Springtime on the Farm: Cannon Hall Farm back in print and on the television

A pair of Yorkshire farmers might sound like unlikely television celebrities but that’s exactly what Rob and Dave Nicholson have become. They may not be the next Ant and Dec but the brothers are a double act that the nation has taken to its hearts. Ever since Channel 5 decided to film Springtime on the Farm at their Cannon Hall Farm, near Barnsley, four years ago, the brothers have developed a strong fan base.

Three more series, one of which involved filming abroad, are all in the pipeline for this year and just this week their second book, aptly named Springtime at Cannon Hall Farm, was published.

“We wanted a book abut Cannon Hall Farm that showed people what it was like for us growing up on the farm – the good bits and the struggles – but then also about the series and the people we have met and stayed friends with over the last few years and their journeys. Some have made it and some haven’t,” says Rob.

A fifth series of Springtime on the Farm – which has led to seasonal summer and winter offerings – is scheduled to run from April 18 to 21 when the brothers will be joined live by presenters Helen Skelton and Jules Hudson.

“They have become firm friends,” says Rob of the Channel 5 presenters. “In fact we are travelling to London today for Channel 5’s 25th anniversary and we are meeting Jules for a pint beforehand.

“One of the reasons we wanted to go is to say thank you to Channel 5 not for what they have done for us but what they have done for the entire Yorkshire region.”

Some of the series, which is broadcast live on consecutive days from the farm, is pre-recorded and sees the two brothers travel the country in search of inspiring farming stories. But the eldest Nicholson brother, Richard, prefers to stay behind the scenes

“I like live television,” says Dave, probably the more reluctant of the two brothers to be in the spotlight. “It’s over and done with quickly and if I make a mistake, then Helen jumps in and saves me.” Rob enjoys being in front of the camera and it was his appearance on BBC’s Look North that drew the attention of Paul Stead, MD of the production company Daisybeck that makes Springtime on the Farm.

“He was looking for a farm to create a series around similar to something that had already been a success in Ireland and asked if we’d be interested,” says Rob. “There’s is almost no such thing as bad publicity so we decided to do it.”

And so on April 9, 2018, Springtime on the Farm made its debut on Channel 5, celebrating the joys of the British countryside during springtime. It introduced the nation to the Nicholson family and Cannon Hall Farm and the country took them to its hearts.

Rob and Dave’s father Roger heads up the family and comes from a farming dynasty that can be traced back to the 1600s. He has lived at Cannon Hall Farm ever since his father bought the 126-acre property at auction in 1958. Prior to their big move, the Nicholsons lived in Bank End Farm in the nearby village of Worsbrough Dale, where several generations of the family worked the land and made their mark in the farming world. The farm was passed down from brother to brother and from father to son, each of them maintaining the land, growing crops and caring for their animals.

Roger’s charismatic father, Charlie, was himself a highly respected stockman and made headlines with his prize-winning white bull. Although the family had lived at Bank End Farm since 1798, they rented most of their land and what started out as a fairly sizeable farm of 250 acres began to shrink as the land was sold off bit by bit because of compulsory purchase orders.

Acres of farmland full of crops were sold off and developers turned it into a housing estate and a local school. By the end of their time there, only 30 acres of the original plot remained, which, for the Nicholsons, wasn’t viable to sustain a family business. A fresh start was needed.

Roger was still at school when the family moved to their new home at Cannon Hall Farm and, although he intended to take over the family business one day, fate intervened when Charlie died of a heart attack in 1959.

Soon after, Roger, then aged just 16, had to leave school and quickly learn how to make a living as a farmer so that he could support himself and his mother, Rene.

Three years later, he met his future wife, Cynthia Dickin, at a Young Farmers’ Club dance in Halifax and they married in 1965.

Their eldest son, Richard, was born in 1966, followed by Robert in 1968 and David, two years later. “It was an idyllic environment to grow up in,” says Dave, “surrounded by acres of lush farmland to play in, woods to build secret dens and streams to catch fish.”

But the cost of rearing animals to produce really top-quality meat was never reflected when it came to selling them. And later, as bigger farms became more industrialised and smaller homesteads were effectively squeezed out of the marketplace, the Nicholson family knew that they had to diversify their farm output so that they could keep a roof over their heads.

Cannon Hall Farm was once part of the Cannon Hall Estate, owned by the Spencer-Stanhope family, who made their fortune in the iron industry. In the 1950s, the estate was broken up and sold, and the original Georgian country house was later turned into a museum.

The museum, park and gardens are owned by Barnsley Council, and have always been popular with visitors

In the early 1980s, Cannon Hall Museum didn’t have a cafe for visitors, so, figuring that they could fill a gap in the market, the Nicholsons came up with the idea of converting one of their farm outbuildings into a traditional country tea room and in April 1981, Home Farm Tea Rooms at Cannon Hall Farm opened to the public. Meanwhile, several farms up and down the country had done likewise, so the Nicholsons set about turning parts of Cannon Hall Farm into a visitor attraction.

By gradually selling off some of the farm property, converting outhouses into animal barns and eventually, at virtually the last minute, managing to secure a vital expansion loan from the bank, plans could go ahead to transform the humble farm into a dynamic visitor attraction.

On March 24, 1989, Cannon Hall Farm was officially opened to the public, just in time for the Easter holidays. And ever since it has gradually expanded.

“We never really had a business plan or thoughts of where we would be in five years – we just responded to what was needed. We added the bakery and the butchers and then the restaurants,” says Dave.

“We learnt from our mistakes and as we were expanding slowly no mistake was ever too costly,” adds Rob. And throughout they made sure that the interests of the farm weren’t compromised.

“Dad has always been very clear that the farm comes first,” says Rob. “He doesn’t want to diminish what he inherited and so everything we do is carefully considered.”

Springtime on Cannon Hall Farm charts the development of the farm and the visitor attraction through the eyes of the Nicholsons at the busiest time of agricultural year – spring. But at its heart are the animals, from the shire horses to the

pygmy goats and all those who work to make it what it is today.

Springtime at Cannon Hall Farm by the Nicholson family is published by Ebury Spotlight £16.99. Springtime on the Farm returns to Channel 5 on April 18

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