Martin Clunes embroiled in fresh planning row over eco farm – after losing battle against traveller site by £5m home

MARTIN Clunes has been embroiled in a fresh planning row over an eco-farm set up next to his £5million home. Eco-friendly growers Andy Cream and Grace Burger want to develop land next to Clunes’ home and sell produce to the local community. Clunes previously lost a planning battle to stop a traveller site being set up near his £5million home Credit: BNPS The TV star branded planning officials ‘pious’ Credit: Shutterstock Editorial The growers have applied to to build a storage barn, two polytunnels and a greenhouse for their small business. But Clunes claims they will eventually apply to live on the plot of land and objected to the application. Sign up for the TV newsletter Thank you! The Men Behaving Badly star previously lost a long-running battle to prevent travellers from building a caravan site next to his property. New plans for an eco-farm are backed by New Age Traveller Theo Langton, who previously won his own planning battle with Clunes. Clunes claimed the couple would aim to live on the site Credit: ITV The Wuthering Heights star’s wife objected to the couple’s previous application Credit: BNPS Councillors backed the application for Langton and his partner Ruth McGill to set up an official travellers’ site close to Clunes’ home near Beaminster, Dorset. The couple lived in the 45ft by 16ft mobile home on a temporarily rolling licence for more than 20 years. They applied for planning permission for continued use of land as a private residential traveller site for “sole use of the applicants and family” and were approved. Clunes, 64, branded planning officials “pious” in a letter of objection to freshly submitted “flimsy” plans. Most read in TV The TV star raised concerns that the plans were a prelude to the couple setting up a permanent home on the land just 150 yards from his home where he lives with wife Philipa Braithwaite. Clunes claimed Dorset Council would ultimately allow Mr Cream and Ms Burger to do “whatever they liked” on the site. The couple initially submitted their plans for their eco-venture in July 2025 when they sought to build a temporary agricultural workers dwelling. But this was dropped following a backlash from neighbours, including Clunes and his TV producer wife Braithwaite. When the application was resubmitted in April, Clunes issued a letter of objection. He said the council would help the couple achieve their ultimate goal of living there despite the objections from local residents. His letter reads: “It seems that this application is the same as the original one made by this couple except that they no longer state that it is essential to their plans that they live at the site. “I think that it is safe to assume, given the flimsy nature of their business plan that living at the site is their ultimate goal. “From personal experience my advice to these applicants would be to carry on and do whatever they like on the land they have bought. “They can ignore any rulings or conditions applied by Dorset County Council as they will not enforce them. “After a few years of inactivity and a number of changes of the planning committee as their case is kicked down the line, the planning officer and committee will circle their wagons and hand-hold the applicants through an acceptance of whatever work or additions they have made to the land in the face of any objection raised by their neighbours and without any consultation with anyone affected by their actions. “In this way the council will seem to have not needed to enforce what they had not managed to enforce. “At no point will Dorset County Council address, acknowledge or apologise for any lack of action on their part as they are answerable to no one and operate without regulation. “In their piety the planning committee will say that each application is judged on its own merits, this is nonsense, precedent is everything. You’ll be fine.” Although she has not commented on the latest plans, Clunes’ wife Braithwaite previously objected to their initial application – when the couple announced their intentions to live on the land. She wrote: “The applicants say they want to live there permanently to take care of the vegetables which seems a roundabout way to get round the planning system so they can eventually convert the barn to a house. “We have had so many years of battles with people in the area living in the woods above the site and at Wintergreen Barn; people come and go all the year round and live there when they want a place to stay – my feeling is the same will happen on this site. “The area is a protected AONB where any planning decisions must protect or enhance the environment – these applications do neither and a large polytunnel and barn will detract from this magical piece of ancient land.” Named on planning docs as Mr Crean and Ms Burger the applicants said they want to create “a traditional market garden growing more than 100 varieties of seasonal vegetables, fruit, herbs and flowers across one acre of minimal tillage land.” Produce from their farm would be sold direct to the local community via a “veg box” scheme and to local businesses, such as greengrocers, restaurants, cafes and delis. Their application adds that production of fruit and veg within the area would reduce reliance on imported goods and help create resilient local food supply chains, supporting the local economy. Beaminster Town Council is against the plans, stating that the polytunnels and greenhouse would be out of keeping with the protected rural area. Another objection was issued by a Mr Strang – the same name as Martin Clunes‘ boozy character in the nineties sitcom Men Behaving Badly. Comment now