Jeremy Clarkson fans have expressed anger over the local council’s decision not to grant his Diddly Squat farm an extension.
Local residents have penned letters of support to the planning ombudsman in their droves. An investigation conducted by The Telegraph found that three in five of the 65 responses supported Clarkson, with 40% opposed.
West Oxfordshire District Council rejected plans to create 60 new visitor parking spaces in 2022 for fear of it becoming a “tourist attraction” with a “harmful impact” on the locality.
Clarkson’s proposals would see the number of spaces increase from 10 to 70, including four disabled spaces and cycle parking. New entry and exit points would also be constructed, alongside a storage compound.
In December, Clarkson launched an official appeal against the decision, labelling the on-site parking “vital” as he “expects people to continue arriving in great numbers.” In the letter, he asked: “What’s the point of an AONB if people can’t come and look at it?”
Diddly Squat is documented in TV show Clarkson’s Farm, with two more seasons expected to contribute to the increase in footfall.
Local residents previously complained of traffic chaos since the series first aired, with Chadlington Parish Council recording an estimated 400 vehicles parking on fields around the site on one particularly busy day.
However, Diddly Squat isn’t proving as unpopular as previously thought. John Townsend, a former parish councillor and lifelong resident of the locality, told The Telegraph: "My wife and I fully support the appeal and have to question whether many of the objections are based on a personal dislike of the owner.”
Elsewhere, current Chadlington parish councillor Ann Gate remarked that local residents were “quietly supportive” and “ad hominem attacks on both sides has distorted” the judgments made by planning officials.
In the initial planning application for extra parking in April 2022, 58% of the 73 responses were in support of the farm.
Opened by Jeremy Clarkson and his partner Lisa Hogan in 2020, Diddly Squat Farm is a self-described “emporium of edible delights.” It is located in Chipping Norton, affectionately known as ‘chippy’ by locals, on the edge of the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.
