REVIEW: Clarkson's Farm, Series 1 Episode Four 'Wilding'

 REVIEW: Clarkson's Farm, Series 1 Episode Four 'Wilding'

If there's one thing which would seem less likely than Jeremy Clarkson farming, it's him embarking on an environmental project. The outspoken television host has been very focal on his views about climate change and is traditionally seen driving around in big petrol-fuelled cars. And yet here we are, four episodes into his farming show, and he's engaging in environmentalism. To say it's a surprise is an understatement, but it provides some nice entertainment.

Particularly as, in typical Clarkson fashion, it all goes very wrong. Whoever thought it was a good idea to let Clarkson loose in a digger must surely be deeply regretting that decision, judging by how his dam initially turns out. He creates a complete hash of it, accidentally muddying up the field and ending up with a whirlpool developing in his lake. His constant frustrations at how this aspect of his environmental work never seems to work as intended is hilarious, and provides pretty much the backbone for this episode.

You kind of have to agree with Clarkson's girlfriend Lisa, and land agent 'Cheerful Charlie', when they practically deem it a disaster. The pair are unsurprisingly not very impressed, and they are further proof that it's the characters that make this show what it is. Jeremy Clarkson as a TV personality is somebody who needs somebody to bounce off, and the larger than life personalities in this programme are perfect for that goal. They each have their own individual characteristics that provide some nice banter with Clarkson, be it Charlie's straight and serious demeanour or Lisa being relatively unafraid to tell her partner how it is.

The highlight is still Caleb however, who gels with Clarkson just as well as Richard Hammond and James May. You'd be forgiven for thinking that he had been a part of Jeremy Clarkson's gang all along, as he is a natural in front of the camera, and has developed a rapport with the presenter which is consistently entertaining. It's never dull seeing Caleb get exasperated at Jeremy Clarkson's farming, especially in this episode where he tries to tow Clarkson out of the muddied dam, only to get stuck in his tractor himself. This leads to one of the best sequences in the show so far, when this huge operation is required to pull out a convoy of vehicles stuck in Clarkson's naturalist efforts. Judging by what we are shown here, Caleb really needs to join Clarkson, Hammond and May on their next Grand Tour Special, because he would make for such a fun addition.

Clarkson's second environmentalism project is to create a neat woodland area to attract deers and other local wildlife. Unfortunately he faces a hefty amount of criticism from Instagram users when he perhaps unwisely uploads a picture of the logs that he has cut down as a part of his attempts to create a natural habitation, which just goes to prove something about social media that has become an issue in recent years. People are quick to judge without knowing the context, and maybe if they knew the reasonings behind the copped trees they would realise Clarkson wasn't engaging in deforestation. The trees were cut so that the sunlight would reach the overall vegetation of the woodland area easier, because too many trees blocks the sunlight out. It wasn't destroying a natural habit, it was maintaining it.

It's impressive that his efforts here prove to be a success. Clarkson's efforts result in a greater number of insects inhabiting the area and the forest looking much nicer, as the exposure from the sun is able to reach the forest ground. It's a testament to the hard work and graft he has clearly put into this project that it has paid off in this fashion, and it goes to show what a person can achieve once they put their mind to something. When this series started I doubt I would have been alone in thinking it would be a show where Jeremy Clarkson always messes up, but it's nice to get occasions where he is successful in what he is trying to do.

It doesn't seem as though he's quite achieved as much as he had hoped with lambing season though. Judging by what we see at the end of this episode, the sheep don't seem to have been very productive in the slightest, and this feels like a more typical Clarkson result. It's not hard to imagine this leading into the end of a Grand Tour episode, with Clarkson declaring it a 'terrible disappointment'. This is what sets it apart from  and makes it more successful than The Great Escapists. It manages to tow the line of both feeling separate from the parent show whilst also capturing the same general tone and feel. Whereas The Great Escapists leaned too heavily into spoof territory by turning its lead presenters into overly silly fictionalised counterparts of themselves, Clarkson's Farm knows that it has to maintain that careful balance of comedy and realism, so as not to feel forced or scripted.

Overall, 'Wilding' is another outstanding episode of Clarkson's Farm. Featuring many hilarious moments, colourful characters and an overly consistent tone, it's an episode that proves this is a format that could run and run. Who could have foreseen that a farming show presented by Jeremy Clarkson would turn out to be the greatest of Amazon Prime's solo Clarkson, Hammond and May shows?

What are your thoughts on the fourth episode of Clarkson's Farm? Let me know in the comments.