Jeremy Clarkson recently shared a memorable moment from the opening day of his new pub, The Farmer’s Dog, near his Oxfordshire farm. The former Grand Tour presenter revealed that his co-star from the Amazon Prime series, Kaleb Cooper, kicked out a patron after one revealing question exposed the man wasn’t truly a farmer.
Clarkson and Cooper have become familiar faces as they manage Diddly Squat Farm on their popular show. In 2024, Clarkson expanded his ventures by opening The Farmer’s Dog pub, but the launch was rocky from the start.
In his new book, Diddly Squat: The Farmer’s Dog, the 65-year-old details the hurdles faced while preparing the pub — including red tape, expensive delays, and tough decisions like installing a defibrillator behind the bar and ensuring fire safety for a vintage tractor hanging from the ceiling.
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Clarkson’s unique idea was to create an upstairs bar area exclusively reserved for agricultural workers. “Only farmers would be allowed in here,” he explained, “and you can just tell who they are.”
This approach was put to the test during the pub’s trial opening when a man dressed convincingly as a farmer went upstairs. Clarkson asked him, “What’s glyphosate?” The man correctly answered, “Weedkiller,” letting him pass—initially.
However, Kaleb Cooper wasn’t convinced and asked a follow-up question: “How many acres are in a hectare?” When the man guessed incorrectly with “twelve,” Kaleb promptly said, “Out,” and showed him the door.
The opening day was full of challenges beyond the mistaken identity too. Clarkson shared that the water ran out, power flickered, and cooking stopped. “It was our opening day, and it wasn’t an opening day at all,” he admitted with humor.
Despite the initial chaos, things have improved since then. Clarkson cautioned guests to be patient, noting, “Your lunch, if it arrives at all, is costing us a lot more than it’s costing you. So please be kind.”
Formerly known as The Windmill, the pub is located in Asthall, near Burford, Oxfordshire, and reopened on August 23, 2024, under Clarkson’s stewardship. It features his own Hawkstone lager and aspires to source all ingredients from British farmers, supporting local agriculture except for unavoidable imports like quinine in tonic water.
Clarkson’s commitment to British farming underscores the ethos behind The Farmer’s Dog: a pub where genuine farming roots are respected both in its clientele and its produce.