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Hotel swaps the Bible for – 'Fifty Shades of Grey'?

A hotel in the United Kingdom has taken Bibles out of its rooms and replaced it with E L James' erotic novel 'Fifty Shades of Grey.'

The manager of the British hotel that replaced Bibles with copies of erotic novel "Fifty Shades of Grey" defended the switch saying, “The Gideon Bible is full of references to sex and violence, although it’s written using more formal language. So James’s book is easier to read.”
  • By Molly Driscoll Staff Writer

People were taken aback by an electronic Bible coming to hotel rooms? Wait until they hear about one establishment’s innovation – swapping out Bibles for copies of the runaway E L James erotic bestseller “Fifty Shades of Grey.”

The Damson Dene Hotel in Crosthwaite in the United Kingdom decided to put copies of “Fifty Shades of Grey” in their rooms rather than the Bible because of the popularity of the book.

“I thought it would be a special treat for our guests to find it in their bedside cabinet, and that includes the men, too,” Wayne Bartholomew, the hotel manager, told the Westmorland Gazette. “They are as desperate to get their hands on a copy as the women.”

Guests will still be able to obtain a copy of the Bible at reception, Bartholomew said.

He said those who object to the swap may want to look more closely at the text of the Bible.

“The Gideon Bible is full of references to sex and violence, although it’s written using more formal language,” Bartholomew said. “So James’s book is easier to read.”

But a local priest, the Reverend Michael Woodcock, said he didn’t approve of the switch.

“It is a great shame that Bibles have been removed from rooms and very inappropriate to have been replaced by an explicit erotic novel,” Woodcock told the Westmorland Gazette.

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