CROWE BAFFLED BY PUB BAN REPORTS

Actor RUSSELL CROWE has shot down reports he has been banned from his local pub in England, dismissing suggestions he and the landlord have fallen out.

The Gladiator star is currently shooting Robin Hood in Windlesham, Surrey in south-east England and has been enjoying drinks at The Brickmakers pub - just miles from the set.

His drinking days at the local establishment appeared to be over when weekend reports (02Aug09) alleged Crowe had been banned for good after refusing to leave the venue at closing time.

An unidentified duty manager at The Brickmakers allegedly confirmed the news, telling a British tabloid, “It’s not the only place he has been barred from. There are at least two others (pubs) I know of; one here in Windlesham and another in Sunningdale.”

But Crowe is baffled by reports of his supposedly rowdy behaviour, because he only ever visits the pub with his young sons, Charlie, five, and Tennyson, three.

His manager Grant Vandenberg says, “The only truth to the whole thing is that he has been (to the pub). He has been there four or five times with his kids. There is a playground in the back.”