Dawn airport drinkers call out Ryanair boss on proposal to ban ‘holiday ritual’

Cerys Parnell, at the Stansted Wetherspoons on Thursday, said her early pint was a ‘symbol of unwinding’. Photograph: Sammy Gecsoyler/The Guardian

For most people, the idea of a pint with breakfast is pretty grim. But at the Wetherspoons in Stansted’s departure lounge on Thursday morning, it appeared to be the beverage of choice.

“It’s a holiday ritual,” said Dee Wood, 60, a waste policy officer, who was enjoying a pint while waiting to board her Alicante-bound morning flight. “It’s like the start of holiday,” said her friend Rachel Almond, 59, a community planner, who was treating herself to a lager. “We don’t get drunk, we just have a pint, say cheers and off we go.”