A BIZARRE outpouring on Tripadvisor by entrepreneur Howard Spooner has led to the sacking of barmaid Rosie Lampard.

Nine years ago her husband Nick Lampard trained a 100-1 winner Only Dreams for Mr Spooner and it became the inspiration for the name of the Outside Chance Pub in Manton near Marlborough where Rosie worked.

But now the dream has ended in a nightmare breakdown in relationships between Mr Spooner and the Lampards. Trouble started when a customer at the pub left a bad review on Tripadvisor and claimed they had received terrible service.

Mr Spooner and his wife Lucy replied to apologise and said the staff member would be sacked. A second reviewer said she was horrified at the Spooners' response and wrote: "Free lunch, great but a knee-jerk public sacking?"

This caused the Spooners to respond again saying: "The particular member of staff had been trained for nine years, yet failed to be able to be civil to customers consistently attracting constant complains on numerous occasions."

But this week Mrs Lampard denied that she was moody with customers and said that when she was first told not to return to the pub after a showdown with the manager she expected Mr Spooner to contact her and it would all blow over.

She said: "I have worked there for nine years. I understand that Tripadvisor reviews are important and would have been happy to speak to Howard about the reviews but it all got out of hand. It is a very sad ending to everything."

Mr Lampard also got caught up in the crossfire of the disagreement and was told by Mr Spooner that he had to leave the stables owned by him.

Mrs Lampard said: "I felt terrible for Nick as it meant he lost his licence to train."

But this week Mr Spooner said that over the years he had done everything possible to help the Lampards. He said: "In the end I had no choice but to sack Rosie. I gave her every opportunity to explain about the original Tripadvisor review. There had been many other complaints."

He said that regulars at the pub had backed his decision but Mrs Lampard said others were upset. One that contacted the Gazette said: "I think Howard's reaction was bizarre."

Mr Spooner originally took over the pub formerly known as The Oddfellows Arms with millionaire Guy Sangster in 2008. The nightclub owner said at the time he wanted to buy it after having a bad experience in the pub. He was given a poor reception as he was told dogs were not welcome, his children had to stay at a particular table and his boots were too muddy.

Former champion jockey A P McCoy was also an investor in the pub but Mr Spooner said the jockey, who retired in 2015, is no longer a shareholder. Guy Sangster has also given up his shareholding.

Mr and Mrs Spooner have now also taken over The Who'd A Thought It pub in nearby Lockeridge.