Jeremy Clarkson's farm branded a 'danger and a menace' by angry locals
Jeremy Clarkson's Diddly Squat farm has been branded a “menace” and a “danger” by angry locals.
Villagers have once again clashed with the former Top Gear presenter at a planning meeting amid his attempts to extend the car park at his farm shop.
A hearing was held this week relating to Clarkson's appeal against the refusal by the council to grant planning permission for the extension with locals turning up to voice their views about the impact of the business on the Oxfordshire countryside.
Angry locals clashed at the meeting with villager Hilary Moore claiming the tourists who visited the farm - which sits between Chadlington and Chipping Norton - came to "show off their cars" and block roads.
The Chadlington resident told the meeting: "I don't think the people who come are particularly respectful.
Jeremy Clarkson faces Meghan backlash as 3 female stars won't go on Millionaire
"They come in their cars with their souped-up engines - they are motorheads, they are not here to support our little farm shop.
Jeremy Clarkson's farm has been branded a 'menace' and a 'danger' by angry locals (Amazon Prime Video)"We have been disrupted by them in the two-and-a-half years since it's been open. It's ruining our area.
"There are farm shops all over the country that they could support instead of all converging here at the weekends.
"It's a total menace. It's a danger."
Meanwhile Joanna Cecil, a florist at the farm “since the very beginning”, came to its defence.
Ms Cecil told the meeting the farm attracted visitors who wanted to support local farming.
"People go to the shop because it sells local," she said.
"This is what Jeremy loves: he invests in the farm, he invests in local people.
"He is making a success of it for local people, for our children, and for our future."
Jeremy Clarkson saw car parking plans for Diddly Squat Farm refused by the local authority (Amazon Prime Video)The hearing comes as Jeremy is appealing against West Oxfordshire District Council's decision to deny him an extension to his car park despite the council's own tourism manager previously saying it would help improve safety and prevent problems.
Jeremy Clarkson suggests price of food should be doubled as it's 'too cheap'
He is also challenging the council’s move to shut down his restaurant on the same plot of land because he allegedly did not have planning permission when he opened it in July last year.
The council shut it down in August saying that the "nature, scale and siting" of the restaurant on his farm was "incompatible with its open countryside location" in the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in its enforcement notice at the time.
They ordered Jeremy to close the eatery along with anything selling food that would be consumed on the farm, and remove the picnic tables, chairs, dining tables, parasols and mobile toilets from the site.
He is also challenging the council’s move to shut down his restaurant on the same plot of landClarkson’s planning representatives have appealed the decisions, saying he is not in breach of planning laws and claiming that the council's decision is "excessive".
In their appeal against the enforcement notice, Jeremy’s representatives at John Phillips Planning Consultancy wrote that existing planning permission gives the right to use the farm as a restaurant, and there has been no "material change" to the land.
But the council’s lawyers have disagreed, saying the "level of use of the site" has "significantly increased" due to the restaurant. They added that the land was "now used for a mix of purposes which go well beyond that of a farm shop".
Council planners have said that these reasons mean that the current planning permission "could never apply" to the new enterprises on the site.
The Who Wants To Be A Millionaire host is expecting a final decision on the planning appeal in the coming weeks.
Clarkson’s planning representatives have appealed the decisions (jeremyclarkson1/Instagram)Meanwhile, tensions reached boiling point this week as the local council revealed that death threats had been made against two people who opposed Jeremy’s Diddly Squat farm expansions.
West Oxfordshire District Council told on Monday that it is aware of malicious communications against an unnamed councillor and a member of the public who spoke out against the 62-year-old’s expansion.
The threats came after Season 2 of Clarkson’s Farm via Amazon Studios aired on February 10, the council said.
It said they put extra security measures in place for Tuesday’s hearing as a result of the threats.
And on Wednesday it was revealed that Clarkson’s 16-year-old farm workers are wearing body cameras after receiving abuse from villagers.
Read more similar news:
Comments:
comments powered by Disqus
