A student was turned away from Henley Royal Regatta yesterday for wearing the same dress which she wore in the Royal Enclosure at Royal Ascot last month.
Lucy Mogford was forced to perform a "degrading catwalk" before a panel of officials, who then barred her from the Steward's Enclosure because her dress was deemed too short.
The 22-year-old English Literature graduate protested that she had worn the same knee-length dress at Ascot without complaint, where dress code rules have been tightened in recent years.
However, Miss Mogford was turned away as spectators sipped champagne and ate strawberries on the banks of the River Thames, as the five-day rowing event got under way.
Miss Mogford, from Ascot, Berkshire, said: "I was frogmarched in to see the Secretary of the Royal Regatta and he and a team of grey-haired matriarchs proceeded to inspect me.
"It was the most degrading thing I have ever been through and I was very angry. They said that my dress was too short. I wore this dress in the Royal Enclosure at Ascot and nobody said anything."
Miss Mogford, later walked into Henley with her friend Katherine Bellamy, 22, and bought a mid-calf-length silk dress, which did satisfy the strict dress code.
Miss Bellamy also bought a similar dress in a show of solidarity despite having been cleared to enter originally.
Guidelines for the Steward's Enclosure stipulate women must wear dresses with a hemline below the knee, or suits. Divided skirts, culottes and trousers of any kind are also forbidden.
A regatta spokesman said: "The intention is to maintain the atmosphere of an English Garden party of the Edwardian period by wearing a more traditional dress.
"It should be remembered that no-one is compelled to attend the regatta Stewards' Enclosure and those who can do so are expected to conform to the dress code that is favoured by the majority of members of this private club."
Meanwhile, with temperatures hitting 91F (32.8C), many regatta-goers dangled their feet in the river to cool off and drank jugs of Pimms.
About 30,000 people are expected to attend the regatta, which sees 468 crews from 15 different countries compete over the 1 mile and 550 yard course.
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