Ex-Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson has confessed his pub – run only on British produce – is a ‘total disaster’ behind the scenes as thefts, traffic chaos and toilet nightmares run rampant.
When the Farmer’s Dog first opened in Oxfordshire last August many had travelled from far and wide to the picturesque spot for a chance of a pint, with the car park rammed within an hour of its opening.
Despite pubs closing their doors up and down the UK, and amid warnings that his strict British products-only policy would mean much smaller profit margins, the broadcaster steamed ahead.
And although punters have flocked to his watering hole, Clarkson has recently revealed that being a publican isn’t at all what he imagined it to be, sharing that it required ‘much effort’ for ‘little money’ in return.
‘It’s galling to see how much effort is required to make so little money on the farm. It’s worse at the pub,’ he wrote in his most recent Times column.
‘The customers are coming. There’s no problem there. But turning their visits into a profit is nigh-on impossible.’
He divulged the myriad of issues he has faced as a pub-owner, from 104 glasses going missing in a single day to spending £500 weekly on keeping the property and terrace warm.
However his troubles don’t end there, as he shared that he was having to cough up £27,000 in fees for parking and traffic marshals to keep the local council on side.
More than 400 people waited hours to be the first to enter Clarkson’s new pub when it opened in August
Pubgoers waited in a long row, often for hours, for a chance to have a pint in Clarkson’s Farmer’s Dog pub August
Ex-Top Gear host Jeremy Clarkson (pictured with his partner Lisa) has confessed his pub – run only on British produce – is a ‘total disaster’ behind the scenes
He divulged the myriad of issues he has faced as a pub-owner, from 104 glasses going missing in a single day to £500 spent weekly on keeping the property and terrace warm
But the long list of problems only continue for Clarkson, who shared of the hellish toilet incident which required a ‘whole team’ of chemically trained hazmat engineers to tackle.
Recalling a recent occurrence, where one of employees called wailing on the phone after discovering a ‘horror’ bathroom ‘accident’, the presenter hired a team of specialist – a cost he had never envisioned listing on his business plans.
The farmer and his partner Lisa have also encountered some barriers in the run up to Christmas, as her goose night failing to sell out and only managing to shift five turkeys after ordering 40.
But despite the hurdles Clarkson is more determined than ever to make his pub work.
‘It’s warm and there’s a fire and the staff are friendly and young and happy. It’s a proper, traditional pub,’ he said.
‘By which I mean you’ll love it, and I’ll lose a fortune and develop a skin disease from the stress of running it.’
Beers on offer at Clarkson’s pub include five varieties and a cider from his co-owned Hawkstone brewery.
The IPA is the most expensive at £6 a pint while Hawkstone Session lager is £5.50 a pint, alongside the Hawkstone Pils, Hawkstone Breeze, and cask ale.
Pints of Hawkstone Hedgerow cider sell for £6. Half a pint costs £3.10
A wide variety of Diddly Squat Farm products were on sale at a pop-up shop in the grounds of The Farmer’s Dog when it first opened in August.
On the stroke of noon Clarkson emerged through the front doors of the pub and shouted: ‘We are open’ back in August
He also discussed how he was having to cough up £27,000 in fees for parking and traffic marshals to keep the local council on side
One of the most popular items was a candle in a tin with the less than flattering name of ‘This smells like B******ks’
A wide variety of Diddly Squat Farm products were on sale at a pop up shop in the grounds of The Farmer’s Dog pub
A self service milk dispenser outside Jeremy Clarkson’s new pub, The Farmer’s Dog, in Asthall, near Burford in Oxfordshire
Soap on sale in The Farmer’s Dog for £6.80 a piece
From dairy products to soap and bottles of rum visitors were happy to part with cash for a memento of coming close to brushing shoulders with their hero Jeremy Clarkson at the time.
Products on offer included mechanics hand soap at £6.80, Jeremy’s Hot Seed Beer mustard at £6.80 a jar, Habanero Chilli Chutney also at £6.80.
A black and white tin mug bearing the name of Diddly Squat cost £14 while a jar of honey – or Bee juice as Clarkson calls it – was on sale for £12.
Loaves of sour dough bread retailed at £5.95 with a small loaf costing £3.95. There were even day-old loaves on sale at half the usual price.
One of the most popular items was a candle in a tin with the less than flattering name of ‘This smells like B******ks’.
