Rita Ora had quite the costly night out.
The British pop star found herself in hot water when she celebrated her 30th birthday with over 30 people while the U.K. is in lockdown due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. The singer and her guests, including Cara and Poppy Delevingne, reality star Vas Morgan and Ora’s sister, Elena, spent the evening partying at the Casa Cruz restaurant in Notting Hill, West London.
Before the bash, a government spokesperson made it clear that “Everyone must continue to follow the rules, or we risk losing control of this virus again.” The Met Police explained, “Police were called at 9.10 p.m. on Saturday to reports of a potential breach of COVID regulations in W11.”
Defying the orders, Ora was determined not to let COVID-19 ruin her birthday A source told The Sun that “Rita and her sister came to the restaurant first, all dolled up and clearly looking forward to a good night. There were a number of guests, all dressed up very glamorously, and everyone entered the building through the back, with security watching the front to make sure no one else went in. It went on until the early hours.”
Word quickly got out and Ora found herself dragged on social for her irresponsible behavior. The backlash was so swift that it forced her to issue a formal apology.
“Hello all, I attended a small gathering with some friends to celebrate my 30th birthday,” she wrote in a statement. “It was a spur of the moment decision made with the misguided view that we were coming out of lockdown and this would be OK … I’m deeply sorry for breaking the rules and in turn understand that this puts people at risk. Given the restrictions, I realize how irresponsible these actions were and I take full responsibility.”
“I feel particularly embarrassed knowing first-hand how hard people have worked to combat this terrible illness and being fully aware of the sacrifices that people and businesses have made to help keep us all safe. Even though this won’t make it right, I want to sincerely apologize,” the statement concluded.
Going an extra step to show her remorse, the pop star offered to pay a $13,399 (£10,000) fine after she and her famous friends were caught breaking the rules. Meanwhile, Nicholas Fallows, the sole director of Casa Cruz denied he knew about the party and that the restaurant was “owned by shareholders.”
Ora has hardly been the only celebrity to be breaking lockdown pandemic rules. Cardi B came under fire recently when she hosted a 37-person Thanksgiving and bragged about it on social media. The rapper later issued an apology writing, “Sorry my bad wasn’t trying to make nobody feel bad. I just had my family in my home for the first time and it felt so good & uplifted me. I spent soo much money getting every1 tested but it felt worth it. I wasn’t trying to offend no1.”
Kendall Jenner was also criticized for throwing a costume party in Los Angeles on Halloween that was jam packed with celebs not wearing face masks or socially distancing.
