Bar Defends Choice To Stream Live Footage Into Pub From Its Toilet

The boss of a bar in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, has defended the divisive choice to stream live footage from the toilets into the pub itself.

A patron of Showtime, which is located on Zetland Street just opposite the University of Huddersfield, recently expressed concern about ‘alarming’ footage being broadcast to the whole pub from both the Gents and Ladies’ toilets.

The screens in question have been placed above the toilet entrances, and can be watched by all those enjoying a pint in the popular boozer.

Personally, I feel that this is a severe breach of privacy, and everyone that I have spoken to since witnessing this is of the same opinion and cannot believe that it is allowed to happen.

However, boss Ian Snowball, who runs Showtime alongside his son Adam, has defended the use of the cameras, explaining that such measures have been brought in as a way of clamping down on ‘drug dealing and drug taking’.

Snowball told the Huddersfield Examiner that ‘as a venue operator you can then elect to either bury your head in the sand or do something about it’, adding:

We are a proactive venue so meet challenges like this head-on. We are also looking to attract families with children and during the covid era, we were obliged to manage the toilets to ensure that they did not become overcrowded.

The CCTV system provides a safety net for the young and vulnerable, in addition to working towards compliance with covid legislation and safety.

Snowball claimed that thanks to this unusual system, staff have ‘quickly found drug dealers and the occasional male going into the ladies’. Furthermore, on each of these occasions, they have been able to catch and permanently ban culprits ‘with the use of our facial recognition system’.

He added that he was ‘immensely proud of our safety and security systems’, emphasising that ‘most of our guests also appreciate and respect the way we run our venue in regards to safety’.

His son, Adam, added that the CCTV system can only be accessed by himself, the premises supervisor and data controller, and that footage is provided to ‘the relevant authorities as and when requested’.