Tom Cruise’s Annual Trips For Scientology Bash Triggers Backlash

Residents of East Grinstead have voiced their frustration over disruptions caused by the Church of Scientology‘s annual fundraiser.

Complaints have mounted over noise and disorder linked to the event, with actor Tom Cruise‘s annual helicopter arrivals reportedly adding to the disturbance.

Following the most recent edition, citizens of the town filed a complaint, which will trigger a review of the church’s premises license.

East Grinstead is home to the Church of Scientology’s British headquarters, which annually hosts a fundraising bash that draws thousands of visitors to the small West Sussex town.

One of the many Scientologists who make an appearance is Tom Cruise. The actor is widely reported to be the poster child of the organization and also its most famous member.

Still, rather than being pleased to catch a glimpse of the actor during these visits, locals are largely displeased by the disruption his presence, and that of other members, brings to the town, per the Daily Mail.

According to former Scientologist Alexander Barnes-Ross, these locals are “extremely frustrated and angered” by the sudden population surge during this period and do not enjoy the chaos caused by Cruise “flying in on his helicopter.”

“It causes a lot of noise and nuisance, and he [Tom Cruise], you know, doesn’t stop for photos or anything,” added Barnes-Ross, who led a protest against the church in November.

One anonymous resident who also spoke to the outlet further described the fundraiser as “very disruptive,” right from the preparation period.

“For six to eight weeks, they were laying down pallets in the field to make a car park, so we had the disruption and noise of that, with lorry after lorry coming,” said the individual.

During the main event, more disruptions come in the form of loud music from bagpipes and noise from generators used to power some infrastructure.

“Then they made all the neighbours listen to bagpipe music on a loop all day. In the evening, they had two generators to power floodlights in the car park, and we could hear the generator no more than 60 yards from our back door,” added the angry resident.

“One didn’t go off until 1 am, and the second generator stayed on all night, so all night an empty car park was lit up,” they further remarked.

Some local council representatives, having links to the church, have also raised concerns among some residents.

These officials have reportedly attended a number of Scientology events, while, similarly, senior church figures have become involved in local civic affairs.

This includes the local fire service using the Scientology headquarters for training, and Scientologists taking part in organising East Grinstead’s Christmas lights switch-on ceremony.

As a result of the ties between the church and some of the town’s leaders, residents now feel “helpless” that anything will be done to reduce the disruptions in the future.

“I think just over the years, East Grinstead has grown to be fed up with this cult in their town, building inroads with the local politicians, and the mayor and councillors and such going to events and saying how wonderful this organisation is and when actually they aren’t,” said Barnes-Ross to the outlet.

“[The Church of Scientology] has lots of events throughout the year that cause different levels of disruption. And I think just the fact that they have no due regard for the local authority or the local community has really annoyed people,” the former Scientologist added.

In the aftermath of the fundraisers, residents lodged a complaint with Mid Sussex District Council.

In their submission, they argued that the events cause “considerable disruption” to the local community, including traffic congestion and excessively loud noise.

The complaint will trigger a review of the organisation’s premises licence, which permits it to sell food and alcohol and to host events.

If the decision favors the residents, the review could result in the church facing restrictions on the scale of events held on the property or being required to implement residents’ proposals aimed at safeguarding vulnerable people.

At the moment, the review is open to public consultation until January 8, 2026.