Jeremy Clarkson issues 'terrible' Farmer's Dog statement

Jeremy Clarkson has admitted life behind the bar is far tougher than it looks, revealing a grim financial picture at his Cotswolds pub as pressure mounts on the hospitality trade. The broadcaster, who swapped TV studios for tractors and tankards in recent years, has opened up about what he called a "bleak situation" running The Farmer's Dog - conceding that, right now, things are "pretty terrible".

Jeremy, 65, launched the pub in 2024 off the back of his Clarkson's Farm success, but says rising costs have pushed the business to the brink. Writing in The Sunday Times, he laid the blame squarely at the door of Labour's plans to hike business rates. He pointed to the struggles of fellow celebrity chef Tom Kerridge as proof that the problem is not isolated. Jeremy wrote: "The chef Tom Kerridge said the rates on his burger joint in Marlow would go up from £50,000 a year to £124,000. 'What's the point in being open?' he asks reasonably."

Turning to his own pub, the mood did not improve. He continued: "At my pub, the Farmer's Dog, things aren't quite that bleak but they're still pretty terrible."

Jeremy then spelled out the numbers facing him, adding: "The rateable value would shoot up from £27,250 to £55,000 and when you factor in the national insurance rise, which has upped our wage bill by £42,000 a year, we'd be up a gum tree."

He argued the increases could not simply be passed on to customers, writing: "Because how can you pass this on to customers when they have a £2billion gas bill to pay and they can't get there anyway because of the new drink driving rules."

Last month, Jeremy made headlines after barring Labour MPs from The Farmer's Dog in protest at what he described as a tax raid on hospitality.

The ban originally included Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer when the pub opened last year, before being extended to the entire party after Jeremy's annual business rates bill jumped from around £28,000 to more than £50,000.

Ministers are now reportedly set to U-turn on the planned tax changes following mounting pressure from landlords and backbench MPs.

The pub ban sparked fierce debate online. In response, one user on X urged a boycott, writing: "It's time for us all to get out of Jeremy Clarkson's pub and into somewhere more welcoming."

They added: "Whatever it is he is farming, we'd rather raise a pint to those less aligned to right-leaning sentiments and more aligned with majority values and interests."

Jeremy was unmoved, replying simply: "Okey doke. Off you go."

His response drew support from fans, including one who wrote: "If I ever end up back in England I plan on going to The Farmers Dog. Loved Top Gear and Love Clarkson's Farm. I try not to make my dining decisions based on politics. Seems a pathetic way to live."