Latest news with #TamworthBoroughCouncil
Daily Record
27-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Record
TikTok star Spudman faces angry backlash as popular business divides town
Spudman, real name Ben Newman, has fans and critics in Staffordshire - where he sells baked potatoes from a van - but he remains optimistic of more success. A popular jacket potato seller who skyrocketed to fame on Tiktok is facing an angry backlash after winning a battle against council bosses who wanted to move his trailer. Ben Newman known as "Spudman" who has racked up a giant 4.2million followers on TikTok and 560,000 on Instagram, had nowhere to run his business after the council booted him off his pitch last year. People have flocked from abroad to enjoy Ben's jacket potatoes, stacked with toppings, which he serves from his van. And he rejoiced recently when he overcame Tamworth Borough Council's ban to continue trading in the market town. Yet, local café owners claim his customers use their toilets and sit down to eat his potatoes at their tables and chairs as the bitter row rumbles on, reports the Mirror. Ben, 40, told reporters his detractors are jealous of his success. He said this week: "There are a couple of cafés around the market square but the problem is the owners sit there all day and are not so busy, and they see me nice and busy and it's 'green eyes'. "Their cafés have increased trade on the back of my success. I put tables and chairs out for my customers, which get full, and I tell them to use public toilets but I can't stop them going elsewhere." The tattie entrepreneur had to move his trailer last year to allow the pedestrianised area to be refurbished by the council and claimed he felt "destroyed" when he was told that he would have to trade from a side street as the square was filled with flower beds. The plans sparked an outcry from Spudman's devoted fans and a petition garnered more than 113,000 in less than two weeks. It led to Tamworth Borough Council's recent U-turn, a move which has irked other local traders in and near the market square. Coleen Mills, who owns the Side Walk Café which faces the market place on St Editha's Square, told Mail Online: "I don't know 'Spudman' personally but it is annoying that his customers come along with their jackets and eat them at my place when the tables and chairs outside his trailer are full. "They've also been using our toilet facilities, but I've put a stop to that now. But when I've moved people on I've been given a lot of verbal abuse, which is very unfair." Join the Daily Record WhatsApp community! Get the latest news sent straight to your messages by joining our WhatsApp community today. You'll receive daily updates on breaking news as well as the top headlines across Scotland. No one will be able to see who is signed up and no one can send messages except the Daily Record team. All you have to do is click here if you're on mobile, select 'Join Community' and you're in! If you're on a desktop, simply scan the QR code above with your phone and click 'Join Community'. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. To leave our community click on the name at the top of your screen and choose 'exit group'. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice. Sue Vaughan, who owns the Market Café, also complained about "Spudman's" customers using her facilities without permission. She continued: "I've had his customers using my loos, when they should be for mine only, and I've now had to padlock them. "He needs to sort out his own toilets or tell his customers to use public ones. They're also sitting on my tables and chairs outside eating his food, which is out of order." But Ben, who is a dad, continues to draw in punters, with people often queuing in the market square for his spuds. Sarah Vickers, a fan and also manager of the town's Cosy Café, described "Spudman" as a "good advert" for Tamworth. "He's a good advert for Tamworth and he does a lot to help the community. He gives money for good causes and, like my sister, he has kidney dialysis. We're a very busy café here and he's bought more people to town, and on days he's not open his customers often come down to us," Sarah told Mail Online. A Tamworth Borough Council spokesman said: "The council investigates all relevant complaints received through our official complaints process."
Daily Mirror
27-05-2025
- Business
- Daily Mirror
TikTok star hits out at bitter allegations as his popular business divides town
Spudman, whose real name is Ben Newman, has fans and critics in Tamworth, Staffordshire - where he sells baked potatoes from a van - but he remains optimistic of more success A legendary jacket potato seller - known as "Spudman" - is facing an angry backlash after winning a battle against council chiefs who wanted to move his trailer. "Spudman," real name is Ben Newman and who has an incredible 4.2million followers on TikTok and 560,000 on Instagram, had nowhere to run his business after the council booted him off his pitch last year. People have flocked from abroad to enjoy Ben's jacket potatoes, stacked with toppings, which he serves from his van. And he rejoiced recently when he overcame Tamworth Borough Council's ban to continue trading in the market town. Yet, local café owners claim his customers use their toilets and sit down to eat his potatoes at their tables and chairs as the bitter row rumbles on. Ben, 40, told reporters his detractors are jealous of his success. He said this week: "There are a couple of cafés around the market square but the problem is the owners sit there all day and are not so busy, and they see me nice and busy and it's 'green eyes'. "Their cafés have increased trade on the back of my success. I put tables and chairs out for my customers, which get full, and I tell them to use public toilets but I can't stop them going elsewhere." "Spudman" had to move his trailer last year to allow the pedestrianised area to be refurbished by the council. He claimed he felt "destroyed" when he was told that he would have to trade from a side street after the work to the square was completed, and would not be able to return to his old location due to a new flowerbed being put there instead. The plans sparked an outcry from Spudman's devoted fans and a petition garnered more than 113,000 in less than two weeks. It led to Tamworth Borough Council's recent U-turn, a move which has irked other local traders in and near the market square. Coleen Mills, who owns the Side Walk Café which faces the market place on St Editha's Square, told Mail Online: "I don't know 'Spudman' personally but it is annoying that his customers come along with their jackets and eat them at my place when the tables and chairs outside his trailer are full. "They've also been using our toilet facilities, but I've put a stop to that now. But when I've moved people on I've been given a lot of verbal abuse, which is very unfair." Sue Vaughan, who owns the Market Café, also complained about "Spudman's" customers using her facilities without permission. She continued: "I've had his customers using my loos, when they should be for mine only, and I've now had to padlock them. "He needs to sort out his own toilets or tell his customers to use public ones. They're also sitting on my tables and chairs outside eating his food, which is out of order." But Ben, who is a dad, continues to draw in punters, with people often queuing in the market square for his spuds. Sarah Vickers, a fan and also manager of the town's Cosy Café, described "Spudman" as a "good advert" for Tamworth. "He's a good advert for Tamworth and he does a lot to help the community. He gives money for good causes and, like my sister, he has kidney dialysis. We're a very busy café here and he's bought more people to town, and on days he's not open his customers often come down to us," Sarah told Mail Online. A Tamworth Borough Council spokesman said: "The council investigates all relevant complaints received through our official complaints process."
BBC News
08-03-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Bid to have Tamworth Sunday parking charges overturned
More than 1,000 people have signed a petition opposing the introduction of Sunday parking charges in charges were approved by members of Tamworth Borough Council last week and came into force last councillor Richard Kingstone, who set up the petition, said: "The small businesses that give life and character to our town centre are in real danger of shutting down due to these irrational charges."Because the petition has reached the 1,000 signature milestone it will be debated by councillors again and Mr Kingstone hopes they will reverse the decision. Nova Arkney, the councillor responsible for infrastructure, heritage and local economy on the Labour-run authority, said the money raised would be used to "deliver more important services".She also said she believed people saw Tamworth as a tourist destination and "will pay a small fee on a Sunday to park and use our facilities".But Mr Kingstone said the Sunday car parking charges "threaten to destroy the very fabric of this community". This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations. Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
BBC News
27-02-2025
- Business
- BBC News
TikTok's Spudman wins fight to save Tamworth pitch from flowerbed
TikTok sensation Spudman will be returning to his town centre pitch after plans to replace it with a flowerbed were Newman's regular pitch on St Editha's Square in Tamworth, Staffordshire, was due to be removed as part of the current work to improve the street vendor said a new place offered to him had not been suitable and he posted a number of videos to his millions of followers to voice his an outcry on social media and an online petition signed by more than 100,000 people, Tamworth Borough Council agreed to change the plan to allow Mr Newman to return to his original pitch. Council leader Carol Dean, said she had heard the "clear and passionate voice of our community" about the plans for St Editha's said: "The overwhelming response has demonstrated how deeply our residents and visitors care about our town centre and its traders." Dean said the council acknowledged the issue had caused concern and was "determined" to learn from the experience."We value the contribution of all our local traders who bring character and vitality to our town centre, and very much look forward to traders once again back on the square when the works are complete," she Newman, who was granted freedom of the borough of Tamworth last year, had previously said in a video posted on 14 February that losing his pitch left him feeling "destroyed"."The amount we've done, and that's what I get. I get a flowerbed on my pitch," he said. Video seen by millions The video was watched 2.7m times and the petition, which was launched on has since been signed by more than 113,000 the council's U-turn, Mr Newman said to his supporters: "Thank you very much, and mission accomplished."We got our pitch back and it's all down to you lot signing the petition, so thank you very, very much."The traders, including Spudman, were temporarily moved to different locations when work on the square began in Dean said the work was continuing and was due to be completed in May. Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram.
Yahoo
20-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
TikTok's Spudman petition hits 100,000 in pitch row
More than 100,000 people have now signed an online petition, started to support TikTok star Spudman who thought he had been forced off his pitch for good. Ben Newman's regular pitch is being turned into a flowerbed as part of work to improve St Editha's Square in Tamworth, Staffordshire, he said. The borough council has now told him that once the revamp is finished vendors would be welcomed back and Spudman would be "just a few metres" from his original spot. Mr Newman, who has four-million followers on TikTok, has been credited with bringing more visitors to the town off the back of his fame. In a post on the site after meeting council officials on Tuesday, Spudman said the chief executive of Tamworth Borough Council was a "nice man" who had "apologised for the miscommunication" that had left him thinking he had lost his pitch forever. He said the authority had assured him he was "safe" on the square, and "that's a relief on my front. That makes me want to stay in Tamworth - that makes me happy". He added there was no promise he could keep his exact spot, after the council told him it needed to be converted to improve drainage. "They are going to go away and talk to the engineers, site designers and builders and see what they can do," Mr Newman said. Spudman had previously said the spot was important because of the views it afforded of the church, enabling fans take nice pictures. In a statement after the row first blew up, council leader Carol Dean said: "We very much value small local businesses in Tamworth. One such local business is the much-loved Spudman." She added the redevelopment of St Editha's Square – which includes the new town centre college campus – would also bring hundreds of people into the town daily. Spudman was awarded the freedom of the borough last year, in recognition of his entrepreneurship and innovation. Follow BBC Stoke & Staffordshire on BBC Sounds, Facebook, X and Instagram. TikTok's Spudman 'loses town centre spot' Tater TikTok-er takes town by storm Spudman - TikTok
