With season four of the much-loved Clarkson’s Farm landing in May 2025, now’s as good a time as any to reflect on the third-season trials and tribulations of the petrolhead, his tolerant girlfriend, and his protégé-cum-taskmaster Kaleb.
The show follows Jeremy Clarkson as he gets stuck-in with working the Diddly Squat farm. Having spent years decrying green policies and those seeking to protect the natural world, the three seasons have seen Clarkson somewhat reformed, even going as far as to dedicate a whole field to a Groove Armada-backed hybrid planting model.
For details on what that means, it’s highly recommended that you read the show. As with most things that Clarkson gets his hands on, it’s fantastic telly.
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There’s a small cast of farmhands on the go: Lisa Hogan, Clarkson’s partner; Kaleb Cooper, the man who knows what he’s doing; Charlie Ireland, the farm’s land agent; and Gerald Cooper, who brings some much-needed salt of the earth reality to the once irrevocably metropolitan Clarkson.
Lisa’s battle to keep the farm’s first piglets alive made for some truly heartbreaking moments in season three, and the bad news continued as Gerald was diagnosed with cancer.
Despite the incredible challenge of running a farm, let alone turning a profit, and the more poignant notes that marked Clarkson’s third year as a farmer, there’s plenty of joy straddling each glum note.
Most of those come at Clarkson’s expense, of course, as he’s roundly ‘educated’ by everyone around him on a regular basis.
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The show has also been faced with various controversies since it began. Its incredible popularity meant the farm shop swiftly attracted swathes of tourists that Chipping Norton simply wasn’t equipped to deal with, and there have also been various legal challenges made over the farm restaurant and more besides.
The Diddly Squat Farm Shop has been a particular sticking point licensing-wise, with season three covering its requirement to only sell goods produced within a 16-mile radius of the farm.
Creative licence ensued, posing a risk to the shop’s longevity should an impromptu inspection fall in Clarkson’s lap.
A less legally-fraught source of controversy has been to do with Clarkson and co’s level of involvement when the cameras aren’t rolling.
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The Clarkson's Farm subreddit saw one user ask how often he and partner Lisa are seen in the shop, with the impression given by the show being that Lisa’s running the show.
"So every time the show is in the farm shop there is never anyone there and Lisa is always at the counter.
“I'm assuming they close for filming?
"Does Lisa actually work in the shop, does Jeremy or Kaleb actually work the farm or do they just show up for filming and do there own stuff when the cameras aren't around? Just curious."
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It’s a fair question, especially when it’s common knowledge that there’s always a degree of unreality in reality TV.
"I've been three times (Saturdays x2 and Sunday x1) and never seen them, or Kaleb,” said one fan. “I did see Gerald buying a paper in the Chadlington shop about three weeks ago."
Another said: "I didn't see Jeremy, Lisa, Kaleb, or Gerald at all during my one and only visit... but I also wasn't really expecting to see anybody. I was just happy to visit!"
A third added: "I saw Jeremy and I assume some builders / surveyors looking at the barn area where the Hawkstone beer is served last summer, and my partner said Lisa was in the shop when she went round (we had gone in earlier and she wasn’t there).
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"I think they were both there for about 20 minutes then left but it was late in the day. Not seen Kaleb sadly."
Considering Clarkson is a busy man with lots of projects on the go, and Kaleb has won some fair celebrity for his no-nonsense, parochial personality alongside running his own contracting firm, it’s no wonder they aren’t on the farm all the time.
"The farm is huge by English standards. Kaleb works on the farm but he also works at several other farms," said another Redditor.
"Jeremy also works the farm but he is still also a TV presenter. They probably don't personally visit the shop very often because it has its own staff and they have busy lives."
Another said: "My best guess is Lisa's probably there quite a bit but they have other employees to run the shop while she's away. Jeremy and Kaleb have secondary jobs too. Jeremy is a TV presenter and journalist, and Kaleb has a contracting business too on other farms."
Others felt it pertinent to give fans a reality check: "It reads clear to me that Jeremy isn’t a farmer 365 days a year. Watching him drive around the Sahara in Jag for two weeks proves that alone, and in season three he specifically mentions leaving to go shoot on location.
"Lisa I see some who say she was there when they were so I imagine that she takes the shop seriously. But like the farm they have other employees. And I don’t see anything wrong with that as I don’t feel they’ve ever tried to sell it differently. The whole farm operation is pretty large."
While it’s fair to say that Clarkson et al are very much committed to Diddly Squat, it’s important to remember that, ultimately, Clarkson’s Farm isn’t a documentary. That doesn’t mean we can’t all enjoy it via some suspension of disbelief, of course.
Topics: TV and Film
Rachael Davis