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Bristol Beacon and, inset, Tom Jones from the Save Bristol Zoo campaign(Image: Bristol Post)<\/p>\nOrganisers lost thousands when their launch event was cancelled after the zoo boss intervened<\/p>\n
04:52, 13 Oct 2025Updated 07:25, 13 Oct 2025<\/p>\n
Bristol Beacon and, inset, Tom Jones from the Save Bristol Zoo campaign(Image: Bristol Post)<\/p>\n
Bosses at the Bristol Beacon cancelled an event launching a campaign calling for Bristol Zoo to reopen, hours after private pressure from bosses at the zoo – and then tried to cover it up, Bristol Live can reveal. The council-owned concert and events venue ended up having to pay the organiser of the campaign, whose booking was cancelled at short notice, thousands of pounds in compensation.<\/p>\n
That money – more than \u00a33,500 – was eventually paid to help with the costs incurred by organisers of the Save Bristol Zoo campaign in setting up and publicising the public meeting, that was cancelled just a week before it was scheduled at the end of April this year.<\/p>\n
The Beacon said it cancelled the event because it was \u2018likely to cause significant reputational damage\u2019 to both the Beacon and Bristol Zoo. But organiser Tom Jones said he suspected the zoo itself was involved in the decision to cancel. He asked whether the Beacon had been contacted by anyone at the zoo and had been told ‘we’re aware of the petition, nothing more’.<\/p>\n
He therefore made a \u2018Subject Access Request\u2019 about himself to the Beacon. He then also demanded compensation for the money he\u2019d spent setting up the event.<\/p>\n
In the months that followed, the Beacon told Mr Jones he\u2019d only get compensation if he dropped request for the Beacon\u2019s internal emails, and only if he signed a \u2018non-disclosure agreement\u2019 confidentiality contract – which would have banned him from ever explaining why the event was cancelled.<\/p>\n
In the end Mr Jones refused, was awarded compensation and forced the release of emails, which revealed that Bristol Zoo chief executive Justin Morris had indeed emailed the Beacon\u2019s chief executive just a few hours before the booking was cancelled, and that the Beacon\u2019s leadership team agreed not to tell Mr Jones about that intervention.<\/p>\n
READ MORE: Everything Bristol Zoo and Bristol Beacon said as we share the emails on zoo campaign they didn’t want people to see<\/a>READ MORE: Alternative ideas for former Bristol Zoo site as campaigners fight plans for hundreds of homes<\/a><\/p>\n
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A Save Bristol Zoo campaign march in March 2023 with, inset, Bristol Zoological Society Chief Executive Justin Morris(Image: Bristol Post)<\/p>\n