Bob and Linda Gates were turned down for roles at Blickling Hall but when Mr Gates emailed under a false name he was told there were vacanciesThe National Trust has been accused of “blacklisting” elderly volunteers who refused to wear gay pride badges at a country house. Volunteers who left Felbrigg Hall in Norfolk after the trust insisted that they wear the badges and lanyards say they have been blocked from helping at a another country house despite the trust saying it needed more volunteers. Bob Gates, 75, and his wife, Linda, 70, had been room guides at the hall for 14 years before the recent gay pride event led to a mass exodus of volunteers. The retired couple resigned after the trust insisted that volunteers wear the rainbow-coloured symbols in support of gay pride or be removed from public-facing roles. They also accused the trust of publicly outing Robert Wyndham…

Source: The Times September 13, 2017 23:03 UTC