Conservative MP for Harrogate & Knaresborough, Andrew Jones, has called for long-term support for the events sector, which he said has been “severely impacted” by covid in Harrogate.

Speaking in the House of Commons yesterday, Mr Jones said it was “fantastic to see” the Great Yorkshire Show taking place this week but warned that the events industry will take some time to get back on its feet.

He mentioned Harrogate International Festivals, which is due to host the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival next week. The charity’s chief executive Sharon Canavar told the Stray Ferret last month she has had to make some “nerve-wracking” decisions due to uncertainty over when restrictions will be eased.

Mr Jones said:

“There are other important events and event organisations, such as Harrogate International Festivals, that have been severely impacted.

“I am aware that we have talked about this sector before, but events and circumstances are evolving, so could we have please a further debate on long-term support for the events industry? It adds so much to the quality of life in the United Kingdom and it may need extra help in the future.”

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Leader of the House Jacob Rees-Mogg responded by saying that the Harrogate Convention Centre is to host two test pilot events for conferences next week, which will help inform how the sector moves forward.

He added:

“The government know how badly the sector has been hit by the pandemic and will continue to encourage and engage with people to monitor the situation and try to support a recovery plan.

“I accept that this will be a longer-term effort, but I think that beginning to get back to normal from Monday will begin to be helpful.”

Back in February, Mr Jones also called for a debate on the sector which he said was “central to the economy” of both Harrogate and Knaresborough.

The first events back at the Harrogate Convention Centre are still set to go ahead despite the lockdown delay.

Home and Gift Buyers Festival and the Manchester Furniture Festival will both be in the convention centre from July 18 to July 21.

It will mean the event will run for one day before the coronavirus restrictions are potentially eased on July 19.

Clarion Events, which is organising the events, has said it is working closely with local authorities to ensure it is safe.

Visitors will be asked to provide a negative lateral flow coronavirus test on the door or proof of double vaccination and wear a face mask.

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There will be wider aisles, increased ventilation and daily cleaning regimines to try and prevent the spread of coronavirus as well.

Entry to both the Home and Gift Buyers Festival and the Manchester Furniture Festival is free. Visitors will need to register attendance here.

Show director Russell Rule said:

“With the backing of our key customers, venue, and local authorities, we can see that the appetite and enthusiasm is there for an in-person buying and selling event.

“There is great excitement from both exhibitors and visitors to reconnect in Harrogate.”

A Harrogate DJ who has turned to plumbing over the last year is anxiously waiting for the moment he can get behind the decks again.

Ed Marshall has kept a keen eye on the coronavirus numbers recently, particularly in the run-up to the full lifting of lockdown on June 21.

Like many in the industry, the past year has been hard for Ed. He has been a DJ for 25 years but has lost thousands of pounds in cancelled events due to coronavirus.

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When coronavirus first hit he suffered more than 30 cancellations in one day. Soon his packed schedule had been reduced to nothing.

Instead he has thrown himself full-time into his brother’s plumbing business Andy Marshall Plumbing and Heating.

The government has not yet confirmed all restrictions will be lifted this month but many of Ed’s clients are confident and have booked him for events. He told the Stray Ferret:

“It’s all I have known, going out and doing parties so the last year has been a nightmare.

“I think people are looking forward to it. I mean the first event I have got booked is a young farmer’s 21st birthday so it’s going to be absolutely mental.

“Well I thought maybe it’s nice to have a couple of months as a break but nobody was expecting more than a year.

“I have got a really good day job but for people out there who rely on the entertainment industry, they have been forgotten.”

Are you in an industry keen to get back to work on June 21? Tell us your story by sending an email to contact@thestrayferret.co.uk.

Sixty-six years after it disbanded, coronavirus has inspired the revival of the Yorkshire Symphony Orchestra to support talented musicians in the north of England.

Last year has been particularly tough for the live music industry. Members of the orchestra have taken jobs as bricklayers and baristas to get by.

After dusting down and tuning up their instruments, the ensemble is now ready for a series of concerts this summer.

The orchestra is set to perform its first public event at the Picnic Proms at Harewood House in September. Find tickets here.

The original group disbanded in 1955, leaving Yorkshire without a county orchestra for decades.

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Others have tried to bring back the Yorkshire Symphony Orchestra name before. But they have only ever been able to play a couple of gigs before disbanding.

Ben Crick, the composer and conductor, believes this attempt will last. He told the Stray Ferret:

“We are not in it for anything else other than to make music. It’s a privilege to make music with your friends and colleagues again. It’s a fantastic thing to do.”

Jamie Hudson, co-founder of the orchestra, added:

“These are professional musicians who have done this all their lives. Suddenly they had to become baristas and dog walkers.

“So we brought back the orchestra to re-employ the best musicians who have had to jump into other types of work.”

The Yorkshire Symphony Orchestra performing at Harewood House. Photo: Gary Lawson Photography

The organisers of Tockwith Show have cancelled this year’s event due to “continuing uncertainty” about the impact of covid.

This year’s show, which was scheduled for August, was due to be the 75th since it was first staged in 1945.

However, Tockwith and District Agricultural Society’s committee said there were “too many question marks” over what would be allowed and how to ensure public safety in order to make this year’s event viable.

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Michelle Lee, the show’s president, said the committee did not want to hold an event that did not match up to the quality of previous years.

She said:

“The simple problem is we just don’t know what is going to be happening in August, whether there will be any restrictions still in force and what we would be required to do as the show organisers to meet any future guidelines.

“It would be great if we could leave it until July and then make a decision, but the reality of organising one of the biggest agricultural shows in Yorkshire is that the preparation needs to begin months ahead of the event, and we are already well past the time when decisions need to have been taken.”

Organisers still hope to hold the annual bonfire and fireworks night will still be held at the showfield in November.

Ms Lee added:

“It’s tempting to say by November everything will be back to some form of normality but, again, without a crystal ball we just don’t know.”

Ripley Show has also been cancelled due to the pandemic.

The organisers of Masham Steam Engine and Fair Organ Rally also postponed their event as there were “still too many uncertainties to proceed”.

The Great Yorkshire Show is still planned to go ahead this year and will be held over four days for the first time in its history.

Birstwith Show is also scheduled to take place on July 31.

Horrible Histories is heading to Harrogate in April for a car park show at the Yorkshire Event Centre.

The centre, which is based at the Great Yorkshire Showground, will host Barmy Britain shows at 2pm and 5pm on April 3.

The event will also take place at Harewood House on April 5 at 11am.

It will feature the stories of Queen Boudica, King Henry VIII, Guy Fawkes, Dick Turpin, Queen Victoria and more.

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Families sitting in cars will be able to watch actors on stage and on a large screen while listening on their radios.

The audience can get involved by honking horns, flashing lights and turning on their wipers.

Neal Foster, actor and director at Birmingham Stage Company, said:

“I’m over the moon to be back on tour with Barmy Britain after its hugely successful tour last summer.

“It’s weird and wonderful to be performing in car parks and to see the audience having fun behind their windshields. We can’t wait to get back out there.”

The Birmingham Stage Company has produced 18 different Horrible Histories shows and taken them around the world.

Tickets are available here for the Harrogate and Leeds shows and cost £42.50 per car or £62 per car on the front row.

As 2020 draws to a close, the Stray Ferret looks back at the news stories that stood out among a year of extraordinary events.

Today, we reveal the most popular stories on our site since we launched at the beginning of March.

10. Events company folds after 46 years

Andrew Manby, director of Joe Manby Ltd.

The tenth most-read story on our site this year was a sad one for those involved – and for many others.

After months of uncertainty for the events industry, long-standing family firm Joe Manby Ltd was put into liquidation.

Director Andrew Manby had been warning for many months about the threat to the sector, with events unable to go ahead and no sign of improvement on the horizon.

Readers and fellow business owners expressed shock and sympathy after the news was announced.

9. Eat Out to Help Out

Restaurants and cafes took part in the Eat Out to Help Out scheme

When the government scheme to encourage hospitality spending was launched, businesses in the Harrogate district signed up with enthusiasm.

Residents were also keen to show their support, as our ninth most popular story shows. With more than 100 businesses on the list, locals checked in to see where they could get a discount on dining out early in the week.

8. Six workers rescued from Ripon takeaway

In September, six people were rescued from a Ripon takeaway after local residents raised concerns about their living and working conditions.

Agencies including the Gangmasters and Labour Abuse Authority, Immigration Enforcement, Harrogate Borough Council and the police and fire service swooped on the takeaway, which was not publicly identified.

As a result, six people were placed in temporary accommodation. Officers reported several possible indicators of labour abuse but could not find any signs of modern slavery offences.

The council and the fire service said they would investigate a number of housing and fire safety issues at the property.

The story was our eighth most-read of the year.

7. Many hospitality businesses will not reopen

In his first column for the Stray Ferret, Peter Banks, MD of Rudding Park, gave an honest account of his expectations for the future of his industry.

Writing in early May, he said the first week of the pandemic’s impact was the worst of his professional life. However, in a rapidly changing climate, he soon found himself trying to work out how the hotel would reopen – and concluding that, for many, it would never happen.

The column proved hugely popular, especially with our audience on social media, and is seventh on our list of most-read stories of the year.

Today, we published Mr Banks’s reflections on the year in hospitality – including the last-minute bombshell delivered by the government to scupper plans for New Year’s Eve.

6. Long queues outside Harrogate shop after pubs close

Queues formed outside the Tesco Express shop in Harrogate’s town centre just after 10pm.

When the 10pm curfew on hospitality came in, many said it would only lead to a rush of people onto the streets all at the same time.

This appeared to be true, as the queue outside Tesco on Cambridge Road showed on Saturday, October 24 just after 10pm.

The same happened again the following week, and both stories proved popular with local readers. It’s at number six on our list.

5. Harrogate district to enter tier two restrictions

As the second national lockdown ended in early December, the decision about which tier the Harrogate district would be placed in drew a lot of attention.

Readers were eager to find out what restrictions they would face – and local businesses were also keen to know if they could open and trade in the vital few weeks before Christmas.

The story was the fifth most-read of the year. Yesterday’s announcement of the district’s move into tier three from New Year’s Eve is the most-read story in December.

4. Coach and Horses has alcohol licence revoked

Police were called to the Coach and Horses pub by concerned locals in May

In July, long-standing West Park pub the Coach and Horses had its alcohol licence revoked by Harrogate Borough Council after a dispute over their compliance with lockdown rules in May.

The pub opened to sell take-out beer, but as crowds gathered on the pavement and across the road by the Stray, police and council enforcement staff arrived.

Their accounts of the situation suggested landlord John Nelson had been “aggressive and abusive”, though at the licensing hearing his lawyer said he accepted he had made a “chronic error of judgement”.

The committee revoked Mr Nelson’s licence with the support of North Yorkshire Police, and the report on the decision was our fourth most read story of the year.

Three months later, his daughter Samantha was successful in her application for a licence to reopen the pub.

3. Police attend serious incident near Harrogate town centre

A man died and another was treated in hospital after an incident on Harcourt Drive, on the edge of Harrogate town centre.

On a quiet Sunday evening in late August, the incident shocked neighbours and the wider community. It was the third most read story of 2020 on our website.

Police later confirmed the incident was not being treated as suspicious and an inquest would be held to examine the circumstances of the man’s death.

2. Harrogate’s Stray FM to close

Owners Greatest Hits Radio announced the end of Stray FM in May

Residents of the district were shocked by the announcement in May that Stray FM would be disappearing from the airwaves.

Though owners Greatest Hits Radio described the plans as a ‘rebrand’, the reality was that there would be mostly national programming on the station from September, with one regional show each day at drivetime.

As well as the ending of a familiar brand established in 1994, community groups expressed their sadness at the loss of the station’s valuable support.

The announcement of the plans was our second most-read story of 2020.

1. Town centre roads closed by police

Police closed off Mayfield Grove junction with Bower Road. Picture: Sharon Canavar.

A police incident near the centre of town on a Friday afternoon drew our biggest audience of the year.

A man was arrested for saying he had a knife and making threats to other residents.

Officers closed a number of roads around Strawberry Dale while they dealt with the situation, leading to congestion on surrounding routes. The roads were reopened after around 90 minutes.

A second man was arrested for obstructing the police, separately to the original incident.

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Christmas is certainly not cancelled in the Harrogate district. There are plenty of events still going ahead this festive season despite the restrictions.

Under the tier two rules large events can go ahead with 1,000 capacity indoors and 2,000 outdoors.

While it is unlikely that these events will draw in close to those numbers, some have sold out already but there’s plenty more to do.

Drive in cinema at Ripley Village

What-a-movie is returning this Christmas after a successful series of screenings in the summer.

This time Ripley Village, between Harrogate and Ripon, will be the venue of choice for seven Christmas movies on December 19 and 20.

There will be contactless ticket scanning on entry, marshalled parking in bays and snacks can be delivered to cars.

Glow at RHS Harlow Carr

RHS Harlow Carr is holding a special lights event called Glow every Thursday, Friday and Saturday evenings up to Christmas.

It will also be open three days before new year. Tickets are currently sold out but with some last minute cancellations spaces do occasionally become available.

This year the lights are extended to include the entire length of the streamside and illuminates Harlow Carr’s iconic features.

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Festivities at Fountains Abbey

Sticking with the theme of lights, Fountains Abbey is also holding a special Christmas event this year.

Every weekend in December and from Boxing Day to January 1 the National Trust site near Ripon will be open for a full festive day.

When the sun starts to go down the abbey will glow with bright and colourful lights and while there will be no bands or choirs there will be Christmas songs for a sing a long.

Lightwater Valley Christmas events

Lightwater Valley is also holding a Festive Family Fun day which has been running since the end of November.

The park is lit up with giant lanterns, illuminated sculptures with an Alice in Winterland theme.

There is also a stage featuring festive visitors and puppet performances and rides will be open if the weather allows.

Lightwater Valley manager Colin Bowes recently confirmed that he had added additional dates after a spike in interest.

Enchantica virtual sing along

Tinsel the Elf and Father Christmas, who are normally part of Harlow Carr’s grotto are also going virtual this year.

The pair have produced a festive sing along video to capture the magic of the grotto. It will give children the opportunity to tell Santa what they would like for Christmas.

It is a 20 minute show that starts with a personalised greeting for up to four children and Tinsel will take them on a visit to Santa at the North Pole.

A Remembrance service will be held at the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery in Harrogate next month, but with just a handful of people taking part.

Usually attended by dozens of dignitaries and organisations, the Stonefall event will this year be on a much smaller scaled because of covid restrictions.

Harrogate Brigantes Rotary Club said a few of its members will lay wreaths on behalf of the Royal British Legion, politicians and local service groups. They will also lay a special wreath on behalf of the New Zealand city of Christchurch to remember those that came from across the world to serve.

Reverend David Hoskins will still give a blessing at the closed event on November 8 at 1pm. A few members of the club will lay wreaths on behalf of the Royal British Legion, politicians and local service groups.

Read more:

• Ripon and Harrogate resplendent in readiness for remembrance
• Harrogate district to mark Remembrance Day at home this year

After the wreath laying, the Commonwealth War Graves Cemetery will be open to the public for quiet contemplation around the stone of remembrance.

The Brigantes Rotary Club has asked the Harrogate community to “remember in your hearts and say a silent thank you to those who gave their lives for the freedoms we enjoy today.”

Meanwhile, the church service and parade through Knaresborough will also not go ahead. The Knaresborough branch of the Royal British Legion has asked residents to hold their own two-minute silences at home instead.

Harrogate’s town centre parade and service has also been called off.

A new book unlike any you have seen before will light up the Library Gardens in Harrogate for this weekend only.

The light installation will shine bright as authors take to the digital stage for the Raworths Harrogate Literature Festival.

As the sun sets the pages will turn and share well-known tales as well as the story of Harrogate.

The free exhibition will also feature ten-word stories from best-selling authors and Harrogate residents – the same as those that have been popping up around town on posters.

Read more:

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• Writing on the wall ahead of Harrogate literature festival

The organisers Harrogate Festivals International say there will be plenty of room for watching the book and they will also ensure social distancing measures are followed.

Harrogate’s literature festival is now in its 12th year but will, like many events, be online due to social distancing requirements.

The festival will run from today until Sunday. It will be streamed on HIF Player on the Harrogate International Festivals’ website.

It comes at a difficult time for the organisation, which has been forced to cut more than half of its jobs.

Harrogate International Festivals said it made the cuts after missing out on an estimated £850,000 due to coronavirus. The arts charity, which was set up in 1966, now has just four staff remaining.