A Northumberland retiree has vowed never to return to the Glendale Show after waiting for more than two hours in traffic before turning round and returning home.
Peter Postgate had bought his wife Linda tickets to the Glendale Show for her birthday and the couple had intended to travel from their home in Fenrother to visit the show. The show was returning to the Wooler Showfiield for the first time since 2019, and an estimated 12,000 people passed through its gates for one of the biggest events in the north Northumberland social calendar.
However, Peter and Linda only got past Longframlington, 20 miles away, before being hit by a huge traffic jam. Peter claims that once enough was enough, he turned around and passed "almost four miles" of traffic on his way back towards the A1.
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Peter said: "We left at half ten and we got through Longframlington and about half a mile down the road we met traffic. Until half twelve we just crawled around the road, while traffic ahead of us was turning round and leaving the queue.
"We sat there for two hours and checked through our phones to see what was going on but we couldn't find anything. Eventually we just gave up and came home, we never got to the show."
Peter and Linda moved to Fenrother from Wallsend just before the Coronavirus pandemic, and now that restrictions have been lifted, visiting the Glendale Show was part of them getting to know the area better. However, Peter says that though he has previously visited Wooler and enjoyed it, he won't visit the Glendale Show again.
He continued: "Glendale was a chance to see what's going on close by us, so we were looking forward to going there. Unfortunately, we just had to return home."
He has since been in contact with the show's organisers in the hope of getting a refund of the £25 he paid for the two tickets, but he claims that they have shown "no empathy for those who were stuck in traffic." He added: "I've been in contact with them but they're just not interested and I was somewhat incensed regarding the lack of empathy with those getting to the show.
"We bought our tickets online and paid £25 but we also wasted the day and the petrol to get there. According to their emails, they're not interested in giving refunds."
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The traffic to the Glendale Show was caused by a car fire 200 metres from the entrance of the car park, which blocked access to the main road and the event itself. The car belonged to William Mole, who had travelled to the show from Amble, who says his 13 year old Volkswagen Polo "just burst into flames."
William said: "I was sitting in a slow moving queue and the car just burst into flames so I got it off the road as quickly as I could and just got out. These things happen, it's just lucky that no-one was hurt."
And he says the situation could have been much worse had it not been for the stewards. He continued: "I know there were complaints and I caused most of the traffic jam - I understand the frustration but I didn't want my car to catch fire!
"The team of stewards stayed calm and sorted out everything as quick as they could, they brought a tractor down with a water bowser and more or less put the car out before the fire brigade got there. If they hadn't gotten there with the water, there's a chance the trees could have caught fire which would have been an absolute disaster.
"They did a great job of handling the situation and I can't thank them enough."
As shown in the pictures, William's car is a write off. However he says that spectators were probably more shocked than he was.
He continued: "I conceded the car was going to burn out when I looked under the bonnet and there was a small fire, so I got a few things out and had to stand back and watch it burn basically. But cars can be replaced and me and my passenger got out okay."
William has already received a pay out from his insurance and is going car shopping on his next day off. And it didn't stop him from enjoying the show, having been excited for its return as he's visited for the last decade.
Despite the fire and traffic, the show's organisers hailed the show a "huge success." There were performances from Atkinson Action Horses stunt team and an the furthest appearance north yet for Aldabra giant tortoises.
Ian Murray, chairman of the Glendale Agricultural Society, said: "We sorry that a major traffic incident on the public road 200 meters from our car park entrance caused problems for people arriving by car to Glendale Show on Bank Holiday Monday. This was caused by a vehicle fire which effectively blocked the public highway and main access road into the event during the peak arrival time for traffic.
"Emergency services were quick to attend, and there were thankfully no casualties. As a consequence of this incident the road was blocked for over 40 minutes, which resulted in considerable tailbacks and delays on the A697 and the smaller roads leading to the main car park.
"We responded quickly by opening a second emergency car park, and many vehicles were able to gain quicker access to the showfield as a result. The situation of parking this year was not helped by the loss of our north car park, as going forward the field is to be used as part of the fish pass project managed by the Tweed Forum, which will see major work on the adjacent river to remove weirs and manage flooding.
We will certainly be reviewing parking plans and contingencies for next year’s show and would like to thank everyone involved for their good humour, patience, and understanding. In spite of this incident, the 2022 Glendale Show was a huge success, and it was great to see the crowds return after an absence of 2 years."
Did you get hit by queues as you travelled to the Glendale Show? Let us know!
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