Police break up fight at charity bash

Police have had to break up a fight that started when rugby fans started heckling comic Max Boyce at a charity dinner.

English fans started taunting the Welsh comic when he made an after-dinner speech at the £300-a-ticket bash at London's Grosvenor House hotel on Wednesday.

Welsh fans at the dinner intervened, and things spiralled out of control. Hotel security staff were unable to cope, and called for police help, according to the Evening Standard.

A female guest was taken to hospital by ambulance with head wounds, and the night was called off before a planned charity auction.

The dinner, attended by some of rugby's biggest stars, was to raise money for former England player Alastair Hignell, who has multiple sclerosis.

Published: 26 Sep 2003