Jeremy Clarkson's neighbours hit out at him after council ordered Diddly Squat restaurant and cafe to close
Jeremy Clarkson has got locals up in arms after vowing to fight to keep his beloved Diddly Squat Farm café and restaurant open for business.
The Top Gear host, 62, is currently in hot water with West Oxfordshire District Council (WODC) who said that he has 'ignored' their advice to shut down amid accusations that he does not have the correct planning permission.
Despite being ordered to remove a number of features such as toilets, Clarkson has refused to comply with the demands.
Advert
Instead, he has made it clear that he's planning to appeal the council's decision to tell him to close the café and restaurant - as well as ceasing the trade of products not made on the farm or within 16 miles.
But locals in Chadlington, Oxfordshire are not happy that the popular TV personality has defied the council and said the farm is causing a lot of disruption.
Angela Smith, 60, said that the farm has resulted in 'idiots' driving through the area at high speeds and potentially putting lives at risk.
"I've been here for 50 odd years. I just know that on days he's open I don't drive down that road," the 60-year-old said.
"I've never been up there myself, but I drove past a few times when they first opened and saw all the idiots queuing up in front of the gate."
Meanwhile, resident Mary Anderson, 51, said that the business has turned the small down into a 'tourist attraction' and said the infrastructure isn't in place to support it.
She said: "He's turned this small road into a main road. I don't know if things will be better now; the shop caused enough problems from people trying to sightsee.
"OK, if the infrastructure had been put in place to accommodate it - like parking and wider roads, that would not be so bad. But it's just become such a tourist attraction."
Antony Simms, 43, said that things have now got so bad because of Clarkson's business that it's no longer safe for his children to go out to play in the village.
"I don't mind old Clarkson really," he said. "I just cant trust my kids to go out on the road up there now. Since he started the farm shop you definitely can hear [the cars] more."
He then suggested that the council allows Clarkson to build a carpark to reduce the disruption in the area for residents.
Simms continued: "He's got the land there, I think he should be able to build a car park if he wants to - but the council are being funny with him about it."
The council have ultimately described the business as an 'unlawful' use of land and said its 'nature, scale [and] siting is unsustainable and incompatible with its countryside location within the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty.'
However, representatives for the farm have insisted that it is operating within the framework of the law, with Clarkson himself saying that he found a 'delightful little loophole' at the time of its opening in 2020.
A West Oxfordshire District Council spokesperson said: "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 [are] trying to reach a solution."
LADbible has reached out to Oxfordshire District Council and Diddly Squat Farm for comment.
Emma Guinness