Chris O’Dowd Tweets About Three-Month-Old Son's Airport Drama

Chris O’Dowd ain’t a happy chappy.

The IT Crowd star has posted a sarcastic tweet about his three-month-old son’s treatment at Gatwick airport, after he was frisked and his milk bottle was binned – instead of tasted, as is often the case.

“Thanks Gatwick security! Some might think body-searching a baby and binning his bottle was over zealous and weird, but not me! #ScaryBaby,” the comical actor wrote.

Chris, who welcomed his son Art with wife Dawn O’Porter at the start of the year, isn’t the only celebrity parent to publically rant about his baby’s treatment at an airport or on a flight.

Former Charmed actress Alyssa Milano recently posted a series of furious tweets after her expressed breast milk was confiscated at Heathrow airport.

The mum of two spent hours on a flight pumping milk only to have it taken away when she landed in London; presumably to transfer to a connecting flight.

And Simon Cowell tweeted his annoyance at a fellow passenger who wasn’t best pleased with his baby son Eric’s behaviour on a flight.

But of course it’s not just famous parents who have had bad experiences flying with their children.

Chris’ tweet prompted a barrage of angry parents to share similar stories of their experience with airport security protocol.

“At least they didn’t make you drink his formula to prove it wasn’t explosive. Heathrow did that to me,” tweeted one use in response.

“Just plain dumb. My 10-year-old nephew got to keep his bottle of water, why can’t a baby keep its bottle?” another user wrote.

Another user confessed that her nine-month-old daughter was made to have a retina scan and even had to remove her baby shoes. But then again, every airport has different rules and regulations that all passengers have to comply with – no matter their age.

Anyone with children will know that travelling abroad becomes something of a mission.

It’s no longer a case of booking a flight, packing your things and turning up at the right time for boarding, it becomes a whole drawn-out process wherein you’re organizing someone else’s life as well as your own – as our new mummy blogger has documented well.

But should celebrity parents, with their million or so followers, share their frustrations at national security protocols and other passengers with fans? It’s hardly helpful to other parents and seems to be veering on an abuse of power.

Yahoo Parenting UK chatted to one mum about Chris’ tweet, who admitted to being ‘annoyed’ by the tweet. “Not that I agree with searching a baby etc, but I would prefer to know that thorough searches are happening before we get on planes and I find it annoying that some tweets about their annoyance over it,” she confessed.

“I just think it’s a bit irresponsible of him with so many followers to make a joke of it.”

As Heathrow airport explained when tweeted by Alyssa, she wasn’t flying with her child and so had to adhere to the standard 100ml liquid on-board flight rule. They even helpfully provided the actress with more information on the subject.

And while most of the responses to Chris’ tweet were supporting him, a handful of users did express their concern at what would happen if baby bottle’s weren’t tested or thrown away.

“What happens if they allow someone on the plane with a bottle and it does contain explosives?” wrote one user.

Another commented, “It’s not a private jet. I think the rest of the plane would prefer they did these checks than not.”

[Celebrity Mum Alyssa Milano Furious After Having Breast Milk Confiscated By Heathrow Airport]

[Simon Cowell’s Baby Son Angers Passenger On Long-Haul Flight – And Simon Isn’t Happy]