The last time residents of the small village nestled in the South Downs experienced anything quite like it was at the hands of the Luftwaffe.
Then, a stray bomb dropped during the Second World War caused £200 of damage to the local school – and left the rectory without electric lighting and a functioning bath.
Eight decades on and the villagers’ latest ‘enemy’ is, to say the least, considerably closer to home. Last weekend Dean Richmond, who recently bought a £4million property in the village, hosted a fireworks party at his new country estate. According to him, the professional display – complete with music and food for the guests – lasted just six minutes.
But, a week later, the fallout is still very much being felt. Locals say they were given no warning about the fireworks, which some likened in their intensity to a battlefield. ‘The bangs were so loud that they went through your chest,’ said one. ‘It was like a war zone.’
One woman in her 80s was so startled she thought someone was breaking in to her home. Another thought there had been a plane crash. But by far the worst toll was that inflicted on pets and animals. Dog owners told of animals ‘vomiting’, ‘losing control of their bowels’ and displaying signs of extreme distress.
More badly affected still were horses. Some spoke of having to rush to their stables to administer sedatives to the panicking animals, while those outside spent the night careering around fields, damaging fences and gates. Tragically, it is claimed that one horse was left so badly injured it had to be put down.
Anger towards Mr Richmond, 52, has been heightened by one key fact – he is the multi-millionaire boss of Pets Corner, a retail chain selling pet supplies, prompting accusations of hypocrisy. Billing itself as the UK’s ‘leading ethical pet retailer’, just days before he hosted his party, the company posted online guidance warning owners to keep animals calm during firework season. The advice was deleted shortly after the bonfire night party was held at his seven-bedroom home in West Sussex.
‘Someone who is the leader of a business that claims to be ethical and care about pets should perhaps review his personal ethics and see if they align with the business he runs,’ said one woman, whose rescue dog was left terrified by the explosions.
‘You have a responsibility, as a senior businessperson, responsible for a large organisation that claims to care for pets – you have a public position.’
Dean Richmond (pictured) is causing a stir in a small South Downs village after he hosted a firework party. According to him, the professional display – complete with music and food for the guests – lasted just six minutes
Mr Richmond’s girlfriend Sarah Louise Wiffen. Anger towards Mr Richmond, 52, has been heightened by one key fact – he is the multi-millionaire boss of Pets Corner, a retail chain selling pet supplies, prompting accusations of hypocrisy
Another believed the fireworks were responsible for scaring their dog: ‘He cowered in a corner unable to move and we then found he had been incredibly sick. He was panting and trembling for over two hours before we could calm him down. It is particularly upsetting and ironic that this came from the CEO of a company whose customers rely on its products to reduce anxiety in their pets.’
Matters came to a head on the night when another local, who asked not to be named, confronted Mr Richmond at his home about the chaos unfolding in her stables. She claimed: ‘He laughed in my face and said, “No, I don’t need to let anyone know, it’s my land, it’s my property, I can do what I want, it’s not illegal, they should have been in their stables”.’
As news of the party this week spread beyond the village, so did the backlash against Mr Richmond – and his business. Writing on online review site Trustpilot, pet lovers vowed to boycott his stores. ‘What an absolute disgrace of an owner,’ wrote one man, giving the company one star out of five. ‘Don’t worry about your animals just watch my massive fireworks.’
Another added: ‘If this company feels having an individual in charge of a business who shows so little care and concern of animals is suitable, then they are not a business for me.’
Alerted to the strength of feeling locally, Mr Richmond quickly issued a grovelling apology which was duly posted on the village Facebook group. In it he said he was ‘deeply saddened’ to hear about the death of the horse, accepted he should have warned more of his neighbours and promised to never again hold another fireworks display.
But he denied ‘laughing’ at the resident, writing: ‘I want to make it absolutely clear that this is untrue. I took her comments seriously and was sorry to learn she was upset.’ He signed off: ‘I very much want to live in the village for many years with my family and I truly wish to contribute positively to its success and the well-being of all our fellow residents.’
Given the last few days, that may be something of an uphill battle. Mr Richmond only moved into the property last October, having recently split from his wife Karen Koramshai, a model and the mother of their three children.
Earlier this year, the Daily Mail told how the couple have been embroiled in a £100 million divorce battle – a fortune founded on the nation’s love of pets.
Fireworks at Mr Richmond’s house. One woman in her 80s was so startled by the display she thought someone was breaking in to her home. Another thought there had been a plane crash. But by far the worst toll was that inflicted on pets and animals
Born in Cuckfield, Sussex, the flamboyant tycoon started out making birdfeeders and rabbit runs from home but needed money for a car, so in 1989 went to work in his parents’ shop – Pets Corner. A decade later, having left school with four GCSEs, he bought the business from them and has since overseen its growth to more than 150 stores. In a recent interview he said that the key to its popularity has been customer service, staff knowledge and a dedication to animal welfare.
As the business grew, so Mr Richmond started to enjoy the trappings of success. He met his wife when he was in his early 30s. The daughter of an Iranian architect and Scottish mother, Ms Koramshai was raised in Brazil where her parents worked.
At 18, she moved to England to study then started modelling while also carving out a successful career working for women’s magazines. She eventually became the commercial account director for Elle in Paris.
More recently she has spoken publicly about her battle with so-called Breast Implant Illness and her decision in 2023 to get her implants removed. Posting on Instagram after the operation, she wrote: ‘Looking back, my health is much better, I don’t have any of the symptoms that I had. It was just my body saying I can’t cope with this. I had these signs but it’s like you’re in denial – you don’t want to listen because I love my breast implants.’ She now describes herself as an ‘explant advocate’ and a wellness coach.
Five years ago, the couple opened the doors of their sumptuous then-family home to Hello! magazine. The £3million five-bedroomed mock-Tudor property was set in five acres of landscaped gardens overlooking the Sussex countryside and boasted an indoor pool and basement cinema. Fast forward to earlier this year and the Daily Mail revealed that the couple’s marriage had broken down – and that Mr Richmond had moved on with a new lover, model Sarah Louise Wiffen.
A source said: ‘Dean started spending more time away from home, jet-setting around the globe for business and holidays while Karen was suffering from medical conditions caused by her breast implants. It put a huge strain on their marriage. Things were not good at home for quite a while and it all came to a head last year. She’s the one that asked him to move out and said that she wanted a divorce because she couldn’t take it any more.’
Mr Richmond has denied that was the case, telling the Daily Mail: ‘It’s not true that my marriage ended because my wife was unwell, neither was there infidelity on either side. This was a personal matter that I wanted to keep private to protect our children.’
The couple have already appeared in the High Court for a number of divorce hearings with a final session reportedly listed for ten days next April.
Mr Richmond’s home in in a small village in South Downs.
After accepting the marriage was over, Mr Richmond was introduced to his new love interest by mutual friends and is said to be serious about his new relationship. Glamorous Ms Wiffen, 38, has modelled for the likes of Bentley and is friends with TV host Joel Dommett and his wife Hannah Cooper.
Although she and Mr Richmond do not live together, she was among the guests at the fireworks party. Footage posted on her Instagram account last Saturday showed the sky above the estate erupting into blinding colour.
But the display – which formed part of a fully catered event with musical acts – sent animals in nearby paddocks into panic.
Posting a video on Facebook as the night sky was lit up by the thunderous barrage, one local wrote: ‘Surrounded by farmland and livestock and with absolutely no warning for the community –the first bang genuinely sounded like a bomb going off… the hypocrisy and irony of the man, that claims on his website to
care about our pets, behaving this way is wild.’
As for the owner of the horse which died, shortly after the display she described to the Daily Mail how she and her daughters had found it badly injured in its paddock. ‘The horses in the field at home were galloping and galloping and would not stop,’ she said. ‘Neighbours were messaging us to see what was going on. We had no warning of this.
‘In the morning we went to check our horses across the road and only found three.
‘Across the field one of them was down. I knew instantly he was hurt. My three daughters were with me and witnessed this. We are all heartbroken.’
In his subsequent message of apology to villagers, Mr Richmond wrote that it was never his ‘intention to cause inconvenience or distress’. He insisted he had informed ‘several neighbours nearby’ in advance, adding: ‘But with hindsight, I appreciate that I should have shared that information more widely.
‘I am genuinely sorry for any upset this may have caused. The event was carefully planned to take place earlier in the evening to minimise disruption and the bonfire area was securely fenced to protect any nearby wildlife. The display itself was conducted by a professional fireworks company and intended as a celebration with friends, family and local neighbours. I was deeply saddened to hear a horse may have been injured and subsequently put to sleep. This is truly distressing news and I am in direct contact with the owners.
‘The field where the horses were kept is over 800 metres from the display site which I had understood to be outside the area likely to be affected.’
He pointed out that ‘it’s only an allegation’ that his fireworks caused the horse’s injury saying that ‘there were other displays in the area that evening’.
And he added: ‘As someone who cares deeply about animals –including my own two dogs – I am sincerely sorry for any distress the event may have caused.’
Pets Corner later issued a statement distancing itself from the event, stressing it was a private matter and not company-related. But in a bid to reassure staff and customers ‘who may have become aware of the situation’ the statement added: ‘Dean was brought up on a smallholding surrounded by animals – horses, ducks, bantams, tortoises, dogs and cats, among others. His mother was a keen horse rider and Dean himself also rode. His grandparents spent part of their lives working as farmers.
‘An annual firework display was a long-standing family tradition when Dean was growing up, with his parents hosting small bonfire events for friends and family.
‘Dean wished to continue this tradition by holding a similar event at his home this year for friends, family and neighbours.’
The statement repeated Mr Richmond’s denial that he had laughed at a resident, saying: ‘During the evening, a woman arrived at the property and was verbally aggressive towards Dean’s children and then towards Dean himself regarding the fireworks. Dean’s home is situated a distance from the main village and is surrounded by farmland and public footpaths. He personally informed his nearest neighbours – including two local farms covering large areas around his property – about the event.
‘Unfortunately, he did not realise that others further away might be impacted. He accepts that he should have communicated more widely and regrets this oversight.’
It added that ‘some of the comments and accusations circulating online are untrue’ and warned: ‘Any aggressive or threatening behaviour directed toward Dean, his family or any member of the Pets Corner community will be reported to the police and dealt with appropriately.’
