This article is sponsored by Park Playground. 

Who knew a group of eight middle aged women could have so much fun romping around a distant planet, fighting aliens and solving the world’s clean energy crisis in about an hour?

When I suggested a virtual reality experience at Park Playground to members of my Harrogate book club, it’s fair to say they were a little sceptical. This was tech that they’d no idea about but, I successfully argued, would make us pretty cool with our kids and grandchildren.

I had already been to Park Playground on a wet August day with an eleven year old and had a blast…literally.  I was convinced Book Club would also find it hilarious.

Group of visitors to Park Playground in Leeds, Photograph provided by Park Playground

Off we set from Harrogate for a night out in Leeds, beginning with our session at Park Playground.

Ahmad was hosting us and we began by taking a virtual lift to the top of a sky-scraper. Once at the top, the doors opened and we each had to walk a plank off what felt like the top of the Burj Khalifa. If you can’t stand heights like me, it’s so real it’s terrifying. I couldn’t do it – but some of my fellow book lovers did it, egged on by the rest of us, shouting encouragement.

So the scene was set for our main session – a journey to a distant planet to collect a crystal which produces clean energy. We fought aliens (big and small) and an enemy army so we had to work as a team. Team work is very hard when you all start acting like teenagers and spend much of the session screaming and howling with laughter.

Our mission was eventually accomplished and we had saved the planet. Pheww. Book Club were awesome!

The technology is so impressive – you feel as though you really are jetpacking and the aliens who come at you are intimidating. It’s serious fun.

Park Playground is not just for the kids – it’s for everyone. I think every Book Club should go – as should every work team.

You enter another world, you are immersed in your new surroundings and it’s one of the best hours I’ve had this year.

Transport yourself to another world for half the price and double the fun, with our exclusive vouchers.

Enjoy 50% off a 60-minute VR experience at Park Playground in Leeds for 4 people!

Are you already thinking of how to reward your employees this Christmas? Why not choose the Harrogate Gift Card?

The Harrogate Gift Card can be spent in over 100 businesses in Harrogate town centre including retail, hospitality and leisure, whilst keeping the spend locked into the local economy.

Complete a corporate bulk order of over £250 and receive 15% discount from November 1 to 15 with the code ‘HGT15’.

Ripon BID is to launch of a loyalty scheme to boost the local economy and support the city’s independent businesses in the run-up to Christmas.

Totally Locally Ripon aims to encourage support for local businesses. Residents and visitors who spend money with participating independent businesses will get their ‘Ripon Passport Poster’ stamped.  Once they get enough stamps on their passport, they’re in the chance of winning cash or vouchers.

The BID is encouraging businesses to get involved. For more details visit the Ripon BID website.

Ripon’s late night Christmas shopping event is on Thursday 30 November.

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Masham based W E Jameson & Son Ltd have celebrated success at The Yorkshire and Humberside Family Business Awards 2023.

W.E. Jameson & Son Ltd provide animal feed, farming services and advice to farmers.

Organised by The Family Business Community, the awards were held at The Majestic Hotel in Harrogate.

WE Jameson were announced as the winner of the wholesale category.

A spokesperson for the company said:

“We are delighted to receive this award on behalf of all the staff. The company was founded by Eddie Jameson, a family man, in 1930. He would be very proud that the company still holds true to his family values and has continued to do business with many farming families over the generations.”

Tickets for next year’s Great Yorkshire Show will be available to buy from Wednesday, November 1.

Since 2021 tickets are only sold in advance with visitor numbers capped at 35,000 a day.

Next year’s 165th show will run from Tuesday, July 9, to Friday, July 12.  Last year tickets sold out a week before the event started.

The Great Yorkshire Show 2024 will be the final one for current show director, Charles Mills, as he comes to the end of his tenure.

Mr Mills said:

“This will be a very special show for me personally as it will be my ninth and final show as show director.

“Be sure, it will be full of entertainment, superb competition and the best animals in the UK coming together to celebrate farming, food and agriculture.”

Ticket prices for 2024 have risen for adults from £32 this year, to £35, children’s tickets remain at £13 – a family ticket has risen from £80 to £86. Under 5’s are free.

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An open-top bus will take visitors around Harrogate as part of the Christmas experience.

The sight-seeing bus is to be part of the town’s Christmas Fayre in December which has been extended this year to help draw in more visitors.

The bus will be provided by Transdev and is part of the York City Sightseeing tour fleet.

It will operate during the weekends in addition to the Candy Cane Express road train which has been introduced since the Christmas market moved into the centre of town.

The 15-minute trip will take shoppers around Harrogate -leaving every 20 minutes from Montpellier Hill, Crescent Gardens, Cheltenham Parade, the Bus Station and West Park.  Tickets will cost £1 for adults-  up to three children aged under 16 can travel for free with each paying adult.

North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for the visitor economy, councillor Derek Bastiman, said:

“The programme of festive events in Harrogate always attracts a lot of interest and sees people from across the region and beyond travel to the town to enjoy what is on offer which is a big driver for the local economy.

“The addition of the new open-top sightseeing bus will give visitors the chance to experience Harrogate in a new way, and it will hopefully help people explore even more of what is on offer.”

In April, it was announced that the Christmas Fayre would run for 17 days – a week longer than the previous two years to increase footfall in December.

The Harrogate Ice Rink, which made its debut in 2022, is also set to return from December 1 but there’ll be no big wheel this year.

Transdev commercial manager Matt Burley said:

“We’re delighted to be chosen as Harrogate’s leading bus operator to deliver this exciting open top bus tour of Harrogate as part of this year’s bigger and even better Harrogate Christmas Fayre.

“We’re teaming up with our colleagues at CitySightseeing York to take visitors and locals on an entertaining tour, hosted by one of our award-winning live guides – so what better way to discover the hidden gems of Harrogate than by wrapping up warm and joining us on the three weekends before Christmas.”

Matthew Chapman, the manager for Harrogate BID, which is supporting the Harrogate Christmas Fayre, said:

“Here at Harrogate BID we are yet again delighted to be supporting the Christmas offer in Harrogate to deliver another magnificent festive season for the town.

“From more than 100,000 festive lights to the unique additional animations, we can’t wait to welcome the thousands of visitors and residents alike to our great town. This time of the year is so important to local and national businesses, and we are proud to play a part in supporting this.”

Read More: 

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• Harrogate ice rink to return again this Christmas

The story is sponsored by Rigby & Peller. 

Wearing beautiful lingerie makes a woman feel sensational. It makes us feel confident in our bodies, no matter what shape we are.

At Rigby & Peller in Harrogate, the manager, Donna Rose and her team understand this and have created a bra-fitting experience that is personal, empathetic and joyful. They understand women, our bodies at all ages and put you at ease. They are masters at knowing which of their beautifully crafted lingerie brands will work best with your shape. There’s never any pressure to buy.

This holistic, female-centred approach has been honed over decades. Rigby & Peller was established in London in 1939 and is famous for its ‘fit by eye’ technique which means there’s not a measuring tape to be found in any of Rigby & Peller’s 45 boutiques across the world.

Donna says the power of beautifully made lingerie that fits perfectly can be transformative:

“Our new collections invite you to celebrate your authentic self, elevate your wardrobe from the foundations up, and help you enjoy your inner glamour. Stunning lingerie is not just for special occasions or gifts – it’s a wonderful way to boost your own confidence whilst ensuring you have that silhouette you’ve always wanted.

“Whatever your shape or personal style, there is gorgeous lingerie waiting to flatter, sculpt and support you.”

Campaign photographs showcasing Andres Sarda Miley set (L) and Marie Jo Etoile set (R)

Now the boutique is combining this personal expertise with an innovative 3D mirror. The mirror takes 140 measurements of a woman’s upper body in less than a minute. It can instantly determine your exact bra size. You can then compare styles using photos and see what style of bra and brand is for you.

Donna, says :

“With assistance from one of our stylists, this unique technology helps you find your perfect bra size, as well as giving you a unique shopping experience.

At Rigby & Peller, we’re committed to evolution and this demonstrates just one of the ways we put our clients’ experience and comfort along with the best fit of the highest-quality lingerie and swimwear.”

Rigby & Peller’s new technology takes 140 measurements of a client’s body to find the perfect fit for its luxury lingerie.

To celebrate this new addition to the Rigby & Peller experience, the boutique on Station Bridge is holding an event on Thursday November 9 between 6pm and 8pm.

Hobbs clothing and luxury skincare brands Temple Spa and La Prairie will also be showcasing their exceptional seasonal products.

To meet Donna and her team and to book your place at this special event, call the boutique on 01423 521613 or email harrogate@rigbyandpeller.com

Find out more: 

No appointment is needed at Rigby & Peller, but they are available if your time is more limited.

You can book a free lingerie styling appointment online. 

To view Rigby & Peller’s latest ranges, visit the shop at 1-2 Station Bridge in Harrogate or head to the website.

Leeds Bradford Airport has re-opened after a plane veered off the runway in yesterday’s storm Babet.

The TUI Airways flight from Corfu went off the runway and onto the grass after landing at around 1.53pm in heavy rain. None of the  195 passengers and crew were injured.

The LBA team said it and its partners had worked tirelessly throughout the night in torrential conditions to recover the aircraft in order to safely reopen the runway and airport.

The airport put out this statement at 12.30 today.:

Passengers travelling should contact their airline to check the status of their flight before travelling to the airport as there will be continuing disruption.

We understand the significant disruption and inconvenience for passengers departing for their holidays and returning home. We are grateful for the patience and understanding our passengers and business partners have shown during this difficult time.

It thanked staff and passengers for their patience:

We want to express our sincere gratitude to everyone involved in supporting the effort dealing with the incident, disruption and recovery of the aircraft in exceptionally difficult conditions.

Once again, we would like to thank our passengers for their cooperation and understanding during this challenging period.

LNER warns people not to travel

LNER meanwhile, has warned rail passengers not to travel today as the severe weather continues to cause major disruption to services.

In a statement LNER said:

Due to ongoing flooding of the route between Doncaster and Wakefield, speed restrictions in Scotland and trains and crews being out of position following yesterday’s extensive disruption, an extremely limited service is in operation and services may be subject to short-notice cancellation.

There are no LNER services operating north of Edinburgh. Due to road closures, rail replacement is not available.  Other train operators are also subject to disruption.

Tickets will be valid for travel between Monday 23 October and Friday 27 October 2023 or fee free refunds will be possible from the original point of purchase.

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Sean Donkin dropped out of university to run a pub, much to his father’s dismay.

Now chief executive of the Inn Collection Group, he has overseen the acquisition and renovation of three well known hotels in the district — the St George in Harrogate, the Dower House in Knaresborough and the Ripon Spa.  All recently re-opened as the Harrogate, Knaresborough and Ripon Inns after multi-million pound renovations.

We talked to Mr Donkin at the reopening of the Ripon Inn about his vision for the hotels and the group’s investment in the district.

The Ripon Inn

Why did the Inn Collection target this area for 3 new hotels?

When we first sought to come further into Yorkshire it was not about creating one singular site.  It’s about creating a nucleus so we can create our own culture on the site but also within the area.

So the manager here (the Ripon Inn) being alone wouldn’t be a great thing for him but having Harrogate and Knaresborough links them together really well.

We don’t want to set up sites in isolation.

The Ripon Inn is your biggest investment – was it a bigger restoration than expected?

When we first saw the property, we thought that’s one hell of a property, understanding that it’s gone through years of deterioration.

We’ve done 30 of these now so development wise it doesn’t really faze us but we do take a few knocks along the way.  In this case the roof, the walls, the windows, everything’s brand new. We’d anticipated about two-thirds of that to be case but when it’s closed for such a long period of time you only get one chance to do it properly so the budget was blown out of the water to give the building best chance it has taking a long term perspective.

Inside the Harrogate Inn

The three hotels have been landmarks. How did you approach renovation work?

People get very nostalgic about buildings which is lovely but we have to look forwards not backwards. You have to modernise them and treat them with respect as well.  At Ripon we lost the ballroom for an extra 10 bedrooms. The reality is without the extra bedrooms the building might not be viable at all.

There were people who were worried about what we going to do with Harrogate – I think the quality of the fit-out shows that we are there for the longer term.

By repurposing,  we are encouraging more people to do more things in the area they’re visiting. We do rooms, food and beverage. I’ve always been an advocate for being the best you can be within the boundaries of what you understand.

Have you struggled to recruit staff?

We haven’t had any issues, we honestly haven’t.  People have their own views about hospitality. But it gives people opportunities. You can learn and go other places – we’ve got sites in the Lake District, North Wales, Northumberland and there are genuine opportunities to further your career.

The Knaresborough Inn

Are you confident the group’s investment in the three hotels will pay off? 

We’ve proved it 27 times so far!  To do it individually I can’t see how that’s sustainable, but having a cluster is where you get the real benefits. You get knowledge of the local area and team knowledge. We want to incentive the team, so we do nights off all together. So how do you do this without shutting the place? We move staff between sites. All our processes are the same so we can do this.

I don’t know if people realise this but we started at Lindisfarne. The history between Lindisfarne, Durham, York and Ripon is huge. It’s following the path of, dare I say it, early Christianity. These are the tracks that people have trodden for hundreds of years and almost unknowingly we are following these tracks too.

Read More:

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The Stray Ferret Business Club’s next meeting is a breakfast event on Thursday, October 26 at Banyan in Harrogate from 8am to 10 am. 

The Business Club provides monthly opportunities to network, make new connections and hear local success stories. Get your tickets by clicking or tapping here.

Harrogate creative agency, Impression Studio, has announced ambitious plans for growth that will take the agency and its sister business, Next Chapter, to £1m turnover by the end of the financial year 2025.

 The creative agency and digital products agency has 17 staff across two brands; Impression and sister agency, Next Chapter, which specialises in digital marketing.

The business is looking to create 5 additional positions across the board.

CEO and founder Charlie Hartley said:

“We’ve experienced encouraging and sustainable growth within the last 2 years, expanding our international client base and spreading our wings further throughout the UK with the addition of FLOCC earlier this year, which has given us access to exciting businesses in East Anglia.

“Of course, we’re Yorkshire born and bred and we’ve been thrilled to grow in our home county, with the addition of 3 new team members recently and exciting projects like Betty’s and Taylors Group, the company behind the iconic Yorkshire Tea brand. We have ambitious plans to ramp up our sales and marketing activity significantly and hope this will help us reach the £1m turnover mark within the next couple of years, as well as grow the team. It’s an exciting time and we have brilliant people on the journey.”

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Grantley Hall to host recruitment event

Luxury hotel Grantley Hall, near Ripon, is to hold a recruitment night on Monday, October 23.

The ‘Come join our Party’ event marks a fresh approach by the hotel to recruitment.

The hotel says the night promises an ‘unforgettable experience for attendees’ and includes a cocktail masterclass, canapés, mini-massages and the opportunity to meet senior staff  to hear about the different events that are held at Grantley Hall.

In March, Grantley won the Employee Development Award at the Stray Ferret’s Business Awards.

Grantley Hall general manager, Nuno César De Sá, said:

“We’re excited to open our doors to potential team members and showcase the incredible opportunities available at Grantley Hall.

“Our ‘Come Join Our Party’ event is not just about recruiting, it’s about inviting individuals to be a part of a remarkable journey, where they can flourish personally and professionally.”

The event starts at 4pm. For further contact: careers@grantleyhall.co.uk.

Harrogate vegetarian café, Delicious, is to host art exhibitions every month highlighting the talents of local artists.

The café, on Mayfield Grove, has only been open since June this year.

It’s owner, Olivier Roch, told the Stray Ferret that he wants it to become a hub for the local community -whether or not they are vegetarian.

“The purpose is to promote local artists. My place is on Mayfield Grove and we are seeking to be a neighbourhood café and be a place of soul. To offer something else other than food.”

Mr Roch grew up in France but has lived in Harrogate for the past 30 years and previously ran the Zinc bistro on John Street where he also used to promote local artists.

Seven artists are booked at Delicious, with a new display and opening on the last Friday of the month.  The artist work is then hung on the café walls for the following four weeks.  There is also a writing course on Tuesdays.

Mayfield Grove has been the scene of violent crime in recent years. Mr Roch says no area is immune from crime but believes the street is changing:

“Unfortunately crime is everywhere and I do not think Mayfield Grove is particularly different from anywhere else.

“I think the area is getting a little bit like Cold Bath Road.

“When I first came to Harrogate, my first bedsit was on Franklin road – now a lot of those beautiful houses have been transformed into single homes.

“It has turned around and now people want to live in the centre of town. There is a neighbourhood feel in the area and people are looking for that – a sense of community and we are trying to establish that.”

Olivier Roch outside his cafe and an example of the art displayed

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The annual Hopewalk will take place in Harrogate‘s Valley Gardens this Sunday in support of Papyrus, a UK charity that aims to prevent suicide in young people.

Over the last six years Harrogate Grammar School has supported the event in memory of one of its students, Dom Sowa, who died by suicide in 2017.

Dom’s mother, Pat Sowa, has since become a campaigner for the charity.

This year marks the charity’s tenth anniversary and it is hoping the walks will be “bigger and better than ever”.

The walk will be held on Sunday (October 15) at 10am.

Participants meet at the entrance to Valley Gardens, walking through the Pinewoods and back again. To sign up click here. 

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