A hen party descended into chaos after a fight broke out after a woman allegedly jumped the queue in the train station toilets.
Bride-to-be Dionne Pearson had been celebrating in Newcastle city centre when Nadia Rhodes jumped the queue, and tensions flared between the pair.
Newcastle Magistrates’ Court was shown CCTV which showed Rhodes’ partner, Lee Moore, enter the toilets shortly after when a fight then spilt on the platform.
Five members of the hen party, Shauna Metcalfe, Tia Metcalfe, Michelle Wingfield, Sophie Wingfield-Herron and Charley Wingfield-Herron, began punching and grabbing hair in front of children and families on the platform.
The judge described the incident as ‘unsavoury’ and ‘very unpleasant’. It was eventually broken up by police officers.
Pearson, 30, of Holby Garth, County Durham, Shauna Metcalfe, 25, of Weatherhill Way, Durham, Tia Metcalfe, 22, of Durham City, Michelle Wingfield, 43, Meadowfield, Sophie Wingfield-Herron, 22, of Newton Aycliffe, and Charley Wingfield-Herron, 24, of Gateshead, all pleaded guilty to using threatening, abusive, or insulting words or behaviour to cause fear or provoke violence.
Rhodes and Moore also pleaded guilty to the same offences during the fight on August 12, 2023.
Prosecutor Jonathan Stirland told the court: ‘Someone (Rhodes) appears to have jumped the queue and it’s caused a disagreement amongst the people waiting to use the cubicles.
‘One of Miss Rhodes’s friends, Lee Moore, comes into the female toilets and things have descended into a fairly unpleasant and unsavoury public disorder. It’s a busy Central Station venue.’
Michael Crowe, defending all six of the hen party, said the group ‘acted in self-defence’ to protect one another, but all agreed their behaviour had gone beyond that.
Mr Crowe said: ‘Charley Wingfield-Herron and Michelle Wingfield were not actually in the toilets, they became involved after. It’s quite clear from the CCTV that the violence that took place was provoked. When everyone came out of the toilets, there was a bit of chaos on the platform and it was difficult to decipher who had done what.’
None of the hen do had past convictions and many of them were married with children.
‘They all want to apologise for becoming involved. There were elements of significant provocation. They didn’t go out looking for trouble,’ Mr Crowe added.
Rhodes and Moore also said the other side was to blame and they acted in self-defence.
District Judge Paul Currer fined Pearson and the two Metcalfes £500 each and ordered them each to pay £85 costs and a £200 victim surcharge.
The rest were fined £300 each and must pay a £120 victim surcharge and £85 costs.
The judge said: ‘I don’t know what happened in the toilets and it’s irrelevant. I do know that, once you spilled out, you all behaved in a way, which you ought not to have done. Each of you lost your temper and used violence, whether that was punching, striking blows or grabbing people by the hair.
‘It was unnecessary and caused the prolonging of an unsavoury incident when children were present. It was a very, very unpleasant melee and it doesn’t do any credit to any of you.
‘You all lost your cool and reacted extremely badly and violently when this incident occurred.’
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