A Westhoughton couple claim they have been banned from a private club in the town - because they went for a night out at another club.

Keith and Shirley Gregory say they were astonished when they were told they were barred from the Greenfields Private Members Club after going with four friends to an ex servicemen's club on Saturday night.

They said club owner Bill Richards told them they were being banned because they were taking custom away from his club.

But Keith and Shirley, who have been members at Greenfields for several years, said they were stunned by the ban and said their friends did not normally go in the club on Saturdays.

Now the couple say they will be forced to rearrange their Silver Wedding celebration which was booked at the club for September.

Keith told the Evening News: "Bill approached me last week and said I was taking customers away from the club and warned me that if carried on going elsewhere I would be barred.

"He says I'm taking people away from the club but it's their own choice and I'm not forcing them to go. The people we went with on Saturday don't normally go in the Greenfields on a Saturday anyway.

"On Sunday lunchtime I got a phone call from Bill and he told me that my wife and me were barred. I couldn't believe it.

"People should have freedom of choice but there is nothing I can do about it because it is his own club and there is no-one we can appeal to."

Keith, of Ox Lea Grove, Westhoughton added: "What annoys me is that when the club was changing ownership I fought to help Bill get it and they have asked me to shout the bingo a couple of times." The Wigan Road building used to be a Labour Club.

"The daft thing is he will be losing our Silver Wedding party when we would have brought a lot of people to the club who would have spent a lot of money."

Mr Richards said he did not want to comment at this stage.

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