A SMALL engagement party almost came to an abrupt end when guests were forced to evacuate the building after an unexploded bomb was discovered in the nearby river.
Tabitha Wilkinson and her friends were enjoying a glass of wine at Browns on Quay Street to celebrate the engagement of their friend Katie Kelly, when the staff started evacuating their guests.
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An unexploded artillery shell from the First World War was pulled out of the river by magnet fishers forcing South Quay to be cordoned off.
Mrs Wilkinson, aged 36, said: "We got together for a small engagement party and the to-be bride recently had a baby, so it was a double celebration.
"We came to Browns for a nice glass of wine."
However, police started to arrive almost as soon as the wine had been poured on Wednesday (December 28) telling customers they had to leave immediately for their safety.
The area had been cordoned off till 7.20pm and people living close by were also evacuated from the area.
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Mrs Wilkinson, who had travelled from Cheltenham, said she noticed one staff member on their phone, looking worried which led her to believe something could be wrong.
"He probably knew what had happened and was nervous about telling everyone to leave.
"When you are told there is a bomb, you don't really think it is real.
"And then we started to see the police turning up.
"We were very worried when we were told to evacuate Browns sharpish.
"When you're told there is a bomb, you don't believe it."
It left the group wondering where to go for their celebrations as they hastily made their way out of the restaurant.
Luckily, another city bar let them decamp and even allowed them to bring in food from the other venue.
"It was a shame we didn't get our evening in Browns, but they packed our food and we went to Bottles.
"The bride was okay about it, you couldn't write it could you"?
Mrs Wilkinson said: "Bottles was the best place to go, they let us eat our own food there.
"We had a panic because we had a pushchair with us, so we were like - we need to find somewhere and Bottles was the best."
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