Johnny Vegas’ vintage bus Patricia sells out in just one hour at glampsite in Nidderdale

The Field of Dreams at Breaks Fold Farm features five vintage vehicles: Skoolie the American Bus, Billy the Snail, the Fire Truck, the Citroen Camper and Patricia - an old Maltese bus bought and renovated by the Benidorm and QI star and named after his late mum. His journey to convert the bus and find a site - with the help of assistant Bev and a gang of vintage vehicle enthusiasts - was documented in a Channel 4 series called Johnny Vegas: Carry on Glamping, which was broadcast in May.
When bookings went live, the entire summer was fully booked within four days - with Patricia reaching capacity in an hour.

Louise Pullan, who runs the farm with her partner Richard, said nobody had expected the venture to take off as well as it has.

She said: “Our success has overrun us really. None of us knew how well the show would be received. Channel 4 said to expect about 250,000 viewers but it has actually had two million. It has been a whirlwind, especially for me and Richard.”

Louise has also had to remind visitors that the site is their home.

She added: “At first, we were getting people wandering around on site taking pictures, I’ve had calls from actresses wanting to work with Johnny and we’ve received fan mail for him. To them, it was a show, but it’s our business and our home. Luckily things are starting to calm down now that all the episodes have been broadcast. Some of our neighbours aren’t overly happy, but we are doing our best to help tourism and the local economy. All the laundry goes to a local firm, we have hired cleaners from the area, I get hampers from a place in Harrogate and we are always sending our campers and glampers to the local pubs, and family attractions.

“Johnny is a lovely bloke too, and he is really invested in the site and in helping the Nidderdale tourist industry. The economy needs all the help it can get right now.”

For more information on the site, visit: www.breaksfoldfarmglamping.co.uk, or for details about any cancellations, follow bit.ly/3cNcx65.