A bingo hall manager’s move to Fife got off to a bad start when he was caught drink driving.
Gerard Chisholm had been drinking at a restaurant and, instead of walking the short distance back to his hotel, decided to take the car.
A call was made by someone at the restaurant who thought the customer may be over the limit and that proved to be the case when he was stopped and breathalysed.
He was found to be almost two times over the limit.
Chisholm, 56, of Arlington Avenue, Blackpool, appeared in the dock at Dunfermline Sheriff Court.
He admitted that on February 9 in Whimbrel Place, Fife Leisure Park, he drove after consuming excess alcohol. His reading was 42 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath, the limit being 22 microgrammes.
Depute fiscal Azrah Yousaf said that at 11pm police received a phone call from a restaurant saying someone had just left there and may be driving under the influence of alcohol.
Police stopped the car and could smell alcohol coming from the driver.
Defence solicitor Elaine Buist said her client was currently in the process of moving from Blackpool having taken up a new job in Fife.
She added: “He’s staying at the Premier Inn which is only about 600 yards from the restaurant. He appreciates just how ridiculous the situation is. It would have taken less than five minutes to walk there and he’s extremely embarrassed about the whole matter.
“His family will be moving to this area soon.”
Sheriff Pino di Emidio fined Chisholm £500 and banned him from driving for a year.