Jeremy Clarkson has had something of a renaissance over the past five years.
Having become one of the UK’s most prominent TV presenters, leading Top Gear to global domination alongside Richard Hammond and James May, he left the BBC under somewhat explosive circumstances in 2015 and soon joined forces with Amazon.
With Amazon, he reunited with his Top Gear co-stars for several seasons of The Grand Tour, leaning on the road trip side of Top Gear’s format, and in 2021 launched the all-new Clarkson’s Farm.
As a metropolitan petrolhead, the move was something of an about turn. He’d bought a farm in the Cotswolds, renamed ‘Diddly Squat’, and thrown himself into running the place, and he’s since become intimately familiar with rural and environmental issues.
Farming, as it turns out, is extremely hard work that’s often made near-impossible by the weather, the costs of raw materials, and funding issues and obligations that can often throw a spanner in the works.
Since its 2021 launch, Clarkson’s Farm has had four seasons over the course of which his farming capabilities have significantly improved.
Nevertheless, he’s not nearly as capable as his much-younger farm manager Kaleb Cooper, or indeed as capable as Cooper’s temporary replacement Harriet Cowan, and so the show features a prominent supporting cast dedicated to keeping the farm, and Clarkson, on the rails.
In a twist on the formula the 2025-launched fourth season focuses largely on another rural venture: The Farmer’s Dog.
Clarkson bought, renovated and reopened a pub in Asthall near Burford, not far from Diddly Squat Farm, and the travails are well-documented in the show’s fourth season.
The season’s diversion from the farming world has been criticised by some viewers, and the pub itself has drawn some social media ire over its pricing strategies. With an almost-exclusively British-stocked menu, its locally-sourced food and drink comes at a slight premium, and it’s rubbed some people up the wrong way.
Along with defending the prices, Clarkson has been moved to defend himself and the show via his X account on several occasions.
As the fourth season has been released on Amazon Prime and The Farmer’s Dog seems packed to the rafters throughout its opening hours, some viewers are dubious as to how involved Clarkson really is.
One X user, detailing his visit to The Farmer’s Dog, was asked if he crossed paths with the landlord, to which he said: “No. I doubt he spends much time there."
Clarkson, rarely one to let a tweet slide, leapt in to say: “I’m there maybe three times a week. Does that help?”
Another fan had also some criticism for Clarkson's involvement in the pub - this time because it took away from the farming element of the show.
"Talking about the tv show, I enjoyed more when it was more farm related," they wrote.
"The pub was as overwhelming to you as for us lol,” an X user replied.
Clarkson issued a pithy, 11-word retort: "I know what you mean but the pub IS farm-related."
With a season five already confirmed, hopefully there's scope to cover a bit of both...
Featured Image Credit: Ben Birchall/PA WireTopics: Celebrity, TV and Film
Rachael Davis