What should have been a quiet Saturday in a picturesque Surrey village turned into sheer mayhem when dozens of travellers descended on local beauty spots—leaving a trail of disruption in their wake, including the forced closure of a peaceful countryside pub.
From Calm to Chaos in Minutes
It all unfolded in broad daylight when around 50 travellers crowded into a small village pub.
What started as a regular afternoon quickly spiraled into disorder, captured on video exclusively by MailOnline.
In the footage, a man with a beard is seen reaching over the bar, repeatedly trying to grab a bottle of alcohol as staff desperately attempt to manage the rowdy crowd.
One bartender manages to reclaim the bottle after a short struggle, only to have the man reach again.
Eventually, the staff had no choice but to move all the bottles out of reach.
But the situation didn’t end there. Another man refused to return a bottle—and instead poured its contents all over the floor before smashing it to pieces.
The overwhelmed staff member snapped, shouting, “Get out of the f***ing bar,” and quickly declared, “The bar is closed.”
“I Need to Clean Up This Mess”
With glass everywhere and the atmosphere spiraling, the pub was forced to shut down entirely.
Staff were left apologizing to stunned customers, explaining they had to clean up the mess before any sort of normal service could resume.
Surrey Hit by Traveller Convoy Mayhem
The pub wasn’t the only place affected. Earlier that same day, an estimated 100 horse-drawn carts took to the roads of Surrey, causing what locals described as “total mayhem.”
The convoy of travellers blew through red lights, collided with vehicles, and brought traffic to a standstill as they zipped through towns and villages.
Drivers were seen swerving and slamming brakes while residents were left stunned.
Some reported seeing travellers urinating in public and banging on cars, leaving families—including young children—frightened and trapped in their homes.
Police Step In with Dispersal Orders
In response to the unfolding chaos, Surrey Police issued a borough-wide dispersal order on Saturday evening, covering the entire Elmbridge area.
The order allowed police to move on any group of two or more people and remained in effect until Sunday afternoon.
Extra officers were also deployed across the borough to reassure residents and help manage the situation, especially in hotspots like Esher, Hampton Court, Molesey, and Sunbury-on-Thames.
“We’re Just a Village Pub – We Can’t Handle That”
The pub’s landlord, speaking anonymously to MailOnline, described how his staff were left shaken by the sudden flood of around 100 people.
According to him, they had only served a few drinks when the mood turned rowdy.
Before long, people were behind the bar pulling bottles off shelves, smashing them, and making the space completely unmanageable.
“This isn’t a town centre bar with bouncers and big security teams,” he said.
“We’re just a small village pub. We couldn’t cope.”
He added that the group arrived around 3 p.m., leaving horses parked on the road and even in driveways.
Within an hour, things had gotten so bad that the only option was to shut the place down.
Legal Threats Leave Pubs in a Bind
The situation is even more complex given recent legal pressure.
The same pub reportedly received a legal warning last year thre
tening a £250,000 discrimination lawsuit after refusing to serve a group of 50 travellers. The landlord said every pub in the village had received similar letters, leaving them afraid to turn people away even when safety was a concern.
“If we refuse service, we risk being sued for discrimination.
But when we do serve them, they wreck the place,” he said, clearly frustrated. “We don’t have any protection.”
Not All Venues Had Trouble
Interestingly, other pubs in the area, such as the Watermans Arms in Hersham, reportedly hosted members of the group without any incident. It sugges
ts that while the disruption was widespread, not every encounter led to conflict.
Police Continue Investigation
Chief Superintendent Aimee Ramm of North Surrey acknowledged the scale of the disruption and the alarm it caused the local community.
She confirmed that police had been tracking the group’s movements from Esher to other nearby towns and responded with road closures and increased patrols.
“Our officers focused on immediate disorder, but I want to assure residents that we are actively investigating all reports of criminal behavior,” she said.