A TV icon has taken a fresh swipe at Clarkson’s Farm and Top Gear star Jeremy Clarkson in the Cotswolds.
Adam Henson, who lives on the Cotswolds Farm Park estate with his wife, Charlie, has hosted the BBC’s popular Countryfile programme since 2001.
He has several celebrity neighbours in the Cotswolds, with the likes of former Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson residing nearby.
Now, the 60-year-old has taken a fresh swipe at the former Grand Tour host while recently appearing on The FarmED Podcast.
Host Alex Dye asked the TV presenter how he thinks the “general farmer” perceives him, and whether he believes that he is a “Marmite sort of character”.
With the question as to whether people either love him or hate him lingering, it prompted Mr Henson to reveal a similarity between him and Mr Clarkson, accompanied by a subtle dig.
The 60-year-old candidly replied: “Yeah, completely. Probably not as Marmite as Jeremy Clarkson, but I am quite Marmite, I think.
“Because I work for Countryfile and have done for 24 years, we are a magazine show that has a whole array of topics, and we’re a countryside show, not a farming show.
“It used to be the farming programme, and farmers watching it get frustrated that we’re not robust enough in some of our communication about farming, the technology, the finances, the struggles, and we’re not championing British farming enough.”
This is the latest dig between the Cotswolds farmers after Mr Henson previously spoke about Clarkson’s Farm.
Whilst speaking on the farming podcast Grounded last autumn, he pointed out an issue with the Prime Video show, which is set at Mr Clarkson’s Diddly Squat Farm in Chadlington.
Mr Henson flagged that the show can be negative, while most farmers he knows are more successful than Mr Clarkson’s programme shows farming to be and said: “Some of the positives around farming, you know, the successes we had.
“You know, I think…I agree that Clarkson’s Farm has been a huge success, opening the eyes of many people into agriculture that wouldn’t have otherwise watched it.
“He spends a huge amount of money. He’s up against planning, he’s up against the weather, he’s up against disease and he spends a fortune on a tractor.
“And at the end of the year, he makes diddly squat when actually, I know lots of farmers who are incredibly successful, who are farming their land, you know, in a really positive way.”
Despite this criticism, Mr Henson did acknowledge that it can be “tough” and it is “good” that these types of stories are promoted, adding that there are “lots of difficult things” in farming, including mental health issues.
