A bus driver’s alleged flatulence was so unpleasant that a colleague said she had to shower and wash her clothes after work. But despite the extraordinary details of the complaint, an employment tribunal has confirmed that the smell was not the reason Stephanie Bryan lost her job.
Bryan, who worked for Bristol-based bus operator The Big Lemon, was dismissed in January 2025 and subsequently brought disability discrimination and harassment claims against the company and a fellow driver.
The claims were rejected in August 2026. The tribunal's published decision and written reasons reveal what happened inside the bus, why the complaint escalated and, crucially, what actually led to Bryan's dismissal.
The smell that followed another driver home
The incident occurred in January 2025, when fellow driver Samantha Bingham noticed a particularly strong odour after sitting in a driver's seat previously used by Bryan.
According to the tribunal's findings, Bingham believed the smell was consistent with faecal matter, potentially caused by flatulence and soiling. This was her assessment of the odour, rather than a confirmed medical explanation of what had happened.
What followed was arguably the most extraordinary detail of the case.
When Bingham returned home, her partner reportedly asked whether she had soiled herself because of the smell. She then removed her clothing, put it in the washing machine and immediately took a shower.
The tribunal accepted Bingham's account of the incident, describing her as a credible witness whose evidence was largely undisputed by Bryan.
Bingham initially mentioned the problem to a manager before discussing it directly with Bryan the following day. Their conversation concerned flatulence, digestive issues and how particular foods can affect the body.
Bryan's response was later recorded in the notes of her dismissal meeting: "everyone needs to fart and let out gasses."
The judge found that Bryan reacted with hostility when Bingham attempted to address the issue. Bingham subsequently raised her concerns with management.
Why was Stephanie Bryan actually fired?
Despite the attention surrounding the hygiene complaint, the tribunal's judgment establishes a different explanation for Bryan's dismissal.
She had joined The Big Lemon on 30 September 2024, initially subject to a three-month probationary period. That probation was extended following a review on 4 November because of concerns about her driving standards and performance.
By the time of her second probation review on 24 January 2025, management believed she had not demonstrated sufficient improvement.
The tribunal found that her dismissal resulted from concerns about driving standards, inadequate progress during probation and difficulties in her interactions with colleagues.
The flatulence incident formed part of the discussions at her final meeting, but the judge did not find that it was the cause of her dismissal.
That distinction matters because describing Bryan as having been fired for farting gives a misleading impression of what the tribunal actually decided.
What happened to her discrimination claim?
Bryan argued that her treatment at work was connected to her disabilities, including bladder weakness and mental health conditions.
The tribunal accepted that she had disabilities protected under the Equality Act 2010. However, recognising those disabilities did not establish that the treatment she complained about was discriminatory.
Employment Judge Walters found that the smell reported by Bingham was unrelated to Bryan's bladder weakness or other disabilities. The tribunal also concluded that neither Bingham nor the relevant manager knew, or could reasonably have been expected to know, about those disabilities.
The judgment was not an unqualified endorsement of every interaction Bryan experienced at work. It found that her manager had behaved rudely and discourteously during a separate meeting in December 2024, but concluded that his conduct was unrelated to disability.
Ultimately, the tribunal dismissed both the disability discrimination and harassment claims against The Big Lemon and Bingham.
The decision was delivered on 14 August 2026, with the government's online record updated to include the written reasons on 6 October.
The resulting case contains an undeniably unusual workplace complaint, but the official judgment makes the outcome clear: Bryan's employment ended because of concerns about her probationary performance and workplace conduct, not simply because a colleague complained about flatulence.
