WORK is being carried out to repair the grounds of Clitheroe Castle after a travelling circus’s vehicles churned up the land.

Circus Funtasia had set up camp in the grounds last week while holding a series of shows over the course of five days.

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On the day they were to depart to Bury, however, heavy rain overnight caused the ground to soften and prove difficult to get the heavy vehicles back on to the road.

Eventually, the circus, which features clowns and acrobats, left the grounds but, in the process, caused damage to the ground with the vehicle’s wheels.

A Circus Funtasia spokeswoman said: “We are sorting out with the council to make sure that the land is returned to normal as quickly as possible.

“It’s just one of those things because the rain was so heavy.

“We have been there many times before and left no trace.

“We were just unfortunate that the rain was very heavy because that made it difficult to get all of the heavy vehicles off the land.

“A farmer friend of ours has agreed to roller the land because that’s all it needs, and we are hoping to get the work done as soon as possible.

“We have also left a large deposit in case there is any lasting damage.”

A Ribble Valley Council spokesman said: “The castle field has experienced unusually heavy rainfall and reinstatement work started as soon as the circus departed.”

Clitheroe residents have been having their say on the destruction, with some calling for the circus to be staged in a different location next year.