Jeremy Clarkson Enjoys Rival’s Britpop Lager at Big Feastival and Faces Challenges at Diddly Squat Farm

Jeremy Clarkson, the 65-year-old star of Clarkson’s Farm, recently took a break from his farming duties to attend the Big Feastival, hosted by Blur bassist-turned-cheesemaker Alex James in Kingham, Oxfordshire. The event, held on James’ 200-acre, 17th-century farmhouse estate, saw Clarkson sampling a Britpop lager, a product competing with his own Hawkstone lager, brewed from crops grown on his 1,000-acre Diddly Squat Farm in Chipping Norton. The broadcaster, dressed in a tan Yellowstone Dutton Ranch jacket, was spotted relaxing in the festival’s Cheese Hub alongside celebrity chef Thomas Straker, enjoying a pint of the rival brew. The Big Feastival, which took place over the weekend of August 24–26, 2025, featured performances by artists including Nelly Furtado, Faithless, Travis, The Wombats, and Sophie Ellis-Bextor. The festival concluded with James performing his Britpop Classical set, accompanied by a live band and orchestra, on Sunday evening.

Clarkson’s attendance at the festival coincided with a busy period for Clarkson’s Farm, as filming for its fifth season is currently underway, with an expected release on Amazon Prime in spring 2026. The series, which has chronicled Clarkson’s journey from motoring journalist to farmer, has faced its share of challenges recently, including a disruptive visit from U.S. Vice President JD Vance to the Cotswolds. Clarkson and his farmhand, Kaleb Cooper, expressed frustration over the incident, which involved a no-fly zone and road closures that impacted their work. Writing in The Sunday Times, Clarkson detailed how Vance’s 27-vehicle convoy, escorted by British police, caused significant disruption. Cooper, 27, was particularly vocal, revealing that he told Vance’s security team to “f*** off” after being ordered to pull over his tractor in the rain, resulting in his wheat getting soaked. Cooper later commented on Clarkson’s Instagram post, lamenting, “My wheat got wet in the trailer last night as the convoy stopped me in the rain in Chippy. I could easily have went on my way and got it in the shed without getting in the way.” He humorously suggested that Vance could have avoided attention by driving a VW Polo instead of a conspicuous motorcade.

The Farmer’s Dog: A Roaring Success

Beyond his farming ventures, Clarkson has celebrated the one-year anniversary of his pub, The Farmer’s Dog, in Asthall, near Burford. Purchased for approximately £1 million and reopened on August 22, 2024, the pub—formerly known as The Windmill—has become a cornerstone of Clarkson’s efforts to support British farming. On its opening day, around 300 people queued to enter, greeted by Clarkson, his partner Lisa Hogan, and Clarkson’s Farm regulars Kaleb Cooper, Charlie Ireland, and Gerald Cooper. Clarkson marked the milestone on X on August 22, 2025, stating, “Exactly a year ago, we opened The Farmer’s Dog to back British farming. Today, there are 146 people on the payroll, and I’d like to thank every single one of them for making it such a roaring success.” A fan praised the staff, singling out employee Jasmine as “an absolute star,” to which Clarkson replied, “Jasmine is indeed an angel.” The pub has faced challenges, some of which were documented in the fourth season of Clarkson’s Farm, but its success as a local employer and tourist destination has solidified its place in the community.

Hawkstone at Silverstone: A Missed Opportunity

Clarkson’s entrepreneurial endeavors extend to Hawkstone, his brand of cider and beer produced from crops grown at Diddly Squat. Described as the fastest-growing business in the southwest, Hawkstone has gained popularity, with its products sold at events like the Silverstone Festival, held August 22–24, 2025, just over the Oxfordshire border in Northamptonshire. Clarkson, a lifelong Formula 1 fan often seen at the British Grand Prix, was asked by a fan at the festival whether Hawkstone could be supplied at the annual race at Silverstone Circuit. He responded, “Annoyingly, F1 does deals with breweries that are a bit too enormous for a small operation like ours,” highlighting the challenges small businesses face in securing contracts with major events. Despite this, Clarkson has found success elsewhere, including delivering free crates of Hawkstone to the Oxfordshire-based Alpine F1 team after their strong performance at the Brazilian Grand Prix in November 2024, where drivers Esteban Ocon and Pierre Gasly finished second and third, respectively.

Kaleb Cooper’s Growing Influence

Kaleb Cooper, Clarkson’s tractor driver and breakout star of Clarkson’s Farm, has leveraged his fame into a successful entertainment career. Beyond his role on the farm, Cooper has toured the UK with his solo show, The World According to Kaleb, with a spin-off special set to stream on Amazon Prime from November 29, 2025. His outspoken reaction to JD Vance’s visit underscores his no-nonsense attitude, which has endeared him to fans. Cooper’s contentment with life in Chipping Norton was recently highlighted on the Performance People podcast, where he admitted to never having taken a holiday or owning a passport, sparking debate among viewers. Some praised his grounded perspective, while others found his reluctance to travel limiting.

Harriet Cowan’s New Venture

The fourth season of Clarkson’s Farm, released in May 2025, introduced Harriet Cowan, a 24-year-old farmer and nurse from Derbyshire, who stepped in as a temporary replacement for Cooper. Her humor and farming expertise won over fans, who have called for her permanent return. Capitalizing on her popularity, Cowan announced the launch of her YouTube channel, Harriet on the Farm, with her first video—a Q&A with “juicy details”—set to go live on August 31, 2025. Cowan’s transition from nursing to full-time farming and content creation reflects her passion for agriculture and her desire to challenge stereotypes about women in the industry.

A Busy Year for Clarkson

As Clarkson balances farming, pub management, and his Hawkstone brand, his visit to Alex James’ Big Feastival shows his willingness to engage with the local community, even if it means sampling a rival’s lager. His frustrations with external disruptions, like Vance’s visit, and his ambitions for Hawkstone highlight the challenges and triumphs of his ventures. With Clarkson’s Farm season 5 in production and his pub thriving, Clarkson continues to make waves in both agriculture and entertainment, supported by a growing cast of characters like Cooper and Cowan, who are carving out their own legacies in the Cotswolds.