You’re barred mate!

I’m on the home straits of my next Radwinter novel, as yet untitled. As usual there are several different plot-lines, but there is also an on-going annoyance for Thomas Radwinter that apparently he has a double. Three very drunken drunks mistake him for a Polish man who they have had an altercation with; it’s only when Thomas protests in English that not only has he never seen them before, but he’s also not Polish, that they realise they are mistaken and all is well. Then one of the drivers his brother employs reckons he met Thomas in a club and he was absolutely wasted, when in fact he was actually at home with wife, children and a couple of friends.

Here is the next time Thomas is mistaken for a drunken Pole:

We parked by The Orange Tree and wandered, hand in hand, into town and headed down towards the old harbour which has become the place for restaurants bars and clubs. We’d already eaten and were looking for somewhere different to have a drink and watch the world go by.
“I want to dance, Thomas,” Kylie unexpectedly announced.
Once the idea of going somewhere to dance would have filled me with anxiety and nerves, but no more! I can do anything now I have Kylie!
It hadn’t really registered that it was a Friday night and everywhere was busier than usual, it just seemed a nice bustling celebratory sort of evening. Perfect! So when we stood outside a club I’d not been to before with a crowd of others as the bouncers let us in, I wasn’t thinking anything in particular except we’d go in have a couple of drinks, maybe a bit of a dance and just have a lovely very normal evening out.
It therefore came as somewhat of a shock when the big burly bloke in the black jacket with Secur-cor badges on his shoulder and chest and an earpiece stopped us.
“You’re barred mate!” he said forcefully. I glanced over his shoulder thinking he was talking to someone else.
“I’ve never been here before,” I said reigning in my indignant reply. Calm is usually best in these situations.
“Never been here before? Pull the other one! You’ve been given fair warning, now bugger off.”
This was ridiculous. Another doorman appeared and asked what the problem was, suggesting we move to one side to sort it out and let the other punters in.
I could feel Kylie beginning to fizz beside me, she has somewhat of a shorter fuse than I do but we moved aside. I was indignant and embarrassed, Kylie was bristling.
“”You’ve been given fair warnings mate, if you can’t behave yourself you can’t come in!”
I think I might have given a firm riposte because this was not just annoying but embarrassing! I’ve been so often embarrassed in my former life and I never wanted to feel like that again, ashamed and diminished.
I was gearing myself up for a bit of outrage and then walk away with as much dignity as I could summon when a third bouncer stepped out of the door and glancing over called a greeting to me.
It took me a moment to recognise him as Nicky, David Hollis ‘s big brother and when I say big I mean it. David is big but Nicky is huge.
“Tommy mate, haven’t seen you here before, how’s tricks?”
I don’t like being called Tommy by anyone other than my brothers, but on this occasion I didn’t mind one bit!
It turned out to be mistaken identity of course! It no doubt is the same scruffy Herbert who everyone keeps telling me about. The first doorman apologised sincerely and more than a little embarrassed because now he came to look at me properly he could see I wasn’t anything other than an ordinary bloke out with his wife.
“But bloody hell mate he could be your blooming twin! Couldn’t have been your very drunk brother?”
I doubted it very much, my brothers are all older and look nothing like me! I must say I was really put off going into the damned place; I felt embarrassed and humiliated even though I tried to see the funny side of it, but Kylie was really in the mood for an evening out and I can deny her nothing!
We went in and were given free entry and although I was still secretly furious, I was bemused by the fact that there was some poor bloke who looked like me!