Just when we thought it couldn’t get any odder.
In case you haven’t heard yet, Dublin’s The White Moose Café has gone viral this week after being accused of “exposing” a blogger who had asked for a free stay.
UK-based Elle Darby, 22, got in contact with the owner of the White Moose Café, Paul Stenson, to ask about a “possible collaboration”.
Telling him that she had over 87,000 YouTube subscribers and a further 76,000 Instagram followers, she said:
“My partner and I are planning to come to Dublin for an early Valentines Day weekend.
“I came across your stunning hotel and would love to feature you in my YouTube videos/dedicated Instagram stories/posts to bring traffic to your hotel and recommend others to book up in return for free accommodation.”
The hotel owner went on to post Darby’s message online – while blocking out her contact information and name – and (to put it simply) shut down her request.
But some social media users were quickly able to pick up her social media handles from the screenshot and Darby was bombarded with negative comments.
She later took to YouTube to address the controversy directly, insisting she had gotten in contact with Stenson with “nothing but the purest intentions”.
In the video, she claimed people who are over the age of 30 have “no idea how social media works these days” and got visibly emotional as she defended herself.
And now the whole saga has taken another turn, after The White Moose Cafe joked about sending the blogger an invoice… for more than €5 million.
The page, which was posted to the White Moose Café’s social media profiles on Saturday, said that she was being charged €4,300,000 for “the provision of features in 114 articles across 20 countries with a potential reach of 450 million people”.
He also added V.A.T at 23%, charging Elle in total €5,289,000.
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