Clarkson’s Farm season 2: Possible release date and where is Diddly Squat restaurant and farm shop?

Many of us laughed our way through the first series of Clarkson's Farm. Here's what we know of a possible seaosn 2 - plus where the Diddly Squat farm shop and restaurant is based in real life.

Clarkson’s Farm took Amazon Prime Video by storm last summer, when the documentary series was released in June 2021. Shining a light on the difficulties faced by those in the farming industry, viewers were stunned by the cost and scale of running a farm, with copious amounts of time invested for often little monetary return. Highlighting Clarkson’s own foray into farming, the show also made a star of young farming contractor Kaleb Cooper, and other regular faces appearing in the series became popular personalities. The end of series 1 saw Clarkson open a farm shop on the site, and now there’s a restaurant which fans can actually visit.

Not the only documentary inciting intense interest, Netflix’s coverage of Franklin Floyd in Girl in The Picture (opens in new tab) is leaving audiences shocked at the uncovered web of lies and murder. Viewers wondering about Ghislaine Maxwell’s sentence length (opens in new tab) and where she is imprisoned, had their questions answered in Channel 4 documentary Ghislaine Maxwell: The Making of a Monster. Whilst those asking where Logan Mwangi's mum Angharad Williamson is now (opens in new tab), following the child’s murder in 2021, ITV documentary The Murder of Logan Mwangi has the information. 

Clarkson’s Farm season 2: potential release date 

Jeremy Clarkson has teased the possible release date for Clarkson’s Farm season 2, as early 2023. Responding to one curous fan on twitter, Clarkson said that “filming ends in mid-July. So it should be edited and ready to go early in the new year".

Pocket-lint previously reported that season 2 was expected on June 11 this year. But thankfully Clarkson's heavy hint suggests an early 2023 release date is more likely.

There was an expectation the show’s popularity would see it immediately renewed. When this didn’t happen, social media was alight with unfounded rumours it had been cancelled. Clarkson responded to these on his Twitter account on July 21, 2022, saying “I can reveal now that contrary to various silly reports, the farming show was never cancelled. Amazon was just as keen as us to get cracking”.

Where is Diddly Squat restaurant and farm shop? 

Both the restaurant and farm shop are situated at Clarkson’s farm at his home in Chipping Norton, Oxfordshire. The Diddly Squat farm shop opened in 2020, and building and stocking the shop were featured in season 1 of Clarkson’s Farm. 

Everything sold in the shop is produced on the farm, or comes from neighbouring villages. You can expect to find milk, honey, rapeseed oil, and jams and chutneys that all originate on site. Local villagers maintain the shop’s supply of cakes, sausage rolls, and scotch eggs. Some produce and gifts are available to buy online (opens in new tab) for delivery. Sharing a picture of the delicious-looking stock to Instagram, the farm shop captioned it “open and freshly stocked up”. 

Clarkson later submitted plans for a restaurant on the site, which were initially turned down by local councillors amid over 50 objections from locals. According to the BBC (opens in new tab), proposals for the Diddly Squat restaurant were denied by the West Oxfordshire District Council in January. 

Finding a different site on the farm as a potential alternative, and a legal loophole meaning he didn’t need planning permission, he forged ahead with his plans. The restaurant opened its doors to the public on July 9, 2022. 

To celebrate the opening, Clarkson shared an OpenTable (opens in new tab) booking link for the restaurant to Twitter, announcing “I’m thrilled to announce that you now have a chance to try the amazing food we grow and rear on my farm at the brand new (but quite rustic) Diddly Squat Restaurant. You can’t just turn up I’m afraid, but you can make a booking by following the link”. 

Why is Jeremy Clarkson’s farm called Diddly Squat? 

The name Diddly Squat refers to the farming land’s lack of productivity. When Clarkson first bought the land, it was already farmed by a local man named Howard. When Howard retired, Clarkson had the idea to farm the land himself, and have a documentary crew follow him. The land had not been productive when farmed by Howard, or by Clarkson, and he chose to rename it ‘Diddly Squat’. 

The phrase ‘diddly squat’ is thought to originate from American slang. The initial phrase was ‘doodly-squat’, with’ doodle’ meaning to defecate, and ‘squat’ referring to the act of squatting in which to defecate. At some point the phrase ‘doodly squat’ morphed into ‘diddly squat’, which is how it is commonly used today, meaning ‘the least amount’.

How much did Jeremy Clarkson pay for Diddly Squat?

The actual amount remains undisclosed, but there has been speculation. Showbiz CheatSheet (opens in new tab) reported Clarkson paid £6,000,000 for the site. The Express (opens in new tab) on the other hand, arrived at the more conservative estimate of £500,000. 

The publication suggests that 1000 acres of land has the approximate value of £500,000, and Diddly Squat farm is 1000 acres in size. However, they acknowledge multiple factors can impact the price of land - location being one of them. With Oxfordshire being one of the most expensive counties, the price could have been considerably higher.

Will Kaleb return for Clarkson’s Farm season 2? 

Kaleb Cooper has confirmed he will return for Clarkson’s Farm season 2. Posting some first-look images to his Instagram page, Cooper shared a picture of Clarkson driving a tractor, and himself led across the front of it. He captioned the photo “Excited to share a first look at the second series of Clarkson’s Farm!” 

The breakout star of the farming series, quiet local Kaleb now has a social media following of over 1 million, where he shares his life with his girlfriend and young son. He has recently announced the launch of a book he’s penned, entitled ‘The World According to Kaleb’. The book can be pre-ordered from Amazon (opens in new tab), and is available on October 13th 2022. 

Did Kaleb get paid for Clarkson’s Farm season 1?

This remains undisclosed, but it is thought he likely received payment. According to Capital FM (opens in new tab), the average salary for Kaleb’s position as farm contractor in the UK is £25,432. For the amount of time Kaleb gave to the farm and the show, it’s unlikely he had other work - so it’s unfair to expect him to go unpaid. 

It’s also speculated that Amazon would’ve invested in the series, and covered the costs of Kaleb’s labour. It’s also thought the tiny £144 profit Clarkson made during the first year of farming Diddly Squat, takes into account paying those who worked at the farm during that time. 

Where can I watch Clarkson’s Farm? 

Clarkson’s Farm is exclusive to Amazon Prime Video (opens in new tab). An Amazon Prime membership which includes Prime Video, can be purchased for £7.99 per month. This includes all Prime benefits, such as next day delivery, and music streaming. Alternatively, a Prime Video only subscription can be purchased for £5.99 per month. 

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