Celebrities to test their mettle at traditional countryside skill

Next week, eight celebrities will start honing their herding skills on a farm before competing in a series of time trials in front of a live studio audience for new ITV show Flockstars.

Shown over eight weeks, the programme is set to be aired for the first time on Thursday, July 30. It will see each celebrity paired with a sheepdog before they compete in increasingly tricky time trials with the slowest and most error prone contestant voted off each week.

Leeds-born presenter Gabby Logan will be hosting the series.

“The sporting part of it is quite serious and done in a competitive way,” she said. “There are some tight photo finishes, but there is also some real comedy when things go wrong.”

After bonding with their sheepdogs, the contestants will learn how to issue commands with the help of professional mentors, Welsh shepherding expert Ioan Doyle, Scottish trainer Emma Gray and English sheepdog expert Ed Hawkins.

The eventual winner will be the celebrity who completes the course quickest with the least errors.

Set to take part are DJ Tony Blackburn, former Eternal singer Kelle Bryan, Strictly Come Dancing’s Brendan Cole, former N-Dubz rapper Richard Rawson, Birds Of A Feather star Lesley Joseph, TV presenter Amanda Lamb, Coronation Street actress Wendi Peters and Paralympic Gold athlete Lee Pearson.