You can't smoke that fake cigarette in here! (From Echo)
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You can't smoke that fake cigarette in here!
6:00pm Wednesday 4th March 2009 in
A PENSIONER was told to leave a bingo hall for smoking...a fake cigarette.
Helen Skinner, 70, was ticked off for puffing on her electronic cigarette during a night out at the Rio Bingo Hall in Canvey.
Despite assuring the manager the device was not a real cigarette, she was still ordered to either put it away or leave.
Mrs Skinner of Kings Park, Canvey, said: “It was very embarrassing. I was made to feel like I was being antisocial.
“I’ve only been using the electronic cigarette for a week and it’s really been helping me. This was the first time I’d tried to use it in public.
“I kept trying to explain that it wasn’t a real cigarette, but the manager just kept saying, you can’t smoke in here. But I wasn’t smoking! I would never try smoking in a public place now, we all know the rules. I ended up just leaving as I was so annoyed. It ruined my night.”
Mrs Skinner says using the device has helped her cut down her 30-a-day habit to just two or three.
She said: “It’s already helped me a lot.
“I’m trying to give up, but it’s really hard, that’s why I need to be able to use the electronic cigarette when I go out.”
Mrs Skinner, who has smoked all her adult life, bought the £39 aid from a stall at Basildon Market.
She added: “I didn’t even know they existed until I saw them. For hardcore smokers like me they are a godsend.”
Since the smoking ban came in last year, there has been a boom in the sale of electronic cigarettes.
They use replaceable cartridges which satisfy the cravings of smokers by providing shots of nicotine. However, they do not contain the harmful carcinogens or tar found in a traditional tobacco cigarette.
They have become increasingly popular as they are not covered by the smoking ban and are allowed in public places under the Health Act of 2006 – although some airlines do not allow passengers to use them.
Anne Tabony, manager of the Rio Bingo Club based in Furtherwick Road, said: “I did ask the lady to ‘smoke’ her device outside as I thought it was in the best interests of the club.
“Although it wasn’t a real cigarette, it looked as though it was and I did not want other people thinking we were allowing a customer to blatantly smoke inside the club.”
Comments(43)
evilc
says...
6:34pm Wed 4 Mar 09
bingosupermarket
says...
8:55pm Wed 4 Mar 09
vangebasildon wrote:This person was not asked to leave she was simply asked to smoke it in the smoking area outside. Bingo managers face many challenges in running a bingo club and to start determining whether people are smoking for real or pretending is going to make things even more difficult. What happens when some people are allowed to smoke these cigarettes and somebody new comes in and thinks we allow smoking to go on, before you know it we end up being prosecuted and lose the license putting everybody's enjoyment of the club in jeapordy. The club has a purpose built smoking shelter adjacent to the club for them to enjoy real or fake cigarettes and most of the bingo customers supported the stance we had taken as to allow it would be unworkable and unmanageable.
Fair comment l feel from the manager.
SARFENDMAN
says...
9:05pm Wed 4 Mar 09
PS
Didnt we used to have these joke cigarettes back in the 1950's that were filled with white powder? Blow and end up in detention.
gwyn237
says...
9:20am Thu 5 Mar 09
chas
says...
9:55am Thu 5 Mar 09
Belinda-1
says...
10:14am Thu 5 Mar 09
Nitro
says...
10:38am Thu 5 Mar 09
I can not understand why Pubcos, bingo operators, tobacconists that are due to be hit as hard as pubs are not fighting for there businesses and smoking customers.
Smokers can really make the difference by boycottts, the main boycott should be not to vote for Labour who are totally responsible for the smoking fiasco.
andy:)
says...
10:55am Thu 5 Mar 09
Sid66
says...
11:07am Thu 5 Mar 09
Many pubs and bingo halls actually sell these devices in order to encourage smokers to feel comfortable in their establishments whilst complying with the law. Since the smoking ban thousands of businesses have closed due to this heavy handed legislation. This manager should have thanked this lady for making a point that could actuallky benefit his business, stupid man!
dastardly
says...
11:10am Thu 5 Mar 09
Besides, the point here is that e-cigarettes are legal - they only emit steam, which the last time I looked even ASH admitted was harmless. What's next - asking people to go outside if they have a white pen in their mouth that vaguely looks like a cigarette? The Ban has caused one thing for sure - a rise in petty intolerance. See the article in today's press about a driver being pulled over for "laughing at the wheel" as it could be illegal, for further proof of that. Besides, smokers ARE ignoring these places - a third of Bingo Halls have closed since the Ban came in. If they're all run by idiots like this manager then good riddance. I hope he knows how to fill in a P45.
renesw
says...
4:17pm Thu 5 Mar 09
This lady was not smoking. There is no smoke whatsoever involved, merely a harmless, odourless vapour which has been checked by the World Health Organisation
The manageress in question was in the wrong. These cigarettes are perfectly legal in any environment, but of course for her to have backed down would have made her look as ridiculous as she is. Her excuse that it would encourage other customers to smoke was pathetic. Can she not give them credit for being unable to read and understand "No Smoking" signs?
To Mrs Tabony I would say, "Get a life dear. Peoply pay good money for enjoyment, not insult and embarrassment. At least have the grace to admit that you were in the wrong and apologise to Mrs Skinner."
To Mrs Skinner, I would say, "Puff away. Spend all that lovely money you are saving at some other Bingo Hall. Make the most of it because it's a safe bet that it won't be too long before the government, in it's wisdom, will find some pathetic piffling excuse to ban these as well.
trell
says...
5:11pm Thu 5 Mar 09
For this to have been published in the Echo, though, I get the feeling that Helen Skinner was probably asked nicely by the manager to not smoke, became indignant, and decided to make a mountain out of a molehill....
...but I think the final fault is with Emma Palmer, the Echo journalist who is trying to spin this rather childish tale into one worthy of a news report. Really, why focus on the side of the 'aggrieved' when she was asked to respect the reasonable requests of a manager?
Finally, to all those who are saying 'well, it's not a real cigarette, innit?' - It is accepted that anyone using a replica pistol in a robbery will get the same sentence to someone using a real pistol. - Maybe it's not as severe an example between a real cig & fake cig, but ultimately, it comes down to the discretion of the manager, and if Mrs. Skinner can't accept that, then she should not frequent bingo halls.
4King_Ace
says...
5:43pm Thu 5 Mar 09
chas
says...
6:08pm Thu 5 Mar 09
BJO
says...
8:41pm Thu 5 Mar 09
Well done the Echo for highlighting the paranoia that exists regarding smoking. This lady had a 'pretend' cigarette for God's sake !! The gestapo minded Anne Tabony asked the lady not to 'smoke' her device. It doesn't get 'smoked' you stupid woman. It uses the same delivery method as an asthma pump...VAPOUR.. Will you be telling people that you medicinal pumps to leave the premises ? This 'manager' needs sacking for being so thick and rude. I am ashamed to be a resident of Essex.
Ivanna Goodhump
says...
11:25am Fri 6 Mar 09
its me again
says...
12:36pm Fri 6 Mar 09
also if this woman can not play a few games of bingo without needeing a cig she should get help
chas
says...
12:58pm Fri 6 Mar 09
trell
says...
1:25pm Fri 6 Mar 09
It is just an example. If faced with a replica item, the police would treat it as real, for several reasons, including the elimination of chance of risk to others.
In the same way, a manager of, for example, a bingo hall, would (and should) treat a replica cigarette as real, for exactly the same reasons.
Go on, keep trying to take things out of context if you want.
Incidentally, I am a smoker, but I do think that this whole news report is a waste of time, and has only been brought to light because of the huffing of a lady who doesn't like to admit she's wrong.
Why couldn't she just chew some gum, or eat a stick of celery instead? What is the whole point of fake cigarettes?
chas
says...
1:50pm Fri 6 Mar 09
Nannyknowsbest
says...
5:45pm Fri 6 Mar 09
helend
says...
10:29pm Fri 6 Mar 09
I boycott not only venues, but refuse to donate to certain charities now and refuse to purchase goods from businesses that support the ban.
Also, as a result of the ban, I no longer have to fork out as much for clothes, hairdressers, make-up, shoes, taxis, entrance fees, hand-bags etc, so the high street also suffers.
Multiply that by the many others who are doing this, and there's a lot of money that could be spent to aid our crippled economy that is being with-held.
Never mind though, the MPs and highly funded lobby groups aren't affected, so it doesn't really matter, does it?
David from New Mills
says...
5:15pm Sat 7 Mar 09
If helend is so determined to boycott all those businesses that "support" smoking restrictions, she is presumably restricted to making all her food and clothing purchases from Wigan's open air market stalls, tho' not sure if these supply tobacco and alcohol, and walking everywhere to avoid public transport.
Unclear as to where the savings in clothing, hairdos and handbags arise, unless she's succumbed to being an uncombed couch potato in her slippers and dressing gown?
gwyn237
says...
10:48pm Sat 7 Mar 09
helend
says...
11:40am Sun 8 Mar 09
The government, businesses, and the high street have seen a lot less of my money since this ridiculous ban. Who said our country wasn't run on tobacco eh?
Amend (not repeal) the ban, and I'll be out spending again like many, many others. In the meantime, like I say, I'll pick and choose. Why on earth should I support a country that openly encourages people to denormalise millions of citizens and treat them like lepers? No thank-you!
Hope my reduced spending isn't affecting too many anti-smokers as we dip further into recession.
You may have your opinion, but I have mine. I'll keep my money in my pocket.
David from New Mills
says...
1:35pm Sun 8 Mar 09
Just pacing all the F2S stalwarts, if that's o.k.
Simple answer to question-zero zilch.
Perhaps g237 would care to resubmit it in relation to Big Pharma, HMG, Scottish Executive, local authorities, or any other body?
David from New Mills
says...
1:55pm Sun 8 Mar 09
Ho!Ho!Ho!
I'll soon be enjoying my shopping experience in all those smoke free emporia and pubs.
This country does not run on tobacco.
Smoking is not normal, being purely a minority addiction.
This fat cat unaffected by helen's spending habits, so she is welcome to keep her money in her "hand-bags".
helend
says...
2:18pm Sun 8 Mar 09
What an awful mess this nanny government has made of our country. Never mind, it's the turn of the nannies and their followers to be in the minority now isn't it? Not before time either. They're going down very heavily now in the polls aren't they?
Glad that your favourite shops and pubs haven't been affected as yet David, you're still fine to be in the 'I'm Alright Jack' category at the moment.
By the way David - we'll have to agree to disagree. Smoking is perfectly normal, perfectly legal and enjoyed by millions throughout the country.
You have your opinion and I have mine. You have people who agree with you and I have people who agree with me. I respect your opinion, even though I don't agree with it, why can't this be reciprocated?
David from New Mills
says...
7:43pm Sun 8 Mar 09
I seem to recognise the "Am I bothered" line as emanating from Sharon Tate,(and so injudiciously aped by Tony Blair in the hope of a few votes), even although I'm no aficionada of the former person's style of humour.
If helen is pinning her hopes for an easing of smoking restrictions on a change of government, she may be sadly disappointed.
All my shops and pubs, favourite or otherwise, are indeed pleasantly free of smoke.
Any "I'm all right Jack" outlook that I convey, perhaps reflects a similar deep seated attitude for decades on the part of the smoker and the militant trade unionist, both of whom have been somewhat sidelined in recent years.
Smoking may well be legal and "enjoyed" by millions, but it is neither normal nor the norm.
I respect helen's right to hold an opinion and to express it, but not necessarily the opinion itself.
Anway, "Am I bovvered?"
trell
says...
7:57pm Sun 8 Mar 09
chas wrote:Two things, Chas:
trell. There is NO, I repeat NO risk to you or anybody else from that lady using an ecig. The point of an ecig is to help quit smoking. As the lady says, it has helped her to reduce her smoking.
Firstly, a fake gun can't cause harm either. The point I've been making, and that you seem to overlook is the perception of using a certain item in a certain environment, irrespective of the actual damage it can cause. - In the same way that a fake pistol shouldn't be brought out in banks, a fake cigarette should not be used in establishments which may cause controversy.
Secondly, it is also a question of attitudes. I was not there, so I do not have a first-hand opinion, but judjing from the professional & measured response of the manageress that she was acting in the best interest of all the patrons of the bingo hall.
Based on the fact that Mrs. Skinner has decided to voice her anguish & disgust to the Echo, rather than just eat a stick of celery or opt for nicotine gum, I'm betting that when she said "I kept trying to explain", what she really meant was "I decided to be stubborn & disagree on principle with the decisions of"
It's commendable that Mrs. Skinner is using the eCig to give up, but the bottom line is that the manager of an establishment has made a fair decision based on the wellbeing of all clients/guests, and the patron must respect that decision. It's the same as a pub landlord deciding when not to serve anymore alcohol to someone who has been drinking.
Regardless of whatever you think about ecigs, Chas, Right or wrong, the manageress' decision was valid, and Mrs Skinner should accept that.
helend
says...
9:24pm Sun 8 Mar 09
The use of the little word 'may' has an extremely large meaning - one that I am more than familiar with much of the anti-smoking proaganda.
Again, I believe we will have to differ in our opinion. Smoking is a normal activity for millions. Just because the majority of people don't smoke, doesn't make it not normal.
One could say that about any activity not undertaken by the majority. Rather a sweeping statement there I believe.
David from New Mills
says...
10:26pm Sun 8 Mar 09
Helen may well be sadly disappointed, as she waits expectantly, praying to be proved right in the coming years.
Sticking a cigarette in your mouth and setting light to it may have been the norm in past years, but it was never anything other than an abnormal practice. Think of the Walter Raleigh comic sketch, by, I think it was Bob Newhart.
The majority don't hop on one leg, whistling the national anthem and juggling six eggs simultaneouly. If helen wishes to indulge in such a practice, feeling it's not abnormal, then "why should I bovver"? Let her just try not to fall over as her enthusiasm sweeps her along.
helend
says...
12:28am Mon 9 Mar 09
They've created a sad, sad Britain this government, haven't they?
I'm just so glad that the government nannies and their followers (as you have proven to be) are now in the minority.
Enjoy your last 12 months feeling as though you 'have power'. Many Labour MPs aren't as confident as you - bless their 'cotton socks'.
I personally can't wait for the celebrations of liberty at the next GE. Seeing as I'm in the majority, I think there'll be a lot celebrating with me as well.
David from New Mills
says...
9:52am Mon 9 Mar 09
And that was?
Helen is being very presumptious if she feels that I am a "follower" of the present government, based simply on my welcoming the provisions of the Health Act of 2006, passed by parliament on the basis of a free vote.
I shall continue to enjoy my next twelve months and many more to come, appreciating the freedom of smoke free public places.
Helen may be surprised to learn that I too, along with many others,
look forward to the demise of this present tired government.
Perhaps in her dream world, she feels that the Publican Party, if they're still extant, will form the next government, with Eddie Douthwaite as P.M. perhaps, and immediately allow smoking in all enclosed public places, so that helen can have the deathstyle she longs for, hairdos, new wardrobe, "hand-bags" and all?
Dream on, sweetie!
streetboy75
says...
10:01am Mon 9 Mar 09
David from New Mills
says...
10:48am Mon 9 Mar 09
"ant there more inportant things".
Wot mean this, mate?
helend
says...
12:32pm Mon 9 Mar 09
I'm following the countries where the bans have started to be amended. Who would have thought it - smoking bans being amended - yes, history repeating itself.
It's good that we agree on one thing though I suppose - to get rid of this nanny government at the next GE.
helend
says...
12:34pm Mon 9 Mar 09
No doubt we'll meet up again on another one soon.
bingosupermarket
says...
2:17pm Mon 9 Mar 09
.com will be launched with a new forum debating this issue in 3 weeks time and your comments will be much appreciated.
handyanphil
says...
6:26pm Mon 9 Mar 09
If anti smokers wish to cause themselves less embarassment in the future I suggest they take the time to learn the difference between a real cigarette and one of these e-cigs.
As stated before, I don't smoke but what is happening in this country is diabolical. Smokers are vilified for smoking and this lady has been vilified for NOT smoking.
To all you non smoking killjots I say only this, " get a life" there are more problems ahead than the e-cig!
David from New Mills
says...
7:36pm Mon 9 Mar 09
Helen is welcome to live in hope, just like F2S, and seek a fresh encounter.
Schabbs
says...
6:12pm Wed 18 Mar 09
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vangebasildon says...
6:07pm Wed 4 Mar 09