Pirates of the Caribbean star Johnny Depp is said to have splashed thousands and left a "large tip" for star-struck waiting staff at a curry house down south.
The 58-year-old has been supporting Jeff Beck, 77, on tour, shocking the public by popping into local pubs, but it was on a surprise appearance in Birmingham that the pair racked up a whopping £50,000 bill on an Indian feast.
The musical duo are said to have enjoyed a selection of dishes as well as cocktails and Rosé champagne at the restaurant, according to the Daily Mail.
The visit follows the actor's bombshell win against his ex-wife Amber Heard in a defamation lawsuit which came to a close in the United States last week.
Depp was awarded £8.2million in damages after a jury found Amber's 2018 article in the Washington Post about her experiences as a survivor of domestic abuse to be defamatory.
Amber won on one count of her counter-suit, successfully arguing Johnny’s press agent defamed her by claiming her allegations were “an abuse hoax” aimed at capitalising on the #MeToo movement.
The jury awarded her £1.5 million in damages.
The actor was not in court for the jury findings on Wednesday, and has instead been touring with musician Jeff Beck appearing at a host of UK dates.
Jeff Beck is playing a concert at Symphony Hall in Birmingham on Monday night – and it is widely thought the Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas star will once again be appearing on stage.
Mo Hussain, operations director at Varanasi, told the PA news agency Depp’s security team had called to ask if they could take a look around the venue on Sunday afternoon, before booking the entire 300-cover restaurant out that evening.
The duo arrived with about two dozen members of their tour crew, from 7.30pm, enjoying a three-course dinner of chicken tikka shashlik, vegetable samosas and a king prawn starter.
Mo said once Johnny had finished his meal he spent time “hugging, kissing and having photos taken” with members of staff, and friends and family members of the restaurant bosses.
“He was very humble, and he stayed to talk and greet everyone,” added Mo.
“He met my three daughters and they made him give them a few one-liners from his movies.
“He did ‘you’re weird’ from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.”
Mo added: “He was really good with the children, but there was about 60 of us there and he didn’t leave one person without hugging or kissing them, or shaking their hands.
“It’s a once-in-a-lifetime moment, really.
“Some of the staff were asking about the recent court case, but he was just smiling – it was a smile of relief.”
He added: “They spent a lot of money, it’s a big venue to hire out, but they never even looked at the bill.
“He gave a large tip.”
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