Kaleb Cooper Calls for Farming Lessons in Every School: “It Saved Me” – A Plea from the Cotswolds Heartthrob at Cheltenham Literature Festival

Kaleb Cooper, the 27-year-old farming sensation whose deadpan wisdom and tractor mastery have stolen hearts on Clarkson’s Farm, issued a passionate rallying cry at the Cheltenham Literature Festival: make agriculture a staple in school curriculums. Speaking to a packed house at the festival’s Literature for Schools programme on October 11, Cooper declared that “everyone should know how to grow potatoes and other vegetables,” crediting hands-on farming education with pulling him from a troubled youth and igniting his lifelong passion for the land. The event, part of the festival’s 80th-anniversary celebration aiming to inspire 80,000 schoolchildren through the arts, saw Cooper blend storytelling with advocacy, urging educators and policymakers to equip the next generation with the skills to feed themselves amid a world grappling with food security and climate threats.

Cooper’s appearance at the Parabola Arts Centre in Cheltenham Ladies’ College was a highlight of the festival’s youth-focused lineup, which also featured authors like Jacqueline Wilson and Alice Oseman. Dressed in his signature flat cap and wellies—despite the indoor setting—the Chipping Norton native captivated an audience of students, teachers, and parents with tales from his new children’s book, Kaleb Cooper’s Farmyard Tales. But it was his unscripted pivot to education that stole the show. “Farming saved me,” Cooper said, his Oxfordshire accent thick with emotion. “I was a kid who didn’t fit in school—hyperactive, always in trouble. But when I got my hands in the soil, planting spuds or tending veg, it clicked. Everyone should have that chance. Teach ’em young: how to grow, how to harvest, how food gets from dirt to dinner.”

The star, who rose to fame in 2021 as Jeremy Clarkson’s unflappable farm manager on the Amazon Prime hit, shared how his non-farming background nearly derailed his dreams. Growing up in a council house without agricultural roots, Cooper left school at 13 to work on local farms, dodging the “obstacles” of encouragement and access that plague aspiring young farmers. “There’s negativity around farming—it’s hard, it’s muddy, it’s not glamorous,” he told the crowd. “But if schools taught it like they teach maths or history, we’d have kids excited about it. Imagine a generation that knows where their carrots come from!” His words resonated deeply, drawing cheers from the 500-strong audience, many of whom clutched copies of his book, a whimsical collection of “silly and true” farm stories designed to spark curiosity in little ones.

Cooper’s advocacy isn’t new. In January 2025, he threw his weight behind a petition to integrate farming into the national curriculum, amassing over 50,000 signatures. “I’m passionate about highlighting how important farming is to all,” he said then, echoing his festival remarks. At Cheltenham, he expanded on the “it saved me” narrative, recounting how early exposure to allotments and community gardens kept him out of trouble. “Potatoes are easy—plant ’em, water ’em, dig ’em up. Boom, you’ve grown food. That’s magic for a kid.” He tied it to broader issues: Britain’s reliance on imports (over 40% of vegetables), the climate crisis threatening yields, and a youth mental health epidemic where outdoor skills could ground restless minds. “Farming teaches patience, resilience. In a world of screens, get kids outside—that’s the real education.”

The festival timing couldn’t be more poignant. The Times and Sunday Times Cheltenham Literature Festival 2025, running October 10–19, marks 80 years since Cheltenham’s first post-war arts event, with a mission to “gift the joy of culture to 80,000 schoolchildren.” Cooper’s session, part of the Literature for Schools programme reaching over 12,000 pupils annually, aligned with the Future of Reading Conference, featuring experts from the National Literacy Trust and Empathy Lab. “Books about farms? They’re gateways to the real thing,” Cooper quipped, signing books with doodles of tractors and potatoes. Young attendees, wide-eyed from his tales of rogue sheep and Jeremy’s “mucking up” escapades, peppered him with questions: “Can I grow carrots in my garden?” “What’s the hardest veg?” Cooper’s answers—earnest, laced with humor—left them buzzing.

Fans and fellow farmers flooded social media post-event, with X ablaze under #KalebForSchools. “Kaleb’s spot on—farming in classrooms could change everything,” tweeted @RuralVoiceUK, a farming advocate. Another, @LitFestFan, posted: “From Clarkson’s Farm to Cheltenham—Kaleb’s making agriculture cool again!” The response amplified Cooper’s earlier successes: his 2024 UK speaking tour, which sold out venues and streamed on Prime Video, and his September 2025 clothing line launch, featuring “Grow Your Own” hoodies that flew off shelves. At Cheltenham, he teased Kaleb: Down Under, his upcoming solo series filming in Australia this autumn, where he’ll explore global farming scales. “If Oz kids learn to plant in the outback, why not ours in the Cotswolds?” he joked.

Cooper’s plea taps into a growing movement. The UK government’s 2025 curriculum review includes calls for practical life skills, with trials in 200 schools incorporating gardening modules. Organizations like the Royal Horticultural Society report a 30% rise in youth allotment demand post-pandemic, crediting shows like Clarkson’s Farm for the surge. Yet, barriers persist: urban schools lack space, and rural ones grapple with funding. Cooper, ever the pragmatist, suggested starting small: “School veg patches, farm trips, even potato-growing clubs. It’s not about making farmers—it’s about making eaters who care.”

As the festival continues with stars like Irvine Welsh and Jojo Moyes, Cooper’s message lingers, a seed planted in fertile ground. For a man who once dreamed of tractors amid school struggles, advocating from Cheltenham’s stage feels like full circle. “It saved me,” he repeated to applause. “Let it save them too.” With Season 5 of Clarkson’s Farm wrapping amid Diddly Squat’s TB woes, Cooper’s star rises, blending TV fame with real-world impact. Will his call echo in Westminster? As potatoes go from plot to plate, one thing’s clear: Kaleb Cooper is tilling more than soil—he’s reshaping minds.