A pub has come under fire for cancelling customers' bookings last minute to make way for Prince William during the Scottish Cup final.
The Cold Town House in Edinburgh had told a number of punters who had booked the venue on Saturday that they could no longer attend as "essential maintenance" was being carried out.
But the pub has since been accused of "lying" after dismayed customers found out the real reason for the cancellations was an invite-only event to host the Duke of Cambridge, 38, the Daily Record reports.
The Duke was pictured watching the final between Hibernian and St Johnstone on Saturday with key workers as part of a week-long trip to Scotland with wife Kate Middleton.
Staff pleaded that the decision was taken in the interests of "national security," but some customers were less than impressed by their response.
An email shows the bar telling patrons "circumstances outside of their control" prevented the bar from opening and offering to rebook customers for a later date.
Others told how they had been offered free cocktails and pizza on their next visit as compensation for the rapid change of plans.
But one dejected customer said she would not be booking again after the true nature of the closure was revealed.
She added: "We were lied to, I was just so disappointed.
"They could have used another excuse rather than 'essential maintenance,' they didn't even have to say the Prince was coming.
"It's just pretty shocking. I won't be booking again."
The bar has also been accused of deleting or hiding social media comments complaining about the cancellations.
The Duke has been joined by wife and Duchess of Cambridge, 39, for the visit to Scotland which included a reunion at their former university in Fife.
The couple visited a music project in the Capital on Monday and are also to host more key workers at the Palace of Holyrood house for a special drive-in screening of Disney film Cruella.
Cold Town House business development director Louise MacLean apologised to customers, but said the weekend offered a "rare opportunity" to show off the best Scottish hospitality had to offer while also thanking key workers for their sacrifices during the coronavirus pandemic.
She said: “We’re really sorry to anyone who feels inconvenienced by the temporary closure of Cold Town House on Saturday 22nd May.
“We never want to let our customers down and will always do whatever we can to avoid this ever happening.
“This was an extremely rare and proud opportunity for us to welcome The Duke of Cambridge to Cold Town House as part of his wider visit to Scotland, as well as being a great chance to showcase some of the best Scottish hospitality during one of the most challenging times for the industry.”
She added: “The Scottish emergency services deserve our gratitude for all their endeavours during the Coronavirus pandemic.
"We’re delighted to be able to donate over £1,000 to The Duke’s three charities following his visit to Cold Town House, including The Fire Fighters Charity, Police Care UK and The Ambulance Staff Charity.
“We’d like to take this opportunity to thank all our customers for their continued support and for being kind and respectful to our team and each other during this unprecedented time for the hospitality industry.
"We look forward to welcoming everyone back to Cold Town House very soon."
