Clarkson forced to reapply for planning permission for Diddly Squat Farm Shop
Could the future of his new venture be in jeopardy?
You may have been keeping up to date with Jeremy Clarkson's latest venture, the Diddly Squat Farm Shop. A man known for his farming prowess (ahem), he spent months teasing us with images of lambs and tractors before finally confirming that his new farm, in Oxfordshire, was to be home to the Diddly Squat Farm Shop.
Because, how hard could it be?
Well, true to form in all things relating to that phrase - very hard indeed. That said, he has done an excellent job so far! The shop is fully stocked with everything you would expect to find in a farm shop, as well as some unexpected additions, such as a 24/7 'cow juice' dispenser.
Image: @diddlysquat.farmshop
The opening was a success too. He posted a tweet inviting those in the area to come to the farm and those in attendance were delighted to find Clarkson himself, his lovely farm stock, and 'The Excellent' which you may remember was a Mercedes SL on a Land Rover chassis, for classy off-roading. It has clearly come in handy!
Image: @max_ohayon
Despite the apparent smooth running of the place, it wouldn't be a Clarkson project if it didn't run into trouble at some point, although nobody would have expected the trouble to be this serious.
He is having to reapply for planning permission for the farm having installed an unapproved type of roofing.
The original planning permission, granted in November last year by West Oxfordshire District Council, stated that the roof had to be man made slate and the materials were to be approved by officials before work began.
The roof that has been installed on the shop is a juniper green steel sheet.
The offending roof [Image: @diddlysquat.farmshop]
The new application states: "Following receipt of the most recent planning permission, the construction of the farm shop was completed, including the installation of a juniper green steel sheet roof, despite the fact that a condition (number 4) was imposed requiring the roofing material to be approved prior to roofing commencing. The applicant's building contractor was unfortunately unaware of this condition."
The application includes a number of small amendments from the original, including the addition of a hedgerow around the carpark to soften its appearance in the sprawling Oxfordshire landscape.
Only time will tell if planning is to be granted, however an environmental assessment, filed last week in relation to the application, stated there was 'no objection in principal to the changes'
Clarkson is set to star in an Amazon series about his experience as a novice running a farm, which is expected to be released later this year.
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Comments (13)
This is paperwork, he'll be fine. I still find it hilarious that after years of giving Hammond crap about living in the country, Clarkson has embraced his inner yokel. Welcome to the club, buddy.
Yeah, bit of red tape and he will be grand, I think
All this over a choice in roofing material. Hmmm... Even though he donates a lot of food.
It was in the original agreement and anyone else would have the same trouble, to be fair
Does look ok to me considering the green roof doesn’t look out of place. Hope everything goes Jeremy’s way and the permission is granted.
It seems like a genuine error so hopefully it all works out
Same here likewise.
On Jeremys recommendation, I'm reading a long forgotten book.
Planting and tending a hedgerow does sound like fun.
www.thecooshed.co.uk/