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‘Evacuate? Not without my pint’: Britain hails mystery boozer

A man pictured calmly taking his pint of beer with him as other people fled past him during the deadly attack in London has been cast as an unlikely hero who encapsulates British humour and defiance.

Jun 05, 2017, updated Jun 05, 2017
People flee the attack scene, including a man unwilling to relinquish his pint of beer. Photo: Sky news via AP

People flee the attack scene, including a man unwilling to relinquish his pint of beer. Photo: Sky news via AP

Dressed in a red T-shirt and sauntering casually with a friend, the drinker stood out in Sky News footage of men and women running down Borough High Street, away from the London Bridge scene of the attack that left seven people dead and 48 injured on Saturday night.

The image spread like wildfire across Twitter and British newspapers said the man, whose identity is unknown, was a symbol of defiance.

“True symbol of the British spirit as man flees terrorist attack clutching his pint,” said student Henry Slesser on Twitter.

True symbol of the British spirit as man flees terrorist attack clutching his pint. #LondonAttacks #LondonBridge https://t.co/K4IVG8CHPu

— Henry Slesser (@HenrySlesser) June 4, 2017

Others joked that it was only right that he should take his beer with him, given London’s notoriously high prices.

https://twitter.com/taxbod/status/871255328809267201

Londoners take pride in, and sometimes joke about, showing fortitude during adversity.

Tourist shops are awash with memorabilia emblazoned with “Keep calm and carry on”, a slogan drawn from a World War II poster that became popular in the last 10 years.

Why ISIS will never win. Attack just taken place but fella on right refuses to spill his pint.

Nazis, IRA tried. Didn't win. #London pic.twitter.com/kwRlgNVM4Q

— ?????? (@pearlylondon) June 4, 2017

Saturday’s attack, in which three men drove a van into pedestrians on London Bridge before stabbing people in nearby bars and restaurants, occurred five days before a parliamentary election.

British Prime Minister Theresa May said the vote would go ahead as planned on Thursday.

Residents of the northern English city Manchester also looked to their city’s culture for solace after a suicide bombing at a pop concert killed 22 people and injured 116 nearly two weeks ago, Britain’s deadliest attack in almost 12 years.

-Reuters

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