Dragons’ Den star Rachel Elnaugh’s £1m anti-vaxxer sanctuary built for ‘shamanic rituals’ and as a ‘safe haven away from the threat of humanity’ is demolished in a victory for Peak District villagers

Peak District officials have demolished a Dragon’s Den star’s £1m anti-vaxxer sanctuary in a victory for villagers fighting the plans.

Rachel Elnaugh, 59, who starred in season two of the BBC reality show, raised the near seven-figure sum to buy a 70-acre plot in Cressbrook Dale, Derbyshire, which she intended to use for ‘shamanic rituals’ and as a ‘safe haven away from the threat of humanity’.

She and a group called Phoenix Rose began developing the site by erecting a teepee and building a car park.

But the group did not have the required planning permission from the Peak District National Park Authority (PDNPA) and were told to tear the structures down and return the land to its former state.

Having failed to reverse the changes themselves in the subsequent weeks, park officials have now dismantled the site and sent the £35,000 bill to Phoenix Rose.

Rachel Elnaugh, 59, who starred in season two of the BBC reality show, raised the near seven-figure sum to buy a 70-acre plot in Cressbrook Dale, Derbyshire, which she intended to use for ‘shamanic rituals’ and as a ‘safe haven away from the threat of humanity’

She and a group called Phoenix Rose began developing the site by erecting a teepee and building a car park. But the group did not have the required planning permission from the Peak District National Park Authority (PDNPA) and were told to tear the structures down and return the land to its former state

Lynn Crowe, John Butler and Jenny Caven from the Save Cressbrook Dale group have celebrated the latest development in the saga

Locals opposed to the scheme have celebrated the move, but the fight is not over as Ms Elnaugh, who described the estate as ‘an incredible vagina of land’, wants to clear another area of land to build a ‘chapel’.

READ MORE: Dragons’ Den star Rachel Elnaugh is ordered to demolish £1million anti-vaxxers sanctuary in the Peak District

John Butler, 72, a Cressbrook resident and member of the Save Cressbrook Dale group, told the Times that the area is one the most ‘vanishingly rare pieces of wilderness in the region and is unsuitable for cultivation or habitation’.

‘All we ask is that they respect the protections on this special part of the Peak District and adhere to the law,’ he said.

‘These protections were fought for by ordinary people and because those people fought for them we now have National Parks which are for everyone.’ 

Ms Elnaugh faced severe criticism during the Covid pandemic for her anti-vax opinions.

The businesswoman, who lives in nearby Bakewell, claimed the virus was a ‘great bio-weapon’ released by a ‘dark cabal’ in Switzerland.

She also said that England’s chief medical officer, Chris Whitty, who became a well-known figure during the pandemic, should ‘hang’ for vaccinating children. 

Ms Elnaugh made her fortune through her gift company Red Letter Days, which was sold in August 2005 to fellow Dragons Peter Jones and Theo Paphitis, who saved it from bankruptcy.

It was later sold to a competitor, SmartBox, in 2017. 

The entrepreneur left the popular reality TV show after her gift company Red Letter Days went into administration in 2005

Having failed to reverse the changes themselves in the subsequent weeks, park officials have now dismantled the site and sent the £35,000 bill to Phoenix Rose (pictured, Cressbrook Dale) 

The enforcement notice, seen by MailOnline, said that a ‘parking area’, ‘path’ and a ‘Tipi’ had been installed without planning permission 

Responding to a Tweet by Good Morning Britain, which asked viewers whether they were happy for their children to be vaccinated, the businesswoman, who is the founder of the experience provider Red Letter Days, wrote: ‘Child abuse. Whitty will hang for this.’

Writing in her memoir following the collapse of her business, she said those who had been ‘abusive’ towards her had come to a ‘sticky end’.

She also blamed an ‘army of faceless, jealous people’ for the gift business going into administration. 

On her website, she describes herself as a ‘creator, communicator and changemaker’.  

In 2012 she became the business manager for the alternative medicine practitioner and TV personality Stephen Russell, known as The Barefoot Doctor. 

Russell, who died in 2020, stopped practising after he admitted having had sex with former patients. 

Ms Elnaugh has been approached for comment. 

Source: Read Full Article