Jeremy Clarkson has shared a humorous story about an encounter with a suspected dogger in the woods close to his Cotswolds farm. The former Top Gear presenter revealed that the venue where his pub, The Farmer’s Dog, now stands was once known as a popular dogging site.
Clarkson, 66, purchased The Windmill pub, situated within five acres near Burford in Oxfordshire, for under £1 million. He reopened it in 2004 as The Farmer’s Dog, which has since become known for its traditional British dishes and its Hawkstone beer. Despite its new reputation, Clarkson confirmed that the site had an unusual past.
In July 2024, Clarkson posted a video on Instagram to his 8.3 million followers, showing himself holding up a pair of women’s underwear found on a twig near the pub. With a visibly shocked expression, he said, “Tell me you bought a pub on a dogging site without telling me you bought a pub on a dogging site.” The video quickly gained over 110,000 likes and more than 1,000 comments, with humorous suggestions from followers about renaming the pub.
More recently, Clarkson described further incidents including one close to his farm. Writing in his column for The Times, he explained that initially he thought suspicious vehicles nearby were associated with fly-tipping. He said such activity was often associated with suburban areas like Beaconsfield, but it had been taking place near his pub’s car park and even on his farm.
On one occasion, returning from a visit to his local pub, Clarkson noticed a suspicious car parked by the woodland. Approaching the passenger window, he found a young man, around 17 years old, who was smoking and simultaneously involved in a sexual act. When the teenager realised Clarkson was there, he lowered the window and exclaimed, “Oh my God, you’re Jeremy Clarkson.” The young man then remarked, “I rather wish we had met in different circumstances,” a line Clarkson regarded as the best he had ever heard.