Our Farm Next Door: Yorkshire shepherdess Amanda Owen, Clive and their nine children to reunite on screen for first time in three years in new More4 series where the family will renovate a derelict farmhouse
The popular Yorkshire family of Amanda Owen, Clive and their nine children will be reuniting on screen for the first time in more than three years in a new More4 series that will see them renovating a derelict farmhouse in the Dales.
A new five-part documentary More4 series will follow ‘Yorkshire Shepherdess’ Amanda Owen and her family as they renovate a derelict farmhouse, known locally as Anty John’s.
In Our Farm Next Door: Amanda, Clive and Kids, the Owen family will work together as a team to breathe life back into a dilapidated neighbouring property with a rich history which they plan to use as a residence in the future.
The first series will chart the initial 12 months of the project and Amanda, Clive and their nine children will work with a group of tradespeople to slowly turn their ambitious dreams for the farmhouse into reality. They will battle against unforgiving Dales weather on one of the most remote building sites in Britain.
This will be the first time the family have been seen together on screen since June 2021 when the last episode of Our Yorkshire Farm aired.
Alongside the renovation, viewers will watch as Clive, Amanda and their nine children negotiate a tough year running the family sheep farm in one of the wettest years on record at their home at Ravenseat. As a family, they must tackle lambing, mowing and the numerous other tasks that keep paying the bills and moving their build forward.
In the first episode, which airs on Monday, October 14, 2024, at 9pm on More4 and can be streamed on Channel 4, Amanda will delve into the house’s history with the help of historian Derek who will uncover the incredible tale of Anthony Clarkson, a Swaledale mapmaker and diarist who lived there in the mid-1800s. His life in this stunning corner of the Dales was documented and discovered during the renovation project.
Plans for how to tackle the highly challenging renovation will be hatched with builder Richard, who happens to be their next-door neighbour, while Amanda will team up with Derek to delve into the building’s colourful past.
With the wet and windy autumn weather picking up, digger savant Reuben will begin levelling the rocky access track and the Owen family battle to pitch scaffolding in bleak weather.
In an interview with Channel 4, Amanda takes us through what viewers can expect from the show.
“More of the same, chaos, calamities, animals and ALL of the children getting hands-on working together and tackling a huge new project that is about building a future for themselves,” she said.
“It incorporates so much more than just another renovation programme. Firstly, an important fact is that we really are inexperienced in the whole business of restoring a farmhouse and that we are terribly busy with shepherding sheep,tending to our cows and all that goes with keeping our farm, Ravenseat, up and running.
“We’ve been fortunate to have uncovered a wealth of historical documents relating to Anty John’s and this has brought a whole new history about where we live to our attention.
“I suppose you could say that the focus is the house, but the TV show is really looking at the contrast between rural lives now and then, whilst we continue to navigate the challenges of farming one of the highest and most remote farms in the country.
“We hope it will be a breath of fresh air for viewers who can enjoy the show’s glorious backdrop that is Swaledale without ever leaving the sofa!”
When asked during the interview if the family has made a decision on who will end up living at Anty John’s once it’s been renovated, Amanda said: “Now that is a NO GO!!!!!
“Everyone in the family is vying to reside there once it’s finished, and nothing has been decided.
“It really doesn’t matter but my preference would be to have someone who can at least tidy up after themselves.
“It could be someone who thinks nothing of dismantling a carburetor on the kitchen table, or someone who watches television with a goat on their lap, or even someone who has a pony that likes to be groomed in their bedroom! Welcome to the countryside and Our Farm Next Door!”
Our Farm Next Door: Amanda, Clive and Kids on More4 - watch it live from Monday 14 October at 9pm or stream on Channel 4.