A drink driver attracted cops in vehicle behind him by beeping horn at Hucknall McDonald’s

Officers were behind Stephen Franklin’s vehicle in a queue at the Ashgate Road eaterie, in Hucknall, at 12.30am, on June 19, when he started behaving in a disorderly manner, said prosecutor Sanjay Jerath.

They noticed he smelled of alcohol and a breath test revealed he had 80 mcgs of alcohol when the legal limit is 35 mcgs.

Tim Haines, mitigating, said Franklin, who has no previous convictions, was "deeply ashamed."

He said the defendant has a "high-pressure job" as a payroll manager for a chilled foods firm in Leicester, responsible for paying 7,000 employees close to £1million every week.

He was put under additional pressure because of Covid-19 and the furlough scheme, but his bosses gave him positive references.

Franklin "sought to let his hair down" by drinking four or five pints with friends while watching football.

"He would ordinarily walk home and for the first time ever he drove to the McDonald's drive-through," said Mr Haines.

"To his credit he doesn't come to court bleating about the implications of what he's done and accepts it comes with the territory."

Franklin, 34, of Askew Road, Linby, admitted drink driving when he appeared at Mansfield Magistrates Court, on Thursday.

He was banned for 17 months but was offered a rehabilitation course for drink drivers which will reduce the disqualification by 129 days if he completes it by June 2022.

He was fined £700, with a surcharge of £70 and court costs of £85.

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