Rural England may be a far cry from the Klondike. But there’s a gold rush going on out there
In 2008 Jeremy Clarkson thought a little agriculture on the side might do him good. He bought a farm in fashionable Cotswold country, acquired a Lamborghini tractor and a handful of local workers and found the experience deeply satisfying. The farm was earning so little income – just £140 last year – that he named it Diddly Squat. With a personal fortune estimated in the millions, this seemed hardly to matter.
Clarkson is a man of irrepressible enterprise. Last year he turned the farm into a set for an Amazon television series about himself and his agricultural endeavours. Things have expanded dramatically since the series first aired. A farm shop run by Clarkson’s girlfriend, Lisa Hogan, has been doing a brisk trade. “What started with planning permission to build a small shop selling local produce, a lambing shed and 10 car parking spaces, has altered into hundreds of cars parking in a field, a cafe serving hot food and thousands of fans queueing for hours to buy branded T-shirts, caps and bags,” reports the Times. A licensing application envisages turning the farmyard over to shopping and a restaurant/entertainment venue for up to 150 people.