 pm
Getting back to the Bible, nor thieves nor the greedy nor drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. So I can only suggest a Criminal Record Check being made before booking into this Hotel.
December 10th, 2010 at 10:05 pm
Years ago my partner and I went to Cornwall and we were refused a room because there was only a double bed. We had to rent 2 rooms so we did so because as it was getting late we had no choice. So we slept in one room …and I do means slept as we had just arrived from Canada…. but they must have wondered what happened during the night. Before we left , we turned the mattress around, moved the bed a few feet, bunched up all the sheets and pillows, left the bed in such disarray but without damaging anything . We greeted them with the biggest smile in the morning and they looked at us with puzzled expressions as we left and I mentioned to them to be sure to read the Guardian in the following weeks as if there would be a write-up. Ha! Ha! If it happens again anywhere we will simply tell them to go screw themselves and take our business somewhere else.
December 10th, 2010 at 10:06 pm
Well, it is obvious that for reason of economy, two guys have shared a bed, and not butt boned each other, nor head fucked each other. Daz asks the obvious question:
“What, they ask to see a marriage certificate every time a couple books? Something makes me doubt it.”
The owners obviously applied for a business license, which obligated them to abide by civil law. I am no expert in law in the UK, but I suspect anyone engaged in commercial lodging is not allowed to turn away two guys, or two girls based upon what they think might happen during night hours.
As far as Rollins is concerned, if a law were written that gagged idiots like him, the same law could gag freethinkers. The ranting of the mindless is our best testimony.
NeoWolfe
December 10th, 2010 at 10:36 pm
Daz:
(OT again) It is amazing how little people know about the history of Anglo-Irish relations. Many people are amazed to discover that Arthur Wellesley was born in Dublin.
Was that book Ireland 1916-1923 by Michael Hodges?
Back on topic, I´ve had some funny experiences when booking hotels by telephone because my wife´s name is Terri. Of course, when you say this you can´t tell that it is written differently and I´ve been met with a few seconds pause before carrying on. I´ve never had a booking refused though.
December 11th, 2010 at 1:40 am
They say that they’re not homophobic and that they’re against all unmarried people sharing a double bed in their property – and I see it says that on their booking form – but isn’t it funny how these cases always come to light after a gay couple have been turned away/discriminated against?
I wonder how many straight, unmarried couples have been refused a double room in this particular establishment?
As someone else wondered, do they ask for marriage certificates, or are we back to the 1950s method of wearing a curtain ring on your ring finger to pose as a married couple?
I must put a good word in for Marazion here. My wife and I recently went there on holiday. It’s a beautiful little village/town, and is a great place to stay – if a little quiet.
Oh, and my Irish great-grandfather served in WW1 too, with (I think) The Royal Dublin Fusiliers. His war ended early when he was gassed in the trenches. He woke up in hospital minus all his teeth, and spent the rest of the war manning a sentry box back in Ireland.
December 11th, 2010 at 2:21 am
Although I would never turn away any unmarried adult couple, gay, st8, friends whatever….It is a B & B and it is their home…under this circumstance I would have to say, they are elderly and their beliefs are their beliefs and if it is clearly outlined on the lodging forms I guess I would just respect them to do so. Many B & B’s have rules that are not in the mainstream of the big hotel chains. There are bigger fish to fry I guess.
December 11th, 2010 at 3:08 am
Sun, the point is that when they open up their home as a public business, they are then legally obliged to follow anti-discriminatory laws, just the same as hygiene and fire-safety laws. If they post discriminatory rules in their advertising, then I’d suggest that they had broken the law before this particular couple ever set foot in the place. Their beliefs certainly are their own, but would you be so laissez-faire about it if they had refused a couple service for being black?
David Anderson:
Could’ve been. The name rings a vague bell, but I had little to do but read at that time (smashed knee), so I half-digested a lot a new info around then.
December 11th, 2010 at 9:54 am
As far as the B&B is concerned, they have to obey the law, whatever their own personal beliefs. There should not be any get outs just for religion. As for Rollins, in this case I am on his side. I don’t agree with his stupid beliefs but free speech allows him to spout them. As long as he doesn’t incite violence, he has the right to say whatever he wants.
December 11th, 2010 at 10:20 am
@David Anderson & @barriejohn You two are as bad as our Desert Death Cult “friends”: always looking for the slightest reason to be offended. Anyone with the least sense of humour would have seen my humble attempt at a joke. Having served in the Army, I am aware that there is a majority of Irish who wish Great Britain well and in large numbers live there. However, I have a sense of humour problem when those in Ulster vote for terrorists and murderers to represent them in Stormont, a tradition normally reserved for countries of the African continent.
December 11th, 2010 at 11:00 am
To be honest I think both sides have behaved immaturely in this case.
The religious couple for turning the gay couple away. What goes on in someone’s bed is none of their business.
The gay couple for making an issue out of someone else’s bigotry when it clearly states on the B+B’s website the backwards belief’s of the couple who own the place.
Both sides are crying fowl, when both sides are clearly trying to bait the other.
December 11th, 2010 at 12:58 pm
I agree that one should not waste one’s time on such idiots.
Regarding street preachers: in Switzerland, one of them was recently fined–on grounds of noise abatement, because his sound system was way too loud, and the people living there complained.
December 11th, 2010 at 8:15 pm
Newspaniard: I didn’t actually say that I was offended by your remark, not understanding it fully, but I am now!
December 11th, 2010 at 10:33 pm
Newspaniard:
It’s not as if you’d ever be deliberately offensive, is it? Rather than just saying ‘Hey, it was a joke, sorry if it didn’t read that way’, for instance. Or how about ‘republican trolls…’? That one was a hoot, too.
December 12th, 2010 at 4:54 am
Guys, sectarianism is so passe. Don’t bring me down like a complete and utter drag [/Neil from the Young Ones]
Hilarious that the Christian Institute would like to claim these nutballs as their own. Funnier still, that they’re becoming aware that their beloved religious text could be validly interpreted as hate speech. Squirm, bastards, squirm!
December 13th, 2010 at 1:08 pm
They have broken no laws – certainly not the anti-discrimination ones. They clearly state (on their booking page) that they allow neither heterosexual or homosexual couples to sleep in the same bed if they are not married. Any couple booking cannot fail to see it on the website. They are therefore treating unmarried gay and straight couples equally so cannot be had under discrimination laws. I don’t think there is a law that prohibits discrimination against the non-married…
In my opinion, that is not the way to run a B&B, but i don’t think they have fallen foul of the law.
December 14th, 2010 at 4:43 am
Bjohn said:
“NeoWolfe: You have lost me completely!”
No surprise. I have come to suspect there are many intellectual issues that lose you completely.
But the fact that you knew that Luke was the only gospel account that referred to the shepherds reveals that you are not a total fool.
The fact that you didn’t understand my post reveals that I was wrong, you are a total fool. My bad.
NeoWolfe
December 14th, 2010 at 6:55 pm
You’ve posted your reply on the wrong thread NeoWolfe, and if this were my site I’d bar you for your fucking rude and boorish comments!
December 15th, 2010 at 3:27 am
I AGREE WITH THE STREET PREACHER after all he is only telling you the TRUTH the bible states you are all SINNERS romans ch 3 v 12 & v 23 and one day you will stand before a HOLY GOD in JUDGMENT hebrews ch 9 v 27 REPENT OF YOUR SINS or pay the price in a lost eternity THE TORMENTS OF THE LAKE OF FIRE revelation ch 21 v 8 HEED THE WARNING, i believe the fool is the one who denies god and jesus psalm ch 14 v 1 jesus loved you enough to tell the truth and then die on the cross for you romans ch 5 v 8 & v12 he is the only way john ch 14 v 6 and the only name that can save YOU acts ch 4 v 12, HEAVEN OR THE FIRE YOU CHOOSE. god bless. p.s. these things arn’t said out of hate but said out of love, they are the truth of god’s word the bible. PLEASE FEEL FREE TO COMMENT.
December 15th, 2010 at 8:35 am
Is anyone moderating this site now?
December 16th, 2010 at 11:09 pm
LOVE HAS CONDITIONS REPENT OF YOUR SINS LOVE IS TRUTH, TRUTH IS LOVE, JESUS LOVED YOU ENOUGH TO TELL THE TRUTH AND THEN DIE FOR YOU AND YOUR SINS, WHERE WILL YOU SPEND YOUR ETERNITY?.
December 16th, 2010 at 11:12 pm
eternity where? good question, please explain the options, thanks.
December 17th, 2010 at 1:25 am
^Dickhead
December 19th, 2010 at 1:49 am
JUST A NOTE TO YOU ALL I HAVE FOUND MR ROLLINS PREACHING VIDEOS ON A WEB SITE CALLED http://WWW.PAFN.CO.UK YOU CAN ALSO LEAVE COMMENTS, TRY THE LINKS TO OAWITNESS & DISSCUTION FORUMS WHEN ON THE WEB SITE. REALLY INTERESTING STUFF
December 19th, 2010 at 9:39 pm
Thanks for the web links about Mr Rollins preaching & also rap video etc.. GREAT STUFF.
December 24th, 2010 at 1:52 pm
yet another street preacher wins 7,000 payout good on them keep preaching the truth, which is repent of your evil wicked sins or pay the price in the torments of the fire of HELL. Jesus died for you, his name means “HE SAVES”, question is, HAS HE SAVED YOU. Where will you spend your ETERNITY.
December 24th, 2010 at 1:55 pm
yet another street preacher wins 7,000 payout good on them keep preaching the truth, which is repent of your evil wicked sins or pay the price in the torments of the fire of HELL. Jesus died for you, his name means “HE SAVES”, question is, HAS HE SAVED YOU. Where will you spend your ETERNITY?.
December 29th, 2010 at 1:33 am
^Just shut up you fucking freak. Man…
January 4th, 2011 at 2:01 am
Why should a man f*****g shut up for telling YOU A SINNER the T R U T H, you need to wake up to the truth or pay the price in torment in the fires of HELL.
January 4th, 2011 at 2:03 am
please reply to the above if you can ?
January 4th, 2011 at 2:07 am
please reply to the above box, and heed the WARNING.
January 4th, 2011 at 2:11 am
thats right, it’s not a case of shut up, but rather WAKE UP TO THE TRUTH before it’s all too late.