Villages are being turned into fortresses ahead of Europe’s biggest gypsy gathering – but this year the chaos has already begun.
Weary locals are used to the disruption and disorder that accompanies the annual Appleby Horse Fair, but are bracing themselves for trouble as, in some areas, the influx of an anticipated 10,000 travellers has started early.
A special police task force has so far dealt with offences of burglary, criminal damage, racist abuse, knife crime and faced a torrent of criticism after finding it necessary to handcuff a 10-year-old boy.
The surge in crime around quaint Kirkby Lonsdale in Cumbria is causing anxiety amongst locals because the fair isn’t even due to start until Thursday June 5th.
So far local sporting venue, Kirkby Lonsdale Cricket club has seen its pavilion smashed up, as no windows remain in the wooden structure. Residents of the historic town have also been threatened and intimidated.
There has been petty vandalism at a campsite and a knife waved during a confrontation between locals and traveller children.
All the complaints have led the police to the makeshift camp in a layby at the town’s Devil’s Bridge where dozens of caravans have congregated ahead of the fair in Appleby, which is 40 miles away.
A field has been handed over by the town for the gypsies to graze their horses as a safety measure to make sure they aren’t causing a hazard tethered on roadside verges.
Villages are being turned into fortresses ahead of Europe’s biggest gypsy gathering – but this year the chaos has already begun (Pictured: Gypsies using a business park car park which was blocked by containers in Kirkby Lonsdale)
Items left by groups of Gypsies in Kirkby Lonsdale as they travelled to the annual Appleby Horse Fair
So far local sporting venue, Kirkby Lonsdale Cricket club has seen its pavilion smashed up, as no windows remain in the wooden structure
Locals say they have never seen so many Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT) people descend on the town so early. And that may well be down to the successful clampdown in nearby Kirkby Stephen in Cumbria’s Eden Valley.
For years the town was the focus of the pre-fair gathering but in the recent past locals have fought back, closing down services and pubs and shutting off the places where travellers would usually set up camp.
One Kirkby Lonsdale local told MailOnline: ‘They seem to have descended on us this year and have come earlier and in bigger numbers than we have seen before.
‘There have been problems caused by gypsy children in the town centre and closer to the camp they have set up in a layby.’
And now the local cricket club, nestled in a picturesque setting, on the edge of the town has been left with no windows after the pavillion was smashed up.
Cumbria Police say three 10-year-old boys – only just within the age of criminal responsibility – were arrested over the attack as part of the wider Appleby Fair policing operation.
A cricket club spokesman raged against the ‘mindless thuggery’ and described the damage caused as ‘heartbreaking.’
The club posted on its social media channels: ‘We have had serious vandalism and attempted vandalism at KLCC.
‘So many people have worked hard to get the pavilion safe, and enjoyable for cricketers, Sedbergh School kids, our new ladies team, and all of our supporters.
‘The clubhouse now just looks awful, with damage inside from a broken window from an attempt to break in, and now the boards we’ve had to put over all the windows.
Locals say they have never seen so many Gypsy, Roma and Traveller (GRT) people descend on the town so early
A local business park in Kirkby Lonsdale tried in vain to stop gypsies useing their car parks by blocking entrances with containers
But travellers simply smashed down a fence and drove across the verge to occupy the site, leaving a trail of damage behind
‘There have been problems caused by gypsy children in the town centre and closer to the camp they have set up in a layby,’ a local said
‘The stress this causes from absolute mindless thuggery, to no actual gain is heartbreaking for all involved. So if you do happen to be going past, and have a look at the eyesore of boarding, or see anyone trying to damage, please get in touch with us or the police.
‘As always, we will come back from it, rebuild, and show strength as a club. Cumbria Police have been incredibly helpful, and have an investigation ongoing, hopefully we can find out who is causing us so much pain.’
There were also problems at Woodclose Park caravan site where police investigated reports of criminal damage and the racial abuse of a security guard.
It was reported that a group of traveller children had been abusive to staff and when asked to leave the park’s reception set off fire extinguishers.
A spokesman for the park said: ‘The matter has been dealt with by the police.’
In an earlier incident police detained and handcuffed two traveller children after a penknife was produced in front of a shocked local on a riverside path.
The police action in the layby at Kirkby Lonsdale was captured on video by the boys’ mother, showing one of her sons in tears tethered by the wrist to a policeman.
The mum posted: ‘Our boys were put in handcuffs on the basis of False allegations! Pure abuse of power and provoking behaviour! Bullying 10 year olds!
A distressed mother has accused police of ‘pure abuse of power’ after they arrested and handcuffed her 10-year-old son and another youngster right in front of her
Cumbria Police later said in a statement they had been handcuffed ‘for their and officers safety while the searches were completed’
A search was carried out and no knife located, and the handcuffs removed. Officers continue to engage with people in the area (Pictured: A horse on the side of a road)
‘You wouldn’t see them doing this to anyone other community! And they wonder why our children are afraid of them, this could of been handled in a completely different manner!’
A Cumbria Police spokesman said: ‘Cumbria Police are aware of concerns being expressed on social media in response to the handcuffing and search of two boys at Kirkby Lonsdale.
‘At around 11:30am on 22 May 2025 Cumbria Police received a call for service from a member of the public reporting a group of boys on the path by the River Lune one of whom threatened the caller with a penknife.
‘Officers carried out a search in the area and located two boys based on the descriptions provided.
‘Due to the report of a knife, the boys were handcuffed for their and officers safety while the searches were completed.
A search was carried out and no knife located, and the handcuffs removed. Officers continue to engage with people in the area.
‘Stop and search will be used as appropriate to ensure the safety of all communities as we work to ensure everyone has a safe Appleby Fair.’
Locals have already placed boulders in lay-bys to stop gyspies and travellers parking up
Pictured: Rubbish left by groups of travellers in Kirkby Lonsdale
Ppiles of rubbish and gas canisters were dumped at the roadside as some gypsies left to continue their journey towards Appleby.
It is understood the family involved were asked to move on from Kirkby Lonsdale.
An attempt by the town’s business park to prevent travellers occupying their car park was made, with shipping containers placed at either end of the plot on the outskirts of the town, but ultimately failed.
Travellers simply smashed down a fence and drove across the verge to occupy the site, leaving a trail of damage behind.
Meanwhile nearby locals Kirkby Stephen is hoping the travelling will ‘get the message’ they’re not welcome
A local farmer said: ‘You do everything you can to keep them at bay but they don’t care, they’ll take the law into their own hands and we have to clear it up when they’re gone.
‘Even if we hammered big posts into the ground to keep them out they’d just come along with a chainsaw, fell them and use the timber for firewood.
‘I’ve had horses let into my fields of barley before. The horses got fed but the crop has been ruined.’
At Devil’s Bridge piles of rubbish and gas canisters were dumped at the roadside as some gypsies left to continue their journey towards Appleby.
For the second year in a row every pub in Kirkby Stephen will close – some this weekend and some from Monday onwards – with only the community-owned sports and social club staying up to serve alcohol.
Caravans have also taken over a farmers field en route to Appleby fair next week
Meanwhile locals in Kirkby Stephen is hoping the travelling will ‘get the message’ they’re not welcome
Staves have been hammered deep into roadside verges with signs on making it clear that horses and caravans are not to park there
Staves have been hammered deep into roadside verges with signs on making it clear that horses and caravans are not to park there.
And if – as has happened in previous years – the staves are uprooted, deep trenches have been cut into the verges to make it impossible to park a caravan without the danger of tipping over.
Railings along the high street have been covered by boards decorated with artwork by local kids so that horses can’t be tied up along the busy A685 through the town.
As one local put it: ‘Kirkby Stephen is closed to travellers and we hope they’re getting the message.’
When it begins next week the event is expected to see 30,000 visitors roughly, 10,000 of them from the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller community.
In its 250 year history the fair has only been cancelled twice, the first in 2001 during the foot and mouth outbreak and the second in 2020 due to the COVID pandemic.
The gathering is billed as the biggest traditional gypsy fair in Europe and has developed traditions that take place every year.
Gypsy horses are washed in the River Eden in Appleby and trotted up and down the ‘flashing lane’ – a closed off rural road – before being haggled over and bought.
Railings along the high street have been covered by boards decorated with artwork by local kids so that horses can’t be tied up along the busy A685 through the town
When it begins next week the event is expected to see 30,000 visitors roughly, 10,000 of them from the Gypsy, Roma and Traveller community (Pictured: A knocked over police sign)
There is a market on Jimmy Winter’s Field with stalls selling everything from fashion to horse-related wares.
The fair is held outside the town of Appleby, at the point where the old Roman Road crosses Long Marton Road, on Gallows Hill, which was named after the public hangings that were once carried out there.
It was once thought the fair originated from a royal charter to the borough of Appleby from King James II of England in 1685, although more recent research has found the charter was cancelled before it was ever enacted.
The gathering is sometimes known as ‘the New Fair’ because Appleby’s medieval borough fair, held at Whitsuntide, ceased in 1885.
The ‘New Fair’ began in 1775 for sheep and cattle drovers and horse dealers to sell their stock.
By the 1900s it had evolved into a major Gypsy/Traveller event which brought families from across the UK and Europe.
