Yorkshire Dales Food and Drink Festival cancelled: What we know so far as new refund statement issued after Facebook complaints

It followed a week in which four acts – including celebrity chefs James Martin and Rosemary Shrager – had pulled out of appearing at the event.

The event had due to be put on by a firm called Cocker Hoop Creative after after Events by B3 Ltd, the previous company which ran the popular event went into liquidation last year.

There has been anger and disappointment at the cancellation of the event, with hundreds of comments on the festival’s Facebook page from ticketholders and traders concerned about their prospects of receiving refunds.

In a statement announcing the cancellation, ticketholders were advised to attempt to reclaim money from their banks and credit card companies.

While many traders had been offered free pitches at the event after the 2024 festival was also called off following the collapse of Events by B3 Ltd, some said on Facebook they had paid hundreds of pounds in “admin fees” to attend this year’s event.

A spokesperson for Cocker Hoop Creative told The Yorkshire Post: "We have asked ticketholders to apply via their banks and credit card companies to ask for a 'chargeback'. This is due to the fact that we use an external ticket agency to collect sales - we don't hold card details. The payment companies will then claim the funds back from ourselves. We are seeking financial advice on trader fees and will work with businesses to find a resolution on refunds."

Cocker Hoop Creative’s most recently published accounts for the year to March 31, 2024, state the company was £88,000 in debt at that point. Earlier this month, a compulsory strike-off notice was issued for the company but was discontinued a day later.

This is what we know so far about the cancellation of the event.

Who had been due to perform at the 2025 event

James Martin, Rosemary Shrager and Simon Rimmer had been due to be among the chefs appearing at the end, while music acts billed included The Feeling and Go West.

Cocker Hoop Creative, which also runs the Lichfield Food Festival, had taken over responsibility for the festival having purchased the assets and intellectual property for the event following Events by B3 Ltd going into liquidation last year.

Jon Arrowsmith, Managing Director of Cocker Hoop Creative, said at the time of the takeover in June 2024: “There are many similarities between the Yorkshire Dales Food & Drink Festival and the Lichfield Food Festival, and we will bring our experience, commitment to excellence and determination to make this event a success to benefit residents, visitors and local businesses.”

He said traders who had paid to attend the cancelled 2024 event would be offered free pitches for the 2025 edition, while ticket holders for 2024 would also be offered discounts to attend in 2025.

Which acts withdrew, when, and the reasons they gave

Disco act Brutus Gold’s Love Train announced at Wednesday (July 2) lunchtime: “We regret to inform our fans that Brutus Gold’s Love Train will no longer be performing at the Yorkshire Dales Food & Drink Festival.

“This is due to the organiser's failure to meet contractual obligations, including non-payment. Despite our efforts to resolve the issue, we’ve had to withdraw from the event.

“We're truly disappointed and thank you all for your ongoing support.”

This was followed around three hours later on the same day by James Martin posting a two-sentence statement on his social media accounts stating he would not be attending the event.

He said: “I’m so sorry but unfortunately, due to circumstances outside of my control, I will no longer be appearing at The Yorkshire Dales Food and Drink Festival.

"Please contact the organisers if you have any questions.”

Fellow chef Galton Blackiston posted a similarly-worded statement on his Instagram page reading: “Unfortunately, due to circumstances outside of my control, I will no longer be appearing at The Yorkshire Dales Food and Drink Festival.

"Please contact the organisers if you have any questions.”

Mr Arrowsmith posted a video on the event’s Facebook page on Wednesday evening denying non-payment was the reason for Brutus Gold leaving the line-up for the event and promising the festival would still be a success despite the withdrawals.

He said: “We’ve not had a great day. We’ve lost James Martin who we were looking forward to coming along. We tried to reach a compromise but we couldn’t so unfortunately he has made the decision. We can’t change that. Galton cancelling, we didn’t even know about.”

He alleged Brutus Gold had been taken off the bill because they had been “abusive and argumentative” on messages.

Mr Arrowsmith said: “We asked them to apologise, they wouldn’t, so we cancelled.”

He added: "We have got a weekend packed full of entertainment, activity, cookery demonstrations, cookery schools, masterclasses, 250-odd traders. Aireville Park is going to be packed from 10am to 10.30pm. We are trying our best. When we took this festival on, we knew there were going to be challenges.

"We knew they were going to be lots of things coming against us, we didn’t realise how many things would be coming against us.

"But as a team and working with the council and local businesses, we are going to get this right. We are going to give you a weekend you are going to love.

"We will update you with the new chefs that are coming along, we will update you with any changes to the music. We will give you a weekend in Skipton that you are going to love.

"Please stick with us, please bear with us, everybody try and be nice for a change. Thanks for the support.”

On Thursday, a spokesperson for Rosemary Shrager confirmed to The Yorkshire Post that she would also not be at the event, but no specific reason was given.

The spokesperson said: “Rosemary will not be attending the Yorkshire Dales Food and Drink Festival this year.”

Despite the on-the-record statement confirming her cancellation which was double-checked by this newspaper, a festival spokesperson told The Yorkshire Post on Thursday evening that they still believed Ms Shrager would be in attendance at the event.

What the organisers said about cancellation – full statement

On Friday (July 4) lunchtime, the event was cancelled.

Jon Arrowsmith, managing director of Cocker Hoop Creative, said: “It is with a heavy heart that I must admit defeat and share the news that the Yorkshire Dales Food & Drink Festival will not go ahead this year.

"This is not a decision I have taken lightly. We have worked tirelessly over the last year to stage a festival that Yorkshire could be proud of, but there were too many challenges that we did not foresee at the start of this journey and too little time to fix them.

"Last year, we stepped in to save the festival from administration, driven by a promise to make things right for traders and ticket holders who had been let down. Since then, we’ve poured our heart and soul into rebuilding and reimagining the event.

"We offered 200 traders a free pitch. We lined up thousands of free masterclasses. We invited amazing chefs and music acts to join us. Every part of it was crafted with love, hope, and a deep belief in what this festival could be, but it wasn’t enough.

"When we lost our original location, the clock started ticking, and even with the best will in the world, we simply ran out of time to make it work at Aireville Park.

"I’m completely heartbroken and desperately sorry for letting everyone down. I know how much this festival means to the community, to the traders, to the ticket holders, and to my team who have given it everything.

"I am so, so sorry that we couldn’t make it happen. We truly tried our best, but in the end, it wasn’t enough.

"To reclaim the money from your tickets in the first instance, please contact your bank/credit card company/PayPal.”

Serious safety concerns revealed

On Saturday, The Yorkshire Post revealed serious health and safety concerns about the event had been raised in recent weeks with North Yorkshire Council.

A leaked report from a consultant who had previously worked for the event alleged a series of urgent changes were needed to the plans for the event to prevent it "posing an intolerable level of risk to attendees, staff, contractors and neighbours".

The report, dated June 18, alleged issues at the time of writing included there being no traffic management plan for the event or fire-risk assessment for the campsite, as well as no wet weather plan or drainage strategy. It said showers for the campsite had yet to be booked and permission was yet to be granted for three of the event’s planned car parks.

Cocker Hoop Creative said it did not recognise the claims and had “robust” health and safety plans in place. A spokesperson said the festival’s cancellation “has nothing to do with this report or any issues with health and safety”.

What North Yorkshire Council has said

In the hours before the cancellation announcement, North Yorkshire Council issued a statement in response to an inquiry by this newspaper about the health and safety concerns that had been raised about the event, which was due to take place on council land at Aireville Park.

The council’s corporate director of environment Karl Battersby said the authority were due to meet with organisers next week “when we will be asking for how they plan to resolve issues that have been raised in the report”.

He added: “We will only allow an event to go ahead if we are satisfied that it is safe for the public, which is of paramount importance.”

Following the cancellation being announced, a further statement from Mr Battersby was issued which said: “It is regrettable to hear that organisers of the Yorkshire Dales Food and Drink Festival have decided to cancel the event.

“We have worked closely with them to provide detailed feedback on their plans for the event, especially as the festival would have been held at Aireville Park, which we own, in Skipton.

“We remain committed to helping organisers bring the very best events to North Yorkshire. However, we have to be certain that these events are organised correctly and that they will be staged while following all the correct policies and procedures.”