I’M flabbergasted,’ declares Jeremy Clarkson, the notoriously outspoken motoring journalist, and presenter, when asked if he ever thought he would end up making one of the most popular and talked-about television series of this year—about farming. ‘I honestly thought it would serve up a gentle disappointment to fans of Top Gear and The Grand Tour, who have watched me for years, but it’s gone berserk.’
He is talking, of course, about Clarkson’s Farm, Amazon Prime’s eight-part programme documenting Mr. Clarkson’s hapless attempts to farm the 1,000 acres he’s owned in the Cotswolds village of Chadlington, Oxfordshire, since 2008.
Despite being dismissed by The Guardian as ‘eight hours of a buffoon screwing things up for our supposed entertainment’, the series—which details Mr. Clarkson’s travails, from buying a tractor (opting for a 10-ton Lamborghini, which everyone mocks for being too large) to being forced to hire a local contractor, Kaleb Cooper, who’s soon chastising his employer for making a right mess of drilling a field by going freestyle with the tramlines—quickly became one of the streaming giant’s biggest hits. Watching Mr. Clarkson chase his herd of 76 ‘sheeps’ on their frequent bids for freedom or trying to have a conversation with Gerald Cooper, a dry-stone waller with an impenetrable local accent, it’s easy to see the program’s comedic appeal. However, by poking fun at his own lack of knowledge and skill, Mr. Clarkson —an often controversially forthright character, sacked from Top Gear by the BBC after a fracas with a producer—has brought the harsh realities of farming to a much-needed wider audience.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der September 01, 2021-Ausgabe von Country Life UK.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der September 01, 2021-Ausgabe von Country Life UK.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
Kitchen garden cook - Apples
'Sweet and crisp, apples are the epitome of autumn flavour'
The original Mr Rochester
Three classic houses in North Yorkshire have come to the market; the owner of one inspired Charlotte Brontë to write Jane Eyre
Get it write
Desks, once akin to instruments of torture for scribes, have become cherished repositories of memories and secrets. Matthew Dennison charts their evolution
'Sloes hath ben my food'
A possible paint for the Picts and a definite culprit in tea fraud, the cheek-suckingly sour sloe's spiritual home is indisputably in gin, says John Wright
Souvenirs of greatness
FOR many years, some large boxes have been stored and forgotten in the dark recesses of the garage. Unpacked last week, the contents turned out to be pots: some, perhaps, nearing a century old—dense terracotta, of interesting provenance.
Plants for plants' sake
The garden at Hergest Croft, Herefordshire The home of Edward Banks The Banks family is synonymous with an extraordinary collection of trees and shrubs, many of which are presents from distinguished friends, garnered over two centuries. Be prepared to be amazed, says Charles Quest-Ritson
Capturing the castle
Seventy years after Christian Dior’s last fashion show in Scotland, the brand returned under creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri for a celebratory event honouring local craftsmanship, the beauty of the land and the Auld Alliance, explains Kim Parker
Nature's own cathedral
Our tallest native tree 'most lovely of all', the stately beech creates a shaded environment that few plants can survive. John Lewis-Stempel ventures into the enchanted woods
All that money could buy
A new book explores the lost riches of London's grand houses. Its author, Steven Brindle, looks at the residences of plutocrats built by the nouveaux riches of the late-Victorian and Edwardian ages
In with the old
Diamonds are meant to sparkle in candlelight, but many now gather dust in jewellery boxes. To wear them today, we may need to reimagine them, as Hetty Lintell discovers with her grandmother's jewellery
