HUNDREDS OF PEOPLE have gathered outside a London pub for a mass kiss-in protest over the pub’s ejection of two men for kissing each other.

James Bull and Jonathan Williams say they were on a date at the John Snow pub in Soho on Wednesday when they were asked to leave by a woman claiming to be the landlady, the Guardian reports.

They deny they were behaving unseemly in the bar and say a customer complained to them when they began kissing. After refusing that person’s request for them to stop, they say the woman in staff uniform approached and told them to leave because they “weren’t allowed to do that”.

Bull made a police complaint after the incident and Williams tweeted:

Seven years in London & I’ve never been made to feel bad for bring [sic] gay. 45 min ago the John Snow pub, W1F had me removed for kissing a date.

When news of the incident broke online, both Bull and Williams received huge support through Facebook and Twitter. A Facebook campaign to hold a kiss-in outside the pub asks people to come along for a “massive same-sex snogathon” from 7pm until 10pm.

The BBC reports that the pub had shut its doors early, about three hours ahead of the planned protest. The pub licence holder has refused to comment on Wednesday’s incident and policy say they are continuing their inquiries.