Overview
- Two visibly Jewish guests at the Travelodge Manor House in north London found the words “Free Palestine” on their in-room TVs after checking in on Wednesday, and footage of the screen was shared online by local patrol group Shomrim.
- The guests said a front-desk employee treated them with hostility and that the incident left the group feeling unsafe, with one person staying awake through the night.
- Travelodge CEO Jo Boydell apologised unreservedly, said the company reported the matter to police and opened an urgent internal investigation to find out how the message appeared.
- Investigators are focusing on a staff-configurable welcome-message feature on hotel TVs as a possible route for the message to be displayed, and community groups have demanded the responsible employee be identified and sacked.
- The case has heightened concern for the local Jewish community given recent attacks and comes as Travelodge faces extra reputational scrutiny after past operational failures at the chain.