Pub landlord Roy Flynn has come up with a fighting riposte to the French ban on British beef.

Forget mad cows, he says. The real threat now is "Mad Frog Disease".

He is telling customers at The Bull Inn, in Charlbury, that as a result he is banning sales of French wine.

The landlord's battling John Bull spirit is part of a growing protest in the wake of the French government's refusal to lift its ban on British beef. Roy has announced the withdrawal of French wine from his bar and restaurant with a notice to customers.

It says: "You may have read of the late outbreak across the channel of Mad Frog Disease (MFD).

"As a result of this, we are obliged to discontinue stocking French wine at The Bull Inn - we don't want to catch what they've got, do we?

"We shall, of course, review the situation if things imporove there - but some observe they are a helpless case with no hope." Roy told the Oxford Mail it was meant to be a joke, but the gesture is a serious one.

"It's meant to be funny. The French always take themselves so seriously and, in the case of British beef, they want their gateau and eat it," says Roy.

"We want to show solidarity with British farmers. I shall not be ordering any French wine now until common sense prevails. I expect my customers will be joining me in solidarity. There's plenty of other wines to choose from, in any case." The supermarket chain Budgens has announced it is withdrawing French fruit from its stores, including its Oxford shops in Banbury Road and Botley Road.

Other supermarket operators, not yet operating an active ban, report consumer protest with a drop in sales of French goods.

Story date: Friday 22 October

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