Clarkson’s team plan to appeal the decision
Jeremy Clarkson has been ordered to shut down the cafe and restaurant on his Diddly Squat Farm, just three months after opening it up to the public.
It’s the latest development in his back-and-forth dispute with West Oxfordshire District Council (WODC) over his 1,000-acre Cotswolds farm, which has become famous following the Amazon Prime series Clarkson’s Farm.
Clarkson managed to open up his Diddly Squat Farm restaurant and cafe this summer, despite initial objection from the council.
But he has now been ordered to shut down the al-fresco eatery, over claims that he had breached planning laws.
Back in August, WODC served Clarkson a notice ordering him to make a number of changes to his diner – including removing all mobile toilets and tables used for dining.
It also ordered the farm, to stop selling products that had not been made there, or within a 16-mile radius of it, with just a few exceptions.
A statement from WODC read: “Council officers have worked with the owner and planning agents of the business, over many months, to investigate breaches in planning control, advising on how the business can be operated in a lawful way and trying to reach a solution.
“The business continues to operate outside the planning permissions granted and advice has been ignored. The activity has also had a significant impact on the local community.”
Clarkson and his team are planning to appeal the council’s order and deny any planning law breaches. They argue that the six-week period they had been given to under take the new list of orders was simply too short.
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(Amazon Prime)
The former Top Gear host’s initial plans to open the diner had been rejected by the council at the start of 2022, but he managed to open the restaurant in July anyway, thanks to a “delightful little loophole.”
Speaking to the Sun at the time, he explained: “We had planning permission turned down but we’re opening anyway.
“Everyone at Diddly Squat has spent the last three months becoming an expert in planning regulations and we’ve found a delightful little loophole.
“We’re going to sell all the stuff we produce on the farm and finally make some profit from the stuff we grow rather than run up losses.”
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