Jeremy Clarkson told to shut Diddly Squat Farm's dining areas

A plan for a new restaurant at Jeremy Clarkson's farm was turned down by the council in January, but one opened in July

Jeremy Clarkson has been ordered to shut his farm's cafe and restaurant after a council claimed his business breached planning laws.

Mr Clarkson has appealed against an enforcement notice for Diddly Squat Farm after West Oxfordshire District Council (WODC) took action in August.

A restaurant opened in July, months after two applications were rejected.

The farm, in Chadlington, is featured in the Amazon Prime Video documentary series, Clarkson's Farm.

WODC ordered the farm to undertake a catalogue of measures within six weeks of it serving the notice on 12 August.

They include removing all mobile toilets, all tables that would be used by diners, and "landscaping materials".

It said there was "unlawful" use of the farm and said its "nature, scale [and] siting is unsustainable and incompatible with its countryside location within the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty".

The council said the farm must also stop selling products other than those made on the farm, those made within a 16-mile (25.7km) radius of it, or others that the council has allowed.

Mr Clarkson's farm shop has been popular with visitors - like these photographed in August - since it opened in 2020

In a statement, the authority said: "Council officers have worked with the owner and planning agents of the business, over many months, to investigate breaches in planning control, advising on how the business can be operated in a lawful way and trying to reach a solution.

"The business continues to operate outside the planning permissions granted and advice has been ignored. The activity has also had a significant impact on the local community."

But agents working on the farm's behalf denied it breached planning laws and said some of the requirements were "excessive".

It also said a map served by the council was wrong and that the notice "should be quashed in its entirety as a result".

The agent added the proposed six-week period to undertake the ordered work would be too short.

They said it would have a "serious and detrimental impact on the business and livelihoods of those employed at the site" and that six months would be a "more reasonable timeframe".

Long queues of visitors formed at Mr Clarkson's farm in the summer

Papers served by the Planning Inspectorate show it has accepted Mr Clarkson's appeal as valid and that representations must be made in coming weeks.

The former Top Gear presenter reportedly found a "delightful little loophole" and opened the restaurant in the summer, according to The Sun.

He said he had found another barn and notified WODC of the restaurant opening.

At the time, the council said it was looking to ensure the venue was "compliant with local and national planning law".

An application to extend the farm's car park was rejected in May.