Jeremy Clarkson has been a controversial figure for a long time, but despite his various missteps, he also manages to be relevant and investable from a TV point of view. His show Clarkson’s Farm has also managed to capture the imagination of the viewing public. In the show, he has to manage the aptly named Diddly Squat Farm. Being a fan of the show, I’ve put together 10 more reality shows like it.
Shows like Clarkson's Farm
This Farming Life (2016)
BBC’s This Farming Life is a documentary that follows the day-to-day hardships of running a farm. The show has a different premise to Clarkson’s as it features five traditional families located in remote parts of Scotland surviving by being self-sufficient.
A Country Life for Half the Price (2020)
This is a show that focuses on families who move to the country to get away from the hectic city life they have been accustomed to. Each episode follows a different family trying to escape from the high pressure, and high budget, day-to-day life in the city.
Gourmet Farmer (2010)
Another celebrity, just like Jeremy, is the lead in this Australian reality show. Mathew Evans is a hugely popular food critic and decides to throw the towel in on his urban lifestyle to live on a small farm in Tasmania. Just like Clarkson, he will have to learn the knowledge and abilities necessary to survive and thrive in his new farming habitat. Evans is humorous and charismatic and struggles endlessly with the day-to-day running of his new life.
Farmen (2001)
Farmen is a Swedish reality show that features six women and six men living on a farm without their usual modern appliances. This is a little more like a reality-based game show and has a more competitive edge. Hence, the tone is very different from Clarkson’s Farm, but watching the inexperienced contestants as they have to grow their own food without the aid of their mobile phones, makes for entertaining viewing.
Born Mucky: Life On The Farm (2020)
Here is another series that takes a look at the world of farming through the eyes of three traditional farmers. The stakes here seem higher and more serious as this is a look at the real hardships and obstacles that farmers must embrace to survive and feed their families. This show differs from the more humorous tone of Jeremy’s show by allowing viewers to experience the real hardships of farming life.
City Life to Country Life (2020)
I suppose that concepts on this subject are limited, as here is another show that follows a similar premise. The show records the journey of four British families with enough of the rat race and decides to start a new life in the countryside. With the real issues of the shift taking its toll on some of the families, this differs slightly from Clarkson’s show, but it does have all the tropes that you will have come to accept by now.
My Dream Farm (2010)
Here’s another reality show with city folk becoming country folk for your entertainment. However, this show has another well-versed TV celebrity at the center of the premise, although a very different presence from Jeremy.
Monty Don is a well-respected British horticulturist, broadcaster, and writer, who will be familiar to the UK viewing public as the presenter of Gardiner’s World. The OBE holder offers his expertise to the individuals who have taken up the farming challenge in this entertaining show.
Matt Baker: Our Farm in the Dales (2021)
Once again, we have a well-loved British presenter sharing their journey as they uproot and move to the countryside. Matt Baker, like Jeremy, is well known for his appearances on TV, but there is a sadness attached to the central premise of this show. Matt moves his wife and family to their sheep farm in the hills of Durham after the death of his beloved mother.
Matt has always loved the countryside and presented a long-running BBC program called Countryfile, so he is no rookie in this style of life.
McLeod’s Daughters (2009)
So we were taking a slight left turn here and thought it might be nice to include something that isn’t a reality show. Yes, I know there is pretty much nothing in common with Clarkson’s Farm, but hang in there now.
This Australian drama series was hugely popular and followed the story of Claire McLeod and her half-sister Tess Silverman McLeod as they run Drover’s Run, a large cattle farm in the outback of South Australia. Like Clarkson, the protagonists in this show have to learn about the hardships of the job as they struggle to survive, so yes, this may be tenuous, but you might want to check it out.
The Grand Tour: A Scandi Flick (2022)
After his departure from Top Gear, Jeremy Clarkson would get the old band back together for The Grand Tour on Amazon Prime. The popular show would lead to spin-offs, including this almost movie-like edition that follows Jeremy, Richard, and James up to their necks in trouble in the Scandinavian Arctic Circle. Driving their favorite rally cars, the team recklessly ends up in the adventure of a lifetime as they cause chaos on ski slopes, frozen lakes, and Cold War submarine bases.
Do you have any other recommendations for TV Shows like Clarkson’s Farm? Let us know in the comments below.
