to be a bit gobsmacked that a taxi driver wouldn't let DP in his cab at 6.30 this evening because he was carrying a bottle of wine????

[ginhag]

Apparently DP might have decided to bottle the cabbie

His cab, his rules.

It's awful that a man doing a valuable job even has to think about such dangers.

Bugger for your partner that he couldn't get a cab, of course. But that the cabbie took a look at the bottle and that was his first thought is really sad.

Who the hell would waste wine by closhing a cabbie over the head with it?

Was he holding it by the neck, upside down?

No, DP had left work, and bought a bottle of wine from the supermarket next to the cab rank. Was in no way pissed or strange of appearance.

It was fine, as the taxi driver behind was happy to take him. Of course a taxi driver can make their own rules but it a bit sad that it would be his first thought on seeing someone holding a bottle of wine (well, bubbles actually... He knew I really fancied a glass as I am feeling shit at the mo, he only bought it because of me!)

Lynette

Blimey - what about brollies and stuff?? If your dp had had the wine in a bag the driver would have been none the wiser. Does the driver normally search people's bags? I wonder if he was Sikh?

Or alcohol against religion?

It's a bit odd - but maybe he's been bottled in the past and just can't get past it. I wouldn't be a cabbie for all the tea in china!

YANBU to be gobsmacked by it though :)

It wasn't a race issue. The driver said that it was because DP may try and bottle him. Which was sad, and made DP feel like the guy had him labelled as a thug, which actually upset him.

Does your DH look a bit thug like? Has he had a No1 recently?

Tell him if he's bought you flowers, and wine this wouldn't have happened.

I agree he probably had history. I still find it sad. Especially with a sober person in the early evening. Pissed up at closing time or something maybe, but DP was just trying to get home to bath DS and read his stories (and yes I know the driver wouldn't know that)

I'm glad the general verdict is I'm not being unreasonable to be gobsmacked...that was my question, rather than whether the cabbie was BU.

And no DP doesn't look like a thug! He's lovely.

Although maybe the tattoo on his forehead is a bit much for some

actually, cabbies can't make their own rules. at least in London, cabs must take a passenger pretty much wherever they want to go -- the cab-rank principle, which was later applied to barristers also.

Does it say ?

It is really sad for the cabbie that he feels like this and quite sad that if he's still driving feeling like this, he probably doesn't have any other option :(

Slhilly - that might be true - but I would support their right not to accept any passenger they felt threatened by, for any reason. The law wont help them when they're bleeding to death in their cab...

So say it was a lone female looking for a safe ride home. Completely sober, taking a bottle of wine she won on a tombola home.

What then?

I think the cabbie overreacted, but, as others say, it is his right who he has in his cab.

(LynetteScavo - initially misinterpreted "has he had a number 1 recently". Wondered why his toilet habits were relevant...)

hf - why should my opinion change?

But you wouldn't bottle someone with a full bottle of wine anyway

you could whack them with it

but to bottle them would be rather more involved and the cabbie would probably have time to make his escape

very peculiar situation, very peculiar cabbie

Why didn't the cabbie just offer to take care of the bottle ?

Are you sure there weasn't something else ?

its all bollocks and buggeration

Cumfy, yes I am absolutely sure there was nothing else. Cabbie was very clear to DP. He had no interest in looking after the bottle, was just convinced that he may possibly be hit over the head by it.

To be honest I'm not sure what else you think there could be... I've already stated DP wasn't drunk, looks entirely 'normal',was carrying a bottle of bubbly and there was no race/religion thing going on. All I can add is that he wasn't behaving like an aggressor, was just, well... Getting in a cab.

I was joking about the tattoo btw. So that wasn't the 'something else' either.

You sure he didn't want to go south of the river?

Ginhag

Since taking care of the bottle is a very simple solution, it seems natural to speculate why this option was not utilised.

Twirlymum gives an excellent hypothesis.

I think Twirlymum may have a point...... At one point (pre recession) it was so bad I used to get in and sit down before I told them where I lived!

It cuts both ways though.....I have had many a discounted (ie rounded down) cab fare home from fellow Sarf Londoners.