'Dominic Cummings' leaves review on Barnard Castle Tripadvisor page amid lockdown trip controversy

Today, Mr Cummings confirmed he travelled 260 miles to his parents' farm in County Durham when his wife developed Covid-19 symptoms at the end of March. He went with his wife and four-year-old son because they were in an "exceptional" situation of having no suitable childcare available in London if they both became seriously ill.

He said he "did not regret" what he did and that his actions were "reasonable" in these circumstances.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has backed his advisor, but critics say the UK Government's lockdown message to the public of staying home has been undermined.

Tripadvisor Reviews

Mr Cummings also said today that he drove to the outskirts of Barnard Castle, a village located about 30 miles away, to test his eyesight and make sure he was fit to drive before heading back down to London for work after self-isolating for 14 days.

And the normally quiet village has been getting plenty of attention over the past few days, with some taking to Tripadvisor to post some fake reviews...

One, who called themselves 'Dominic Cummings,' wrote: "I was getting bored of lockdown in London and was getting a dry cough, so I decided to look for a small house in the country to buy.

"It seemed very quiet when I went, but I was alarmed to find there was no tapestry room to drink fine wines and whip the peasants in.

"Will look for something a bit more upmarket next time."

A reviewer called ‘D.Cummings’ said they “had a bit of a cough so thought I’d get away from the city and stroll about doing whatever I want.”

The reviewer wrote: “I know the law says not the travel unnecessarily but I’ve got a mate in a high place so I’m not worried about adhering to rules.

“If all else fails I’ll blame the kids. Lovely spot though, I licked everything while I was there.”

Another review from 4thompsons, entitled 'Doms day out,' said: "Visited on 12th April, it was so much nicer than my last visit, we had the place to ourselves.

"Good job I made sure everyone else in the country stayed home, stayed safe and protected the NHS."

Someone called ‘Classic Dom’ also poked fun at the PM’s aide, saying they have “a very stressful job… so you can imagine how great it was to get away from it all with my family.”

The reviewer added: ‘Pulled a sickie at work and dashed up for a chilled out couple of weeks including wander around this place. Spoiled a bit by some old coffin-dodger who kept pointing at us, but the Mrs coughed on his car handle as we left so that’s him sorted. Classic!”

Another reviewer called James from Leicester said he couldn't believe he saw Dominic Cummings there, adding: “He was a really lovely guy but didn’t seem to stop coughing and was sweating profusely? Other than that, great day out to break lockdown.”