Village at civil war after pig farmer sells land for controversial £600million historical theme park in heart of Oxfordshire
Neighbour disputes about overhanging trees and the odd boundary squabble were once all that punctured the tranquility of the Oxfordshire countryside. But the prospect of a £600 million theme park in the sleepy village of Bucknell has sparked a bitter local war, leaving the air thick with talk of traffic chaos, the Spice Girls and even links to Russia.
At the heart of it all is a proposal for a British outpost of Puy du Fou, a history-themed attraction set to be constructed on land north of Bicester, just off junction 10 of the M40.
The theme park will be modelled on a hugely popular facility in Pays de la Loire, western France, that features spectacular historical re-enactment shows rather than rides.
Since opening in 1977, Puy du Fou has grown to become the country's second-most visited theme park after Disneyland Paris, with a record 2.8 million visitors last year and an annual turnover of €3 billion (£2.5 billion).
But many Bucknell villagers are up in arms about the proposed development, branding the project, which would open its doors annually between April and October, a potential 'nightmare'.
'I'm against it purely on the logistics,' said Sarah Evans-Roberts, 64, Cherwell District Council's revenues and recovery officer.
'This road here will just become a further rat-run for staff going up there, and this road is ridiculous as it is.
'I think Bicester needs more attractions, so I'm not against the fact that we're getting an attraction, but I think there's plenty of brownfield sites that would be more suitable.
Puy du Fou amusement park in France has become the country's second-most visited theme park after Disneyland Paris, with a record 2.8 million visitors last year
But plans for a British outpost in the sleepy Oxfordshire village of Bucknell have been greeted with dismay by many locals, with some branding the project a potential 'nightmare'
A pig farmer who is selling his land for the controversial development, which will be sited just off junction 10 of the M40, says he has been shunned by furious locals
'There's plenty of space at ex-RAF sites up at Heyford Park. And it's not a case that I'm a Nimby either. It's just purely that the roundabout and the B4100 just will never cope.
'The proposed 2.5 million visitors a year, it's going to be ridiculous - and they're selling it on the basis that they believe people will be coming here on public transport.
'They won't be, because there isn't any. The same customers that go to Bicester Village will not be the same sort of customers that want to come here.
'I'm also quite worried about the way the French treat animals.
'Their animal rights rules and laws aren't quite the same as ours. That's just my opinion, because I'm an animal lover.'
No one has borne the brunt of local discontent more squarely than Derek Hedges, an 80-year-old pig farmer, and his wife Kate. The couple, who are selling land to make way for the development, said they have been given the cold shoulder by residents since the plans were announced.
'Some people will look the other way,' said Derek, describing the reaction of fellow villagers. 'They don't understand the pressures of pig farming. I mean, in 2022 the independent British pig industry went through hell.
'We were losing £10,000 a week for a whole year; nobody in the village came to me and said: "You all right, Derek, how are you coping with this?" It was worse than foot-and-mouth.
A medieval show is staged at Puy du Fou's site in Les Epesses, in the Pays de la Loire region of western France, which first opened its gates in 1978
'I've been living here for 29 years and we're being encompassed by the world,' said Nick Jones, above, a 66-year-old technical director living in the area
Neighbour disputes about overhanging trees and the odd boundary squabble were once about all that punctured the tranquility of the Oxfordshire village of Bucknell, pictured above
'I think people don't understand that they have the opportunity to deal with a group of people that want this project to go forward, that are going to run it.
'They're not coming to build it and then going away. They're not building warehouses, and then they're gone.'
Having been a prominent figure in village life for decades, Derek said he has struggled to come to terms with the reaction of fellow locals.
'I have done a lot in the village in my time,' he said. 'I've chaired every committee in the village, I've been involved with nearly every event that's ever happened in the village.
'I would take it somewhat slightly personally that people thought it was horrible. Some of the initial reactions were like it was a roller coaster ride-type fairground that was going to be put in, and it's not.
'I call it "theatre in the forest", because what I've seen in France, that's what it's like.'
Mr Hedges said his decision to sell the land was influenced by a combination of age and fatigue, but was mainly down to the expansion of nearby Bicester and a boom in local property development.
'Because of the growth of Bicester coming towards us - and a lot of villagers didn't really connect to this - it was putting pressure on our business,' he explained. 'There's no way we could have an intensive pig business adjacent to a part of the town. It wouldn't work.
A swashbuckling re-enactment show at Puy du Fou's site in Les Epesses, western France
'They're planting 20,000 trees and it's not going to have rollercoasters,' says local resident Colin Hornby. 'I see it potentially as the lesser of two evils.'
'I don't have a member of my family that really wants to continue pig farming. The pigs have been here a long time. We have fed lots of mouths over the years but we won't be in pigs any more.
'This village has been very close to my heart for a long time. The playing field is because of me. I've chaired the village hall for nearly 40 years. I've just retired, I've done lots of things. I've been a parish councillor for 30 years.'
Kate said the embittered reaction had taken the couple by surprise, with a number of misapprehensions on the part of fellow residents doing little to help.
'They're blaming us for everything, and they get some funny ideas,' she said.
'We were just looking for a way out of a complicated family business and we thought it would be nice. I knew they would complain about the traffic but I didn't expect this much backlash.
'Somebody knocked on the door and said: "They're going to be playing Spice Girls into the night. The noise will be terrific."'
Plans are expected to be formally submitted in the summer, but Puy du Fou have now launched a consultation. The company's owners are no strangers to criticism, having already faced down accusations of far-right political links and associations with Russia.
The park was founded in the 1970s by Philippe de Villiers, a French entrepreneur and politician with links to the far right who founded the political party Mouvement pour la France in 1994. The party's manifesto included a ban on building new mosques and the prohibition of gay marriage.
Puy du Fou — a historical attraction in Pays de la Loire, western France — is planning to create a British outpost in Cherwell, less than 20 miles north of Oxford
Chariot racing (pictured), gladiator shows and medieval sword fights are among some of the entertainment options on offer at Puy du Fou
Subject to planning approval and conditions, the immersive site could be built in the Oxfordshire countryside by 2028. Pictured: Puy du Fou
In January, De Villiers was among the most prominent guests at the funeral of Jean-Marie Le Pen, the founder of France’s National Front party. That group included former far-right presidential candidate Éric Zemmour, an established associate and friend whose views he has defended despite Zemmour having been found guilty of racist hate speech in the past.
Concerns over links to Russia were heightened when plans emerged to open a site in Moscow, but the company has since abandoned the idea amid concerns about the geopolitical climate in the country.
In a 'mythbusters' page on its website, Puy du Fou seeks to address such disquiet, pointing out that the company is run by a 10-strong board of executive directors who report to a chief executive and chairman, 'like any large international business'.
Claims of connections with Russia were likewise dismissed.
'Well over a decade ago Puy du Fou explored opening a park in Russia and were caught off guard by the rapid deterioration of the geopolitical situation in Russia and Crimea,' the company's website explains.
'Quite properly we cancelled this initiative once the international sanctions regime was established. The Russia project never went beyond an outline concept. We have had no involvement at all in Russia since then.'
Whether it will be enough to quell local concerns remains to be seen.
'I've been living here for 29 years and we're being encompassed by the world,' said Nick Jones, 66, a technical director living in the area.
'We're not a quiet country village any more. We've got 7,000 houses due just over there, and then suddenly we get Puy de Fou 500 metres from my back garden.
'We're just being overwhelmed by this. They're going to take more than 500 acres of prime farmland. They say: "It's not a theme park" - it's got a theme. It hasn't got any rides, but it's still a theme park. They're just trying to placate us.
'The infrastructure is not ready for it. Talking to the people we know in the village, most people are against it. In the last two weeks, four houses have gone up for sale in the village.'
Similar concerns were expressed by Steve Alderton, 67, a retired former motor trade worker.
'We've been here for about four and a half years,' he said. 'We moved here for a bit of a quieter life from Aylesbury. Now they're building 7,200 houses over there and Puy de Fou is coming.
'It's going to be a nightmare in this village. I can't see this lane being very quiet when it's open.'
Mr Alderton said he was most concerned about noise and traffic, added that he felt most locals were of a similar mind. Yet some offered a more neutral perspective.
'I am agnostic about it,' said Colin Hornby, a 45-year-old service manager. 'Ultimately the land that the Puy de Fou site is potentially going to go on to will be sold for something.
'I know the farmer down there, and I don't think he's able to continue farming and still make a profit - farming is so difficult nowadays.
'Ultimately, he will sell the land. And the question then is what goes there? Either a massive housing development, like is happening all around Bucknell at the moment, or warehousing, because they seem to like to build these massive warehouses all around the place.
'Pick your poison, really. Do you want a historical theme park? They're planting 20,000 trees and it's not going to have rollercoasters.
'I see it potentially as the lesser of two evils. I would prefer that to be built, rather than another huge housing estate with 5,000 houses.
'People are definitely strongly against it, especially the people who live closer - their peace and quiet is potentially going to be impacted by having noisy events happening there.
'Puy de Fou have done a very good marketing job trying to explain how they're going to shield from noise.
'They're saying all the right things, but you can never really tell what it's going to be like until it's actually there.'
In response to the level of local opposition, a Facebook group entitled We Want Puy du Fou UK has been created by supporters of the project.
Adam Goodger, who lives in Leicestershire, about an hour and 15 minutes' drive from the site, said he was a 'big fan' of the French theme park.
'I have loved visiting over the last few years,' said Mr Goodger. 'Puy du Fou is a theme park unlike any in the world.
'I'd argue theme park is the wrong phrase for it entirely, because when people consider the word "theme park" they think about rides and places like Alton Towers.
'Puy du Fou isn't that. It's some incredibly clever and innovative ideas that bring together the history of the country they are in.
'I've seen that there are a lot of people who are against the park being built. I don't live in the vicinity of where the park is likely to be built, but I do see their concerns, just as anyone would.
'But a lot of the comments I've seen are ill-informed and there has been little in the way of research about what Puy Du Fou really is.
'I'm glad to see that they recently created a mythbusting page in order to try and squash those rumours.
'Ultimately, we set up the group to keep people informed on the progress that is being made and the positives that bringing such a place can have, not only for the UK in general, but for the local area too.'
Puy du Fou's site in Les Epesses, in the Pays de la Loire region of western France, has been open since 1978. A second site in Toledo, Spain, has been operational since 2021.
It is envisaged the Oxforshire park would have four period villages and 13 live shows. Natural features including ponds, lakes, and gardens, as well as more than 40 acres of wildflower meadows and 20,000 new trees, are included in the plans.
'Every day we are open, tens of thousands of visitors in two countries witness the quality and popularity of Puy du Fou's work, as evidenced by the thousands of glowing reviews on social media, TripAdvisor, Google, Facebook etc,' said a spokesperson for Puy du Fou.
'Our visitors provide the best response to these negative and unfounded criticisms.'
