Play reveals Harrogate’s secret royal role in WWII

A new play has revealed the Harrogate district’s little-known role in a secret plan to protect the royal family and Prime Minister Winston Churchill during the Second World War.

The Stray is a two-act drama by playwright Keith Burton with the assistance of Harrogate historian Malcolm Neesam.

It tells the story of Harrogate’s role in the Coats Mission, which was a secret plan to evacuate the royal family from London.

Newby Hall, near Ripon, was identified as a possible home for the royal family and a wing of Grove House on Skipton Road in Harrogate, opposite an RAF bunker, was designated as a possible home for Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

On September 8 1940 Buckingham Palace was bombed and the Coats Mission plans were expedited.

However, the RAF and the Secret Intelligence Service did not want the Harrogate district plans to go ahead as they were building Washington bombers at nearby Yeadon and had a station at Forest Moor in Nidderdale feeding code-breaking intelligence to Bletchley Park.

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Then on September 12 a Junker 88 attacked the Majestic Hotel in Harrogate. These were the only bombs to fall on the town in the war.

Newspapers at the time reported “a stray” bombing by a plane and said it was part of a bigger raid on “northern industrial targets” without naming where the other bombs had fallen.

But the intelligence agencies did not regard it as a stray bomb and two days after the attack on Harrogate the Coats Mission was dropped.

The Stray is based on what might have happened in Harrogate during the week commencing September 8 1940.

Newby Hall.

Cllr Jim Clark, who is the chairman of North Yorkshire County Council and commissioned the play, has a long history of involvement in theatre. He said:

“There have always been stories about Harrogate’s part in the war so I thought this was a unique way of capturing the drama of it. I wanted to be able to make a contribution to help drama groups at schools and amateur dramatic groups. I will have the rights to the play for five years so anybody can perform it within reason.

Mr Clark has approached Harrogate Dramatic Society and Harrogate Theatre with the play. He hopes that it will start in Yorkshire and spread further afield.

Plans submitted for 1,300 homes at Ripon Barracks

Homes England has pushed forward with its plan for a 1,300 home development at Ripon Barracks.

Harrogate Borough Council has now validated a planning application for the site. It is a move the developers see as a “major step forward” towards construction.

The Clotherholme development will encompass Claro Barracks, Deverell Barracks and Laver Banks. Homes England is working with Defence Infrastructure Organisation (DIO) on the project.

The planned homes will include a significant number of two- and three-bedroom mid-range houses and will include apartments in the centre.

It also includes a community centre, employment space, shops, parkland, a new primary school and sports facilities.

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Residents in Ripon are particularly interested in the proposed infrastructure which would come with a development of this size. Ripon City Council has already said the transport assessment was “flawed” because it was undertaken during a period when there was less traffic – something Homes England disputed.

Homes England expects Harrrogate Borough Council to make a decision on the planning permission in early 2021. Comments can be made on the Harrogate Borough Council planning website until October 7, using reference 20/02973/EIAMAJ.

Marie Kiddell, head of planning and enabling at Homes England, said:

“The validation of this planning application is a major step towards creating Clotherholme and helping meet local housing needs; 30% of the homes will be affordable alongside those for sale on the open market.”

Catherine Davies, head of estates at DIO, said:

“This proposed development supports the MOD’s ongoing commitment to invest in a more fit for purpose Defence estate. We look forward to seeing it progress further in the coming weeks and months.”

Harrogate district gets £2m discount with Eat Out to Help Out

Diners in the Harrogate district who took part in the Eat Out to Help Out scheme got a discount of more than £1.9 million in August.

New figures out today from HM Treasury also revealed that people in the Harrogate and Knaresborough and Skipton and Ripon constituencies ate 314,000 meals in the scheme.

The scheme was designed to help the struggling hospitality sector get back on its feet. The Stray Ferret reported that many cafes and restaurants saw a big spike in interest last month.

Some restaurants were fully booked and were forced to turn some diners away who were trying to take advantage of the Eat Out to Help Out discount.

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In Harrogate and Knaresborough 153 restaurants signed up compared with 205 restaurants in Skipton and Ripon.

Some restaurants across the Harrogate district have seen such a boost that they have extended the discount without any government backing to fund it.

Lydia Hewitt-Craft, supervisor at So! Bar and eats Harrogate, said:

“It’s been massively helpful and it’s a relief because it was hard at the start when everyone was worried about coming out but this has been great for us.”

Nertil Xhallo, manager at Sarando on Station Bridge, said:

“It has been really busy, we’ve had a lot of bookings. Most people have returned which is good. The offer has been helpful for the business.”

Sara Ferguson, acting chair of Harrogate BID and owner of two Harrogate restaurants, said:

“I think it’s been a massive help, everyone I have spoken to says it’s been worth doing. I think with the uncertainty going forward its given all those places a boost.”

TV’s Yorkshire Vet opens garden centre cafe in Ripon

TV’s Yorkshire Vet, along with the mayor and mayoress of Harrogate, officially opened a new garden centre cafe in Ripon today.

F Tate and Sons Larkhill Nurseries’ new cafe called The Olive Tree will be open everyday from 9am to 3.30pm.

Peter Wright, who stars as The Yorkshire Vet, is a friend of the Tate family and turned up today to help spread the word.

The cafe will serve a range of food and drinks including all day breakfast, avocado on toast, a full brunch menu as well as coffee. The cafe will source all of its products locally.

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This is what The Olive Tree looks like inside.

Tom Tate, F Tate and Sons Larkhill Nurseries, told the Stray Ferret ahead of the opening:

“It has been a long time coming. We have been waiting for the right time to open and we think that this is it. We are trying to create a new experience and a new standard for garden centre cafes and we are proud of the results.”

The Olive Tree has created nine new jobs at the garden centre and Mr Tate expects it to create even more part time jobs for busier times.

Full steam ahead for micropub at Knaresborough train station

A developer can now move ahead with plans for a micropub at Knaresborough’s train station.

Harrogate Borough Council has approved the plans for the Track and Sleeper with a few conditions and alterations, including that work must start before September 2023.

The Track and Sleeper will take over a couple of vacant units at the Grade II listed building. It will serve real ale and gin.

Both the Knaresborough Civic Society and the Friends of Knaresborough Station wrote in support of the plans. The council also said the plans were sympathetic to the building.

These are the new plans including planters.

The community groups raised concerns about a lack of toilets and a “potential nuisance” from the pub’s customers. The landlord will need to monitor those concerns going forward.

Instead of the timber barriers previously submitted, the amended plans inclued moveable planters with barriers in between.

The council believes that because the pub is bringing vacant units back into use that it will be beneficial for the building. It also supported the plans to reinstate the fireplace inside the pub.

The Old Deanery set to close in major blow for Ripon

The Old Deanery in Ripon will close next year to become another financial victim of the coronavirus pandemic.

It has been a hotel, bar and wedding venue for the last 17 years just opposite Ripon Cathedral. The manager said it will close at the end of the lease on June 30 2021.

Any bookings before that point will not be affected by the closure. The Old Deanery made the announcement with “deep regret”.

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Chris Brown, general manager at The Old Deanery, said:

“Due to the extreme trading conditions brought on by the coronavirus pandemic and continued restrictions indefinitely affecting our wedding and event trade, the directors have made the difficult decision to cease trading.”

The Ripon Cathedral Chapter will once again take on the 17th Century Grade II listed building when the lease ends next year.

Mr Brown added that his team “would like to thank you all for your support over the years and look forward to seeing you again in the next ten months”.

When The Old Deanery made the announcement lots of customers commented that it was sad news and shared memories of their time there.

Ripon’s Himalayan Gardens seeks 40 volunteers

The Himalayan Garden and Sculpture Park near Ripon is recruiting 40 new volunteer rangers.

The site has been growing in size in recent years. The gardens are now set over 45 acres and it is becoming increasingly difficult to look after the space.

To try and combat that, the gardens has launched a Natural Health Service volunteer drive and it’s not just for gardeners.

They hope that it will help those who have been made redundant as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

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Stephen Ward, the new head gardener, used his personal experience of redundancies to shape the initiative. He said:

“The trials and tribulations I have been through are what thousands of people are going through at this time. I want to help those people by providing a place for them to come to that will help them to move on to something better.”

The coronavirus pandemic has been difficult for the Himalayan Garden and Sculpture Park. They missed out on their peak season. As a result, they are looking at ways they can keep the revenue coming in during the winter months.

Part of the plans include Christmas bundles, heading out to Christmas markets with their products and even taking their converted horse box cafe to events. The gardens will close as usual in November so these could make a big difference.

Anyone interested in volunteering for the Himalayan Garden and Sculpture Park near Ripon can find out more on their website. Mr Ward has said he will take people for a site visit and chat with them about their skills.

The garden’s believe they have the north’s largest collection of rhododendrons, azaleas, and magnolias with nearly 20,000 plants

Winner of Yorkshire in Bloom Tourist Attraction Award for 2018 and 2019, and Best Business Award 2019, the park is also home to over 80 Contemporary Sculptures.

‘Someone is getting sacked!’ jokes over county council poster error

Harrogate residents have joked that “someone is getting sacked” for a printer error in a new bus shelter advertising campaign.

North Yorkshire County Council has put up posters encouraging people in Harrogate to run, bike and walk to work but there’s a small problem.

The poster has four symbols and while the ‘walk it’ and ‘love it’ match up there has been a mix up with the ‘bike it’ and ‘run it’ lines.

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Some eagle-eyed residents noticed the mistake and took it to a Harrogate community Facebook page to poke fun at the council.

Rachel Webster snapped a picture on Knaresborough Road and shared a post which said: “When you see it…Bravo North Yorkshire County Council, bravo.”

Others commented that it “took a while to see the mistake,” that “someone was getting sacked” and that the proof reader “had one job”.

The Stray Ferret asked North Yorkshire County Council how many of these posters it had printed, how much it cost and what they plan to do now. The council did not respond to those questions but said it was happy for the publicity.

Fiona Ancell, Road Safety Team Leader, said:

“While we can see there is a mistake in their poster, the messages are still clear and we are glad for the extra publicity the posters are receiving.”

Open Harrogate is a North Yorkshire County Council project aimed at encouraging people to use more environmentally-friendly ways of travelling.

Ripon shop to close after more than 40 years

An independent designer menswear store in Ripon city centre will close this month for the final time after more than 40 years of business.

Jon Barrie, in Market Place, is selling its remaining stock as well as its fixtures and fittings. The manager expects to be closed permanently by September 19.

Not only will the Ripon store close but the Keighley shop will as well. The Pontefract and Castleford shops will remain open.

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Anna Simmonds, the Ripon store manager, told the Stray Ferret it will be a sad day when it closes in a couple of weeks:

“We simply cannot continue to trade when the economy is like this after so many months of lockdown. It is absolutely gutting, it is going to be awful on that last day.”

Jon Barrie sells a range of designer mens clothes such as Fred Perry and Pretty Green as well as designer accessories.

How local is Stray FM’s replacement station?

Loyal listeners of Stray FM have been asking an important question this week – just how local can Greatest Hits Radio be if it covers the nation?

The Stray FM brand has been wiped off the internet. The station no longer has its local presenters. There is one regional drive time show each day.

Instead of Stray FM, those tuned into the frequency will find a different experience. Most of the schedule is filled with music from the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s. On the hour there is a mixture of local and national news stories. The Harrogate and Yorkshire Dales version of Greatest Hits Radio featured Harrogate-only advertising when we tuned in today.

In July Dee Ford, group director of Bauer Radio, said:

“Our plan at this stage is to deliver local news much as it is currently delivered by Stray FM. 

In fact, we expect access to the size and scope of the wider Bauer news team will enable the local team to better cover major local stories and issues. 

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David Dunning, a local radio expert currently based at the York Mix, told the Stray Ferret that the regulator is to blame:

“This is clearly not the same station as Stray FM. When you take away the local station you take away the presenters who have a real connection with the community. I do not think that it is right to blame Bauer Media for this. Ofcom are to blame for allowing this through.”

David Dunning is a local radio expert with 35 years experience.

It has been a controversial move for fans of Stray FM who have seen those behind Stray FM leave the radio station.

Sarah Berry, Stray FM’s managing director, is the latest to leave. She had been at the station since it launched in 1994 and said:

“I’d like to thank each and every single person who has connected with us over the years, I include all our stakeholders from listeners, charities, emergency and public services, suppliers and advertisers. I am incredibly proud to have been part of Stray FM and I wish everyone well for the next chapter.”