A celebrity advert lost traders hundreds of pounds in business, stallholders have claimed.

Morrisons supermarket transformed Kingston Market Place into a festive scene to film its Christmas advert for three days, starting from Wednesday, September 28.

Shoppers enjoyed watching the spectacle, which included a Ferris wheel, fake snow and a performance from England cricketer Freddie Flintoff, who will star in the commercial.

However, stallholders in the historic market place later said they were not consulted about the event and the lack of space affected customer footfall and their takings.

Robert Webster, owner of Webster’s Fishmongers, said his takings were down by 25 per cent over the three days.

He said: “It wasn’t very good at all. We know they have got a job to do but filming crews do just take over. We had so much aggravation in the morning trying to set up, they had great big vans in the way. It was just a nightmare really.

“We were the last people who knew and we just felt that we should be consulted in the future. We were just told this is happening, no choice, it’s just not on.”

Kingstonfirst, which manages the market place, said traders were given more than seven days’ notice of the filming in writing, and residents and councillors were also notified in writing by Kingston Council.

Secretary of Kingston Market Traders’ Association Steve Mamma said: “It has disrupted their way of making a living. They struggle to make a living and we want to support them wherever possible not hinder them.”

The council is responsible for filming applications and they said any income it received for filming projects went towards supporting community or arts projects.

It is believed some traders received compensation for the disruption. However, Kingstonfirst refused to say how many stall holders this included and how much they received.

A council spokesman said: "While a filming production of this size is bound to cause some disruption, it also confirms Kingston as a desirable location to live, work and visit."