Back in the 1970s, It’s A Knockout was one of the most popular family game shows on TV – it was essentially a sports day for adults.

Now, Harrogate Hospital and Community Charity (HHCC) is inviting friends, families and work colleagues to take part in its version in June.

Teams of 10 entrants will battle it out on an It’s a Knockout inflatable assault course at Harrogate Railway Athletic Football Club on Sunday, June 5.

An ‘Around the World in 80 Days’ challenge of wacky games will see contestants face water and foam in their quest to be crowned champion.

Community spirit

Sammy Lambert, business development, charity and volunteer manager, said:

“HHCC are so excited to be able to host the Summer Extravaganza and bring people together once again.

“We want to bolster community spirit by creating the opportunity for families, friends and colleagues to meet for a day of summer fun while supporting their local NHS at the same time.”

Members of the community have the chance to rise to the challenge or come and support their team.

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The event forms part of this year’s Summer Extravaganza, which will raise funds for NHS services at Harrogate and District NHS Foundation Trust.

It will include a range of shopping stalls, summer game stands, a bar and barbecue.

Entry to It’s A Knockout Game is £30 per person. Participants must be over 16 and each registration includes entry to the Summer Extravaganza.

Challengers can sign up as an individual or as part of a team. Teams will be entered into one of three groups, with limited availability.

Tickets

Tickets for entry to the Summer Extravaganza are available for a donation of £2 for adults and children over the age of five. Children under the age of five go free.

Register for It’s A Knockout or buy tickets by emailing hdft.hhcc@nhs.net or visit the HHCC website.

The man behind Harrogate’s first ghost walk is writing a book about spooky tales in the town —  and he needs your help finding stories to include.

Paul Forster launched his ghost walk last year, offering an evening excursion around Harrogate’s most haunted locations.

The one-hour trail takes in The Alexandra pub, The Crown Hotel and Hales Bar, among other places.

One of his favourite stories is the time Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the author behind the Sherlock Holmes novels, held a seance at The Harrogate Club on Victoria Avenue.

Mr Forster has now found a publisher for a book of Harrogate ghost stories and he wants people to submit their tales from the other side.

Since starting his ghost walk, Mr Forster said he’s encountered several unexplained phenomena, including what he believes was an apparition taunting him at the Turkish Baths.

He said:

“I saw a woman’s body peeking out from a cubicle, I went to the cubicle, but nobody was there. The door shut on its own then I heard a woman’s voice that went ‘ha!’ really loud. It freaked me out.

“There was a young member of staff there who said she had heard the same ‘ha!'”

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Mr Forster is particularly interested in ghost stories about Windsor House, a large building that overlooks Valley Gardens. It used to be the Grand Hotel during Harrogate’s Victorian heyday.

He said:

“At Windsor House there was a woman who stepped into a lift but it wasn’t there, so she fell to her death in the lift shaft. She’s been seen lots of times. There is also ghost children running down the corridors there and unusual orbs of light. There must be more stories.”

Mr Forster said Harrogate is a hotbed of ghostly activity due to its Victorian past.

He added:

“People kept saying to me there are no ghosts in Harrogate, you need to go to York, but a lot of the ghosts came here from the Victorian era and World War One. Tourists from all over the world left an imprint behind with both fond or bad memories.

“There’s the ghost of a Victorian gent in the Pump Room museum. He’s dressed like a tourist in bowler hat and can be seen disappearing through the wall.”

Do you have any ghost stories? Email Paul Forster here or message him on Facebook.

A new woodland in Bilton will be planted next month with trees dedicated to lives lost during the covid pandemic.

Around 500 trees will be planted by Bilton Conservation Group volunteers in Bilton Fields close to the viaduct.

It will be called Victory Wood, as it was originally intended to mark VE Day, with the trees planted in the shape of a V.

However, covid has delayed the planting by several years. Keith Wilkinson, chair of the group, said planters can dedicate a tree to a friend or family member that has died from the virus.

The dedication will be private as trees will not be identified with a plaque.

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• ‘Devastating news’ as 500 trees to be chopped down in Nidd Gorge
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Planting will take place on Saturday May 21 from 10.00am.

Twelve species will be planted, including oak, cherry and hazel trees.

If you’d like to plant a tree and make a dedication, contact Mr Wilkinson: niddgorge2016@icloud.com

The woodland has been sponsored by the Harrogate Lions.

Ahead of polling day on May 5, the Stray Ferret is previewing each of the divisions in the Harrogate district up for election to North Yorkshire Council.

A total of 21 seats will be up for grabs in the district with most of the major parties contesting each one.

Today, we look at the Bilton Grange and New Park division which will see four candidates standing for election.

Matt Scott, Conservative

Matt Scott will stand as the Conservative candidate for Bilton and New Park on May 5.

Mr Scott is a councillor on both Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council, the latter of which he was elected to last year.

On his priorities and why he is standing, Mr Scott said:

“I am a lifelong Bilton resident and, along with the Green candidate, the only candidate who lives in the ward.

“I have been a district councillor since 2018 and represented all of Bilton Grange and part of New Park as county councillor since I won the Bilton and Nidd Gorge by-election last year.

“My priorities continue to be protecting our green spaces such as the Nidd Gorge and the Oak Beck. I am working with my colleague Paul Haslam to oppose development off Knox Lane while challenging Yorkshire Water on outflows into the Oak Beck near the Hydro.

“I also worked with Paul and Andrew Jones MP to oppose the Nidd Gorge relief road proposal.”

He added:

“I have a track record of getting things done such as securing CCTV for the Iron Bridge, getting durable bus shelter panels for Jennyfield to deter vandalism and getting the Cinder Path resurfaced in Bilton.”

Tamsin Jade Worrell, Green Party

The Green Party candidate for Bilton and New Park will be Tamsin Jade Worrall.

Ms Worrall, who is a trans-woman and lives in Bilton, works as a a railway signaller following 36 years as operations management within food manufacturing.

She joined the Green Party in 2018 and has had a lifelong interest in politics.

Ms Worrall said:

“I believe we are on the verge of a climate catastrophe exacerbated by the awful policies of all recent national governments.

“I believe in local business for local people, free education for all, social justice and personal accountability. The time has come to do politics differently and put people first.”

Read more:

• How the Harrogate district’s wards will change ahead of local election
• Full list of election candidates in Harrogate district revealed

Andrew Zigmond, Labour

Andrew Zigmond will be the Labour candidate for the division on May 5.

Mr Zigmond said among his priorities should he be elected would be to tackle anti-social behaviour in Bilton.

He said:

“I am standing as a Labour party candidate for Bilton Grange and New Park because I believe we need councillors in place who will bring about fundamental change, rather than more of the same. 

“If I am elected I will work with the local police to ensure that antisocial behaviour is tackled robustly and that the safety of all residents is my priority. 

“At the same time Bilton used to have a thriving youth club and I pledge to get this reopened.”

Monika Slater, Liberal Democrat

Monika Slater will be standing for the Liberal Democrats at the election May 5.

Ms Slater has worked in customer services for 17 years and is a volunteer at her local scouts.

She said among her priorities for standing will be to campaign for a town council for Harrogate.

Ms Slater said:

“I’m delighted to have been selected as the Lib Dem Campaigner for our area. If elected I’m determined to stand up for local people. 

“With the Conservative Government in free-fall and an ineffective Conservative-run council, our area needs a fresh start and I’m determined to provide this.”

She added:

“We ned to do more to support the most disadvantaged in our community addressing issues such as loneliness and social isolation, improved access to public transport and schools need additional covid catch up funding for children and young adults who have missed so much education. I will be campaigning for a new Harrogate Town Council.”

Pannal car boot sale returns today for the first time in eight months.

Since opening in 1996, the car boot sale has been held early on Sunday mornings but this year it takes place at 11am on Wednesdays and Saturdays.

Held at the junction of the A658 and A61, the event runs until 3pm and stalls cost £6 for the day.

Speaking about the return, organiser Dylan Leech said:

“It’s great to be back. We changed the time this year mainly because there are so many others held early on a Saturday and Sunday so starting at 11am means people can come to more than one.

“We’ve had to rethink it with so many people selling online during lockdown but I’m sure we’ll hit the ground running.”

Mr Leech said the car boot attracted more than 100 stalls each time previously and he was hoping this year will be no different.

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A judge branded a former Harrogate Borough Council officer a “thoroughly dishonest woman” as he sentenced her for stealing from two elderly residents at sheltered accommodation in Ripon.

Yvonne Jones, 60, conned the victims into paying rent in cash up front, some of which she pocketed herself, leaving them in rental arrears.

She appeared for sentence today when judge Sean Morris, the Recorder of York, said she had been convicted “on the clearest of evidence”.

She was given a 12-month community order and made to carry out 180 hours’ unpaid work.

Jones, of High Street, Starbeck, had denied the offences, which occurred when she was a housing and estate officer with the council. She lost her job after her crimes came to light.

A jury convicted her of two counts of theft following a trial four weeks ago. She was acquitted of three further allegations of stealing from vulnerable tenants at council-run sheltered housing in Blossomgate Court and Bondgate Court in Ripon.

Asked for cash

Prosecutor Philip Standfast said Jones had asked the victims to pay rent a week in advance but kept some of the cash for herself.

One of the named victims, a woman “of some years”, was conned out of £147 after moving into a new council-owned flat in January 2018.

When the victim signed for the new flat, Jones asked her for £405 rent after completing the paperwork.

The woman paid cash and Jones gave her a receipt on a business card, but it showed two figures of £180 and £225 rather than the whole £405. Mr Standfast said:

“(The victim) didn’t question why that receipt was written in that particular way.

“Later, her account was checked by a neighbourhood team leader with the council and there was no record of that cash being paid into that lady’s account.”

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Mr Standfast said there were three payments of £85.67 into the council’s account in January and February 2018, but that still left a deficit of £147.72 which had not been credited to the victim’s account.

Blossomgate Court

The second victim, a man who took up a tenancy at Blossomgate Court in Ripon, was fleeced out of £449 by Jones, whom he first met in February 2018.

She asked him for £200 for rent which he didn’t have on him, but he withdrew it from his bank the following day. Mr Standfast said:

“Despite having asked for £200, (Jones) gave him £20 back, saying he had given her too much.”

“It’s not clear why she did that.”

On February 8, Jones met the named victim again and asked for another £200 rent. Mr Standfast said:

“He offered her a cheque, but the defendant said she needed cash and he withdrew it and paid it to her.”

In early March 2018, there was a direct debit from the victim’s account to the council for £600, but Jones told him he owed £669. Mr Standfast said:

“She claimed the council could only take an amount of £600 from his account, so he withdrew (the extra) £69 from his bank and paid that to her.”

The victim’s rental account was checked and the £469 he had given her, minus the £20 she had given him back, had not been credited to his account. He notified the council of this.

Housing officer for four years

Jones had worked as a housing officer at the council from 2014 to 2018, when she was finally rumbled and ultimately resigned from her post.

The prosecution had alleged that Jones had also taken cash from three other vulnerable tenants and either didn’t issue receipts for these payments or did hand them receipts but didn’t forward some of that cash into the council’s account.

These tenants included a named man with learning difficulties who needed care and a 77-year-old pensioner with terminal cancer who was receiving housing benefit. However, Jones was acquitted of these three allegations.

Mr Standfast alleged that all the complainants’ accounts were checked by a team leader at the council, who “found discrepancies between what had been paid by the tenants and what was found in their accounts”.

Enquiries were carried out and Jones was suspended in March 2018. She resigned four days later.

Before handing down the community punishment, judge Mr Morris told Jones:

“You are a thoroughly dishonest woman.”

She was also ordered to pay a statutory surcharge.

A leading Harrogate businessman is expected to cross the border into Ukraine this weekend as part of a major aid mission.

James Rycroft, managing director of Vida Healthcare, is a member of a team taking eight wagons containing aid worth about £2 million for Ukrainian soldiers and citizens who intend to stay in the country.

The journey has been organised by Yorkshire Aid Convoy, a charity which has been running overseas aid expeditions for more than 30 years.

Mr Rycroft said he was travelling in a personal capacity because he felt the need to help. He said:

“It’s a really awful situation for everyone involved. I wanted to do something meaningful to help rather than just make a monetary donation.”

The convoy is carrying a variety of items, including medical equipment, beds and hygiene products. It is also taking a mobile classroom, which will be left in Ukraine.

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Those involved will meet Ukrainian military administrators at the border, where they will be escorted to a secure hub about 20km inside the border to deposit the goods. They will then immediately turn round and head home.

Mr Rycroft, whose company owns several specialist dementia care homes around Harrogate, said:

“I’m apprehensive but positive as I know we have the right people on board.

“There’s an element of risk but it’s a short sprint into Ukraine then back out again.”

Back in UK on Wednesday

Two people in each of the eight wagons are taking it in turns to drive up to 10 hours a day across Europe.

The convoy, which set off yesterday, expects to reach Germany tonight and Slovakia tomorrow before arriving at the Ukraine border on Sunday. The team expects to dock in Hull on Wednesday morning.

Mark and Felix Murphy of Yorkshire Aid Convoy.

Mark Murphy, who founded Yorkshire Aid Convoy, said the mission involved travelling about 2,500 kilometres each way.

He initially ran convoys to Romania but the war in Ukraine has changed the current focus. He said:

“We will meet military administrators and get a police escort to a secure hub.”

Harrogate’s Pride in Diversity will not take place this year because of a lack of volunteers to make it possible.

Last held in 2019, the event has traditionally begun with a parade through the town centre led by an open-top bus.

It then featured a festival of live music, entertainment and stalls in the Valley Gardens, drawing crowds of up to 26,000 people.

Secretary Poppy Winks said they had considered holding a smaller event, but decided it would be better to focus on delivering a full-scale occasion in 2023.

She said:

“The plan is it will be the same as pre-pandemic. It’s a joyful day: people being together and celebrating who they are, whoever that is.

“To have that space in our town is really important. It’s a really unapologetic event; everybody is there for a reason and it doesn’t matter what that reason is.”

People of all genders, sexualities, ages and races came together for the celebration in 2019.

The cancellation this year means the event will have had a four-year break by the time it returns, having missed two years because of the covid pandemic.

Ms Winks said while there used to be a strong group of volunteers, many had moved on or started volunteering elsewhere.

The remaining team decided to announce their reasons for calling off this year’s event, and it has paid off with a number of individuals and organisations come forward with offers of support. Ms Winks added:

“It was not an easy decision, but being honest about our reasons for cancelling has made people think, ‘this is an event we like and we want to come forward and help make it happen’.

“The beauty is that now we have grown enough that we’re well-known and organisations like the theatre and the Victoria Shopping Centre have said they want to support us.”

Anyone interested in helping to organise next year’s event can contact Harrogate Pride in Diversity via its website.

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A teenager has been referred to a youth outcomes panel after two police officers suffered serious injuries at McDonald’s in Harrogate.

The police community support officers from Harrogate’s neighbourhood policing team were called to McDonald’s on Cambridge Road on April 1.

They were responding to reports that three girls, aged 13,14 and 15, had entered despite being banned due to anti-social behaviour earlier in the evening.

According to police, the group refused to leave when asked by officers and trouble flared at around 7pm.

One of the PCSOs suffered a suspected broken nose and the other sustained tissue damage to the cheek. Both received hospital treatment.

The three girls were arrested and bailed pending further investigation.

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North Yorkshire Police today revealed one of the girls has been referred to a youth outcomes panel.

The panel, which is a partnership between police, North Yorkshire Youth Justice Service and York Youth Offending Team, decides what action, if any, is most appropriate to pursue.

The panel encourages a restorative approach with victims and looks to address the causes of the young person’s offending.

The two other girls remain on conditional bail while enquiries continue.

Ahead of polling day on May 5, the Stray Ferret will be previewing each of the divisions in the Harrogate district up for election to North Yorkshire Council.

A total of 21 seats will be up for grabs in the district with most of the major parties contesting each one.

Today, we look at the Fairfax and Starbeck division which will see four candidates standing for election.

Sue Lumby, Conservative

Sue Lumby will be standing for the Conservative party in Fairfax and Starbeck division.

Ms Lumby is currently a councillor on Harrogate Borough Council and represents Harrogate Coppice Valley ward.

The Stray Ferret asked Ms Lumby for comment for this preview, but did not receive a response by the time of publication.

A Conservative party spokesperson told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that they were confident in their election campaign and pledged to continue investing in services across North Yorkshire if elected.

A party spokesperson said:

“The Conservatives are fielding an experienced slate of candidates. This is important as we argue the case for local services with settlements from Selby to Richmond and Whitby to Settle.

“That case includes continued investment in local services that has seen a new pool in Ripon and the start of a new pool and leisure centre in Knaresborough.”

Gordon Schallmo, Green Party

The Green Party candidate for Fairfax and Starbeck is Gordon Schallmo.

Mr Schallmo has lived in Starbeck for the past 12 years and works as a draughtsman at a local steel construction firm.

He has been a member of the Green Party since 2015 and says his true passion is volunteering at his local nature reserve.

Mr Schallmo said he felt it was important to “do my bit” and look after the environment.

On why he is standing, he said:

“My main reason for standing is because I’d like to address the poor town planning that in recent years has seen money wasted on poorly thought-out schemes and rather than just complaining about it I thought I’d done something about it so here I am.”

Read more:

• How the Harrogate district’s wards will change ahead of local election
• Full list of election candidates in Harrogate district revealed

Chris Watt, Labour

Chris Watt will be standing for the Labour Party in Fairfax and Starbeck division.

Mr Watt has lived in Starbeck for the last 13 years and currently works for the NHS.

He was previously parliamentary aide to a minister in the last Labour government and led government relations for an environmental organisation.

On why he standing, Mr Watt said:

“I’m proud of my area and want to give something back. I use our local shops, and facilities like Starbeck Baths, Fairfax Community Centre and Starbeck Library and want our area to be the best it can be.

“I want to continue to be a strong local champion for Fairfax and Starbeck, having led the campaign to re-open our local swimming pool and persuading the council to listen to residents and reject plans for more unsustainable housing that would increase traffic and worsen parking problems in our community.”

He added:

“On the doorstep, I’ve heard concerns about crime and anti-social behaviour and am already working in partnership with the police to tackle this blight on our area.

“Local businesses have also been badly hit by the pandemic and we are seeing too many empty premises on our high streets. Labour would push for support for local business.”

Philip Broadbank, Liberal Democrat

Philip Broadbank will be standing for North Yorkshire Council in the division for the Liberal Democrats.

Mr Broadbank is a councillor on both Harrogate Borough Council and North Yorkshire County Council representing Starbeck.

He has lived in the Starbeck and Knaresborough Road area for most of his life.

Mr Broadbank said on standing for North Yorkshire Council:

“I am keen to campaign for the establishment of a new Harrogate town Council once Harrogate Borough Council is no more. 

“Over the years I have been actively involved in many groups and organisations in the ward. 

“I want to see better opportunities for young people in the area and greater encouragement to get them involved in local activities.”