‘No Ladies’. They were two small words that ignited an impassioned stand for women’s rights – and left an indelible mark on Aberdeen’s social history.
It’s 50 years to the day that a courageous group of women defied a sexist sign barring them from The Grill bar in Aberdeen’s Union Street.
The incident was described as a ‘flashpoint’ in the women’s liberation movement, but one that was indicative of a wider societal problem.
In the 1970s, women faced daily sexism – from the unconscious sexism, to the very much intended, unwanted advances from men in pubs and workplaces.
So, a sign banning women from a pub went unquestioned.
The Grill was male-only stronghold
The sign went up in 1925 when John Innes took over the bar to “cater for students and professional men”.
In the decades that followed, thousands upon thousands of women passed The Grill, not daring to cross the threshold of the male-only stronghold.
That was until April 19 1973, when a 22-year-old female union official arrived in Aberdeen for a conference.
Jacquie Blair was the only female union shop steward at a woolen mill in Greenock in the early 1970s.
The male stewards assumed she was the tea lady.
But when it came to taking a stand, Jacquie was only just getting started.
Equality was top of trade union talks
In April 1973, the Scottish Trade Union Congress was held at the Music Hall in Aberdeen.
Jacquie attended, and on her way from the bus to the hall to meet fellow delegates, she passed The Grill.
To her utter disbelief, she noticed a sign on the door saying ‘No Ladies’.
It was infuriating, but also ironic, because tackling discrimination against women was top of the conference agenda.
Jacquie explained how events unfolded on that historic day in Aberdeen, in the BBC series The Women Who Changed Modern Britain.
She said: “I said at the round table, we’re talking about equality here and equal pay, and there’s a pub across the street who don’t even serve women.
“Then that kind of rippled around the room.”
Word quickly spread that Jacquie and a group of men and women had decided to go to The Grill for a drink at the end of the day.
‘Equality a reality if women are courageous and men are fair’
One of those delegates was George Robertson, the then Scottish organiser of the General, Municipal and Boilermakers’ Union.
George was there to give a speech on a resolution which congratulated a Labour Party report on discrimination against women.
One of the few female delegates in attendance pointed out that there was a degree of hypocrisy there, given only 21 of 500 attendees were women.
She said: “For years women have suffered from this hypothetical myth of promises of equality.
“But it can be a reality if women are courageous enough and you men are fair enough.”
Although quoted in the Evening Express, she was not named.
While rather appallingly, another female attendee was referred to in the report as “an attractive delegate”.
The women stormed across Union Street
But during his address – having heard Jacquie’s plan – George mentioned that he’d spent his lunch hour in The Grill.
He then “jolted his male colleagues” by offering to “stand his hand” for women at the bar.
George said: “If there are any women willing to go there at five o’clock tonight and ask for service I will be willing to support them.
“There is a little sign on the door which says ‘No Ladies’ and that is the sort of thing this motion is trying to stop.”
As the conference drew to a close, The Grill was just opening.
Riled by injustice, the women stormed across Union Street to the bar flanked by male counterparts.
‘The men were quite shocked’
On the stroke of 5 o’clock when proprietor Eddie Watson opened up, he was greeted by a “monstrous regiment” of women six-deep.
Taking up battle stations, there was a spontaneous chorus of “We Shall Not Be Moved” followed by boos and catcalls as Eddie said “sorry, no ladies”.
As he attempted to close the doors again, the women advanced and within seconds the pub was packed to the gunnels.
Jacquie said: “I remember some of the men’s faces when we walked in, and the owner of the pub, they were quite shocked.”
Jacquie got to the front of the bar, but the staff wouldn’t serve her, only men.
Instead, the other male shop stewards and delegates from the conference bought the women drinks.
‘No Ladies’ sign snatched during the protest at The Grill
Jacquie added: “It was still quite good-natured, but the owner asked us to leave and I just said ‘I’m not leaving’, and they phoned the police.
“It was more than just getting a drink in a pub, there was a bigger picture because women were getting treated like second-class citizens.
“We just wanted equality.”
During the charge, the ‘No Ladies’ sign had been snatched from the door and was passed around victorious delegates like a trophy.
When four policemen turned up and called “drink up, ladies!”, the women retorted “not until we’ve finished our drinks”.
The female delegates were given enough time to finish their drinks before being ushered back onto Union Street.
But Pat Smart, a union official from Bathgate, made a defiant last stand and was the last woman to be forced from the bar after repeated requests from the police to “finish your pint”.
‘Remaining bastion of male dominance in Aberdeen fell’
Proprietor Eddie insisted the ‘No Ladies’ rule had “nothing to do with discrimination” on The Grill’s part.
He said: “We have no women’s toilets and so far as I know if we served a woman we would be breaking the law.”
The incident made headlines up and down the country.
But regular punters at The Grill had no immediate cause for concern.
It would be another two years before the Sex Discrimination Act stopped women being barred from pubs based entirely on their gender.
But The Grill didn’t install female toilets until 1998.
In a-tongue-in-cheek report the night after the protest, the Press and Journal described how “one of the few remaining bastions of male dominance in Aberdeen fell” in a “temporary victory in the sex war”.
It may have been one drink, but the short-lived protest represented a significant shift in the fight for equality – and a historic moment for Aberdeen.
- To mark the protest’s 50th anniversary, the Aberdeen Trades Union Council is unveiling a picture frame containing the now iconic photographs from the protest at The Grill, 213 Union Street at 6pm tonight, April 19 2023.
Conversation