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. 

Read more:

• Stray FM broadcasts its final shows before national take-over
• Harrogate MP gives ‘cautious welcome’ to Stray FM assurances
• Ripon councillor criticises Dawn French following Stray FM’s demise

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.”

The process to replace the damaged sculptures in Harrogate’s Valley Gardens is underway after private donors gave about £2,000.

Vandals ripped out chunks of wood from the kiwi bird and the carved Maori bench in the New Zealand garden section of Valley Gardens in July.

Harrogate International Partnerships (HIP), a grant-making charity that supports the twinning of places, has led attempts to replace the sculptures with more durable versions.

Read more:

• Vandals rip out chunks from Valley Gardens sculptures
• The Stray in disarray: ‘Biggest mess for six years’

With some funding now in place, Dennis Richard, chair of HIP, told the Stray Ferret it was working with Harrogate Borough Council on plans for replacement sculptures:

“It was shocking to see the state that the sculptures are in. We know we need to put this right as soon as possible. Damage attracts more damage so it needs to be fixed.”

The carved Maori bench has been badly damaged.

A Harrogate Borough Council spokesperson told the Stray Ferret it was too early to provide fuller details of timescales and plans.

The New Zealand garden commemorates Harrogate’s twinning with Wellington and the country’s airmen being stationed in the town during World War Two.

The garden dates back to 1954 and chainsaw sculptor Mick Burns carved the Marlin, Kiwi, and bench in 2010.

A new travel agent has opened in Harrogate’s Montpellier Quarter.

The Travel Journal opened yesterday on the site of the former Isles of Wonder gift shop.

It has started trading at a time when quarantine rules are playing havoc with many people’s holiday plans.

However Ben Poole, the owner is buoyant about prospects.

Although some travel agents have seen bookings plummet during lockdown, as more customers turn to staycations, Mr Poole said bookings were bouncing back. He said:

“Business has been great for the past few weeks and green shoots are certainly appearing for our industry.

“The surge of high quality last minute bookings to places that remain on the government’s safe quarantine list has been a very welcome surprise as I had written off summer 2020 but I have probably done more business this summer last minute than I would have done any previous year.

“Yes there is a worry destinations could be added to the quarantine list without much prior notice but all my clients are made aware of the risks.”

This new shop is set alongside multiple other independent shops recovering from months of lockdown.

Mr Poole, who has been in the travel industry for 21 years, began his new venture at home in January and has been forced to cope with the impact of lockdown.

Read more:

• Boroughbridge travel agent says the industry has received unfair press during the pandemic. 
• Harrogate district residents were thought to go “staycation crazy” over summer. 

He hopes the pandemic will encourage more people to use travel agents after hearing stories of people unable to get refunds from some online companies.

The Coach and Horses pub in Harrogate faces an uncertain future as its appeal against the decision to revoke its licence threatens to drag on.

Solicitors acting on behalf of landlord John Nelson sent the appeal to magistrates in early August.

No date or location for the hearing has been set and the situation may not change for several months as the courts struggle to deal with a backlog in cases.

Harrogate Justice Centre, which is likely to hear the appeal, told the Stray Ferret it did not currently have the capacity for any private prosecutions and did not know when this might change.

Read more:

• Coach and Horses alcohol licence revoked
• Harrogate pub could be shut down over lockdown breaches
• Harrogate pub owners said they followed government guidelines

Harrogate Borough Council revoked the pub’s licence in July after it showed a “blatant disregard” for coronavirus social distancing rules.

Mr Nelson was allegedly “aggressive and abusive” towards council officials and the police when they served him a prohibition notice on May 31.

A total of 449 people signed a petition calling on the council to give Mr Nelson’s daughter, Samantha Nelson, the licence to run the pub.

At the licensing sub-committee where the council revoked the licence, Mr Nelson’s lawyer Paddy Whur said his client “accepted he made a chronic error of judgement”.

The Stray Ferret has approached the Coach and Horses several times to inquire about its future. We had still not received a reply by the time of publication.

A power cut in Harrogate this morning led to 6,603 homes losing electricity.

The power cut affected homes in the HG3 postcode, which includes Beckwithshaw, Killinghall and Pannal.

Northern Powergrid said power returned at 9.30am this morning.

Read more:

• One-way system in Kingsley will lead to ‘horrendous’ congestion

• People urged to have say on North Yorkshire council reorganisation

Residents say a one-way traffic system in an area in Harrogate where 650 new homes are proposed will lead to “horrendous” congestion on nearby streets.

Persimmon Homes and North Yorkshire County Council have sent consultation documents to local residents about the proposed scheme, which would stop traffic entering Kingsley Drive or Wreaks Road from Kingsley Road, near to Harrogate High School.

Persimmon said this will stop the two roads being used as rat runs.

However, residents say the one-way system will add to congestion on Kingsley Road and nearby Knaresborough Road and also suggest it is being proposed to move traffic away from a separate application from Persimmon on Kingsley Drive for 244 homes, which is yet to be granted planning permission.

A document that has been sent to residents from Persimmon Homes

John Hansard from the Kingsley Residents Action Group told The Stray Ferret that local residents “vehemently” opposed the proposal.

He said:

“It will create huge traffic jams on Kingsley Drive. It will be awful, it will be horrendous and it’s angered people in the area.”

Read more:

• Road through Granby park a ‘hammerblow’ for nearby residents

• 149 homes near Harrogate High School refused

A spokesperson for Persimmon Homes said:

“As part of our Section 106 planning obligation we are currently undertaking a consultation at our Kingsley Park development, on Kingsley Drive, to gauge local opinion on potential highway improvement schemes. Any decision on the one-way system will be made by North Yorkshire Highways.

“The outcome of the consultation, will determine if North Yorkshire Highways will progress the proposals further, should this be the case then a second, and more formal public consultation, will be completed.”

Last month, councillors refused 149 new homes on Kingsley Road because they said it would make already clogged roads in the area even worse.

Housing developer Richborough Estates faced a grilling from councillors who were not happy that the development was a 1km walk to the nearest bus stop. Cllr Pat Marsh called the traffic implications for the development “wrong, very wrong”.

The transport company Transdev has begun its new bus service from Harrogate to Leeds Bradford Airport.

The A2 Flyer bus, which replaced the 747 Flying Tiger service on Sunday, stops at local villages including Pannal, Huby and Poole-in-Wharfedale on the way to the airport. It also goes to Yeadon, Rawdon and Bradford.

An airport return ticket, valid for 28 days, costs £8.90 for a single adult and £15 for a group.

A seven-day ticket for one person costs £24 and a 28-day ticket costs £77.

The buses offer free WiFi and every seat has a USB charging point.

Transdev said in a statement the new route provided “a post-lockdown boost” to the regional economy.

Chief executive Alex Hornby said:

“We’re delighted to have secured a multi-year contract to introduce these amazing Flyer buses to Yorkshire. This new service is a very important element of our growth strategy and will attract new customers by creating buses that people are proud to be seen on.”

Read more:

• New bus service from Harrogate to Leeds Bradford Airport

• Thousands line streets for Harrogate Town’s open-top bus parade

The coronavirus pandemic has seen passenger numbers at Leeds Bradford Airport fall well below normal levels. Last week, Jet2 cancelled all flights to Ibiza, Menorca and Majorca for the rest of the summer season.

A former Ashville College pupil will attempt to swim across the English Channel later this month to raise money for Parkinson’s UK and the Alzheimer’s Society.  

The tough physical challenge will involve Richard Boyle swimming 35km in approximately 12 hours on 23rd September. 

The former rugby player will cross from Samphire Hoe, in Dover, to Cap Gris–Nez, near Calais. 

Richard has a fundraising target of £12,000. He has currently raised 89% of this amount.  

Due to the closure of swimming baths during lockdown, Richard has been training in suitable outdoor stretches of water. Recently his hard work paid off when he completed an 18km swim in 6 hours.  

Richard practicing for his big swim

Read More:

• Stray ferret in Harrogate kitchen goes viral
• Russell Crowe donates to fundraiser of Harrogate teen

A few years ago, Richard had to give up rugby following a back injury. Focusing on a new sport has helped him to process this change. 

The former Ashville pupil said: 

“Taking up swimming has helped plug that gap, so I have signed up to swim the English Channel in September, which is one of the toughest open water swims going.”

This was as an opportunity for Richard to raise money for causes close to his heart. With his grandfather suffering from Alzheimer’s, and his godfather from Parkinson’s, he decided to fundraise to support them.

He told the Stray Ferret: 

“Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s are two diseases which have touched my family. Both conditions are cruel and unrelenting. They strip those closest to you of characteristics which make them the person you know. I feel passionate about raising money to support them, and in doing so we will raise money to find a cure, help the people living with the illnesses, and also support their family and friends.” 

Parkinson’s UK drives for better care, treatments and quality of life for those living with the disease. Alzheimer’s Society is the UK’s leading dementia charity. They both campaign for change, fund research and support people living with dementia today. 

Richard’s fundraising page can be found at: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/RBchannelswim 

A video of a stray ferret in a kitchen in Harrogate has gone viral, having attracted 210,000 views on TikTok in two days.

Ashleigh Wilson feared there was a rat in the kitchen when her family returned home from walking the dog on Sunday to hear scratching behind a kick plate.

With the dog going berserk, she armed herself with a broom and set about recording the incident as she slowly removed the plate.

Here’s what happened:

@kidsvsmum

#wtff #help

♬ original sound – user8175306408969

Ms Wilson said:

“I thought it was going to be a rat so I was shocked when it turned out to be a ferret. To have a ferret in my kitchen is about the most Yorkshire thing that could have happened.”

Read more:

• Harrogate rescue centre
• ‘I found more than 30 pellet wounds in my cat’.

Ms Wilson contacted a ferret welfare organisation, which advised her to temporarily home the rodent in a high sided box containing meat and a blanket.

She did this and posted appeals on social media to find the owner. The posts were shared and shortly afterwards a neighbour a few doors down in the Jennyfields area of Harrogate got in touch to claim the creature.

It is believed the ferret escaped its enclosure, scurried down the road and entered the Wilsons’ home through a back door left open for the dog.

It isn’t the first time Ms Wilson, a cleaner, has discovered a strange creature in a house.

“I once found a frog in a house that I was cleaning,” she said.

Independent Ripon Councillor Andrew Williams has called on the actress Dawn French to distance herself from Bauer Media following the demise of Stray FM.

Bauer rebranded Stray FM as Greatest Hits Radio today in a move that has upset many local people.

Ms French has been the voice of Greatest Hits Radio since signing a deal with Bauer in December 2018.

Cllr Williams, who serves on Ripon City Council, wrote to her agent Kate Davie of United Agents saying he thought Ms French “would not wish to be associated with the closures of Stray FM and Minster FM”.

He added:

“Perhaps your client might wish to distance herself from such a travesty. She risks her own reputation being tarnished and damaged.”

Read more:

• Stray FM’s final broadcast
• Ripon schoolgirl’s generous gesture

Cllr Williams claimed the switch from Stray FM to Greatest Hits Radio was a “complete decimation of the local radio stations that have played an integral part within our local communities for decades”.

He said he had emailed Ms French’s agent both as a private resident and as a member of Ripon City Council, which falls within Stray FM broadcast area.

At the time of publication, neither Cllr Williams nor the Stray Ferret had received a response from Ms French or her agent.

In a press release in December 2018, when Ms French was announced as the ‘voice of the station’ Greatest Hits Radio, said:

“Nothing short of a comedy legend, Dawn embodies the station’s brand values and is well known to the UK public for decades of award-winning comedy and acting roles including playing the irrepressible Geraldine Granger in The Vicar of Dibley.”