I may not always agree with Jeremy Clarkson but The Farmer’s Dog pub renovation is nothing short of remarkable

It’s not often I find myself taking the side of Jeremy Clarkson but The Farmer’s Dog pub, Clarkson’s newest project, is on the cusp of opening and I for one wish him the best of luck. 

It was the beginning of July when news broke that the former Top Gear presenter had bought a boozer. Well, to be exact, he bought a dilapidated restaurant-cum-wedding venue, The Windmill, near Burford in Oxfordshire, with plans to turn it into a pub.

Reportedly paying “less than £1 million” for the place, he wrote in his column for the Sunday Times: “There is some work to be done on the pub itself. For example, the cellar is too small, the gable end is falling down, the outside decking area is dangerous, the water is unfit for human consumption, the loft is full of dead rats and the lavatories are illegal.”

Yet, less than two months later the place has been transformed, complete with the fitting new moniker. A post on the newly-created The Farmer’s Dog pub Instagram page, has revealed the extent of the renovation. The place not only boasts pub and restaurant facilities, but in the garden you will find a farm shop, butcher, off licence, and “a bar and outpost where you can grab a fantastic meaty snack to enjoy on the lawns”.

The post finishes up by saying: “Children are welcome. So are dogs. Everyone is. See you there.”

Drone images show a covered outdoor area and brand-new seating, along with a massive decking area, and tables on the aforementioned ‘lawns’. Clarkson previously set out intentions to ban “noisy TVs”, encourage traditional pub games, serve only British produce, and hand out a free pint of Hawkstone to farmers. 

Now opening day has finally arrived. Doors to the public open at midday today (August 23) and the place will no doubt be packed to the rafters with eager punters from the get go. Which is no bad thing.+

Both British farming and pubs are struggling at the moment and instead of just talking about it, Mr Clarkson has actually put his money where his mouth is. Of course with his level of fame, opening a pub in these precarious times is less of a risk to him, but if that’s what it takes to save our traditional watering holes from extinction, then so be it.

In fact I hope more celebrities follow in his footsteps. Okay, throwing on a shooting jacket and wellies and becoming an actual farmer is probably unlikely for most of the rich and famous, but they could do worse than rescuing a crumbling pub, supporting local businesses with British-bought food and drink and bringing in a bit of tourism to rural locations.

So, today I will raise a glass to Jezza and wish him and The Farmer’s Dog all the very best - I hope he makes a real go of it and we see “Hawkstone filling stations”, as they call themselves, popping up across the country.