Three teenage boys have today admitted targeting a kissing same-sex couple on the top deck of a London bus by subjected them to abuse and pelting them with coins.

Melania Ramirez and Christine Hannigan were taking the N31 bus home from a date in central London when the boys moved from the back seats to “surround” them.

The couple, who had been “overtly affectionate towards each other”, say the boys demanded that they kiss and engage in sexual activity for their entertainment, and claim they were abused when they refused to put on a “sideshow”.

Highbury Corner youth court was played CCTV footage of the nine-minute incident, captured inside the bus but devoid of any sound.

One of the boys is seen to be throwing coins at the two women in the incident, which ended with a scuffle on the back seats of the bus and a confrontation as the teenagers fled.

Both Ms Ramirez and Ms Hannigan were left with injuries to their faces and bloodied clothes, in a picture that attracted worldwide attention as it was claimed they had fallen victim to homophobic attack.

The boys, aged 17, 16, and 15, had been due to face trial today, with Ms Hannigan and Ms Ramirez set to give evidence about the incident on May 30.

However the teens pleaded guilty to public order offences, while one admitted stealing Ms Hannigan’s handbag as he left the bus.

Charges were dropped against a second 17-year-old boy who also faced public order act offences.

After seeing footage of the incident, District Judge Susan Williams said: “This is two women out together for the evening, they were behaving in an overtly affectionate fashion towards each other.

“The group of young men at the back of the bus thought this was all an enormous joke and came down like the tide washing in.

“They clustered, crowded round them, like it was some sort of sideshow. They seemed to think it was some sort of joke and behaved inappropriately.”

She branded their behaviour “adolescent”, adding: “I would hope in this day and age we could tolerate others and not carry on in the way that they did”.

The lawyer for the 17-year-old boy, David Wood, said he accepts it was “adolescent behaviour” but argued: “What it is not is an offence which has demonstrated, either before or during, any hostility based on sexual orientation”.

A hearing is now due to take place for that boy tomorrow, to determine whether his behaviour was fuelled by hostility to the women based on their sexual orientation and he should face a stiffer sentence as a result.

Judge Williams told the court she does not consider the incident to be a “hate crime” but said the fact it was a same-sex couple appeared to be the trigger for the incident.

A previous court hearing was told the group of boys got on to the bus in Camden at around 2am, and Ms Ramirez and Ms Hannigan joined them on the top deck around 15 minutes later.

The two women were kissing as the boys moved forward from the back seats, and Ms Ramirez is seen on the footage talking calmly to the boys during the incident.

It culminated in Ms Hannigan moving towards the boys, ending in a scuffle at the back of the bus. One of the boys is then caught on camera stealing her unguarded handbag before all of the teenagers left the bus.

None of the defendants have been identified due to their age.

The 16-year-old youth, from Wandsworth, pleaded guilty to the theft of Ms Hannigan’s handbag, handling stolen goods relating to her £300 mobile phone, and two charges public order offences of using threatening or abusive words or behaviour to cause harassment, alarm, or distress.

He will be sentenced on December 19 at Wimbledon youth court.

The 15-year-old boy, from Kensington and Chelsea, admitted handling Ms Ramirez’s stolen bank card and two charges of using threatening, abusive, or insulting words or behaviour to cause harassment, alarm, or distress.

He is due to be sentenced on December 23 at the same court.

The 17-year-old boy, from Kensington and Chelsea, admitted one charge of using threatening, abusive, or insulting words of behaviour to cause harassment, alarm, or distress to Ms Hannigan.

He will return to court tomorrow for a hearing over whether his actions were homophobic.