VILLAGERS are clinking their glasses as rumours fly that Jeremy Clarkson is buying their local pub.
The Coach & Horses Inn, near Bourton-on-the-Water, Gloucestershire was forced to shut its doors last year – to the heartbreak of locals.
But the latest whispers around the town are that the 63-year-old Top Gear star has plans to snap up the boozer.
And residents are welcoming the tales travelling through the grapevine after council insiders leaked Clarkson’s said interest.
Plus, they say it isn’t too much of a far-fetched tale – the pub is near the brewery where the star’s Hawkstone Lager is produced.
It also sits just 12miles from Clarkson’s Diddly Squat farm.
Locals say having a “high-profile” publican would do wonders for the town.
Tom Carty, 37, who is manager of the Willow Pub in Bourton-on-the-Water said: “There has been rumours for months about that site being purchased by Jeremy Clarkson.
“It will be good for the village – he’s a very high-profile character.
“In this area we are always looking for more reasons for tourists to come and if this brings more tourists in this direction that is a good thing.”
The 37-year-old added: “The pub would suit him really well; it’s opposite his brewery so why wouldn’t you want a site like that?”
The Coach & Horses Inn was said to have had the “best Indian restaurant in the village” before it shut last year.
Slav Wiswieski, 41, the assistant manager of the Willow Pub who lives in Bourton-on-the-Water, said: “It used to be open until late, and they used to do a British Sunday carvery even though it was Indian.”
He continued: “I reckon Jeremy Clarkson buying the pub would bring much more to the village because of the name, obviously.
“He already has this teepee close by and that one is absolutely brilliant as well and when it is nice weather people sit outside with live music and food trucks.
“He’s running a good business and there’s massive opportunity there.”
Clarkson’s Diddly Squat farm is a fan favourite across the UK.
It will be good for the village – he’s a very high-profile character.
Tom Carty
The TV presenter is gearing up for a third series of Clarkson’s Farm, which sees a camera crew follow him around Diddly Squat Farm in Chipping Norton.
Just yesterday he announced there had been “unbelievably sad” deaths on the property.
The former Top Gear host was left crushed after a promising litter of piglets faced tragic deaths.
He spoke about his high hopes for the animals when they were born, explaining the reason why he turned his focus to pig farming rather than dairy.
Jeremy told the Times: “A cow has one calf, whereas the last bout of births we had, one of our pigs had fourteen piglets.
I reckon Jeremy Clarkson buying the pub would bring much more to the village because of the name, obviously.
Slav Wiswieski
“That’s a lot of money. I reckoned the pigs would provide something that’s sadly lacking in farming today: a bit of genuine happiness.”
Unfortunately, his joy soon turned into sorrow as some of the piglets were accidentally crushed by their mothers, and others died of natural causes in infancy.
He added: “It was almost unbelievably sad.
“We had a catastrophically high level of deaths.”
The Sun columnist has also been caught up in countless planning wars after trying to expand his farm shop in recent years.
Jeremy was forced to defend himself after drawn-out rows over a car park and a restaurant – telling the council he did “not want to turn Diddly Squat Farm into Disneyland”.
‘We need it now!’ beg Clarkson’s Farm fans
By MAMIE SERAH MBOOB
CLARKSON’S Farm fans have been sent into a frenzy after Jeremy Clarkson posted a rare update about the popular farming show and its future beyond season three.
Season three of the highly anticipated series will be available on Amazon Prime next month, with fan favourites, including Kaleb Cooper, returning to the Diddly Squat farm.
Clarkson’s Farm follows Jeremy around Diddly Squat Farm in Chipping Norton as he tries to manoeuvre around the animal-filled thousand acres with the help of farmers Kaleb Cooper, Charlie and Gerald Cooper.
Thanks to the Prime Video series, Kaleb and Charlie have become famous social media figures.
The official Instagram page for the Diddly Squat farm shop – which has 1.5 million followers – recently shared some behind-the-scenes footage of Jeremy speaking to Charlie Ireland, who has become a household name since appearing on the show.
The clip was captioned: “Today, behind the scenes, behind the camera #season4.”
Clarkson Farm fans flooded the comments section and expressed their excitement over the announcement.
One fan wrote: “Season 4! We haven’t seen season 3 yet, I can’t wait!”
“I’m so excited! Me and my husband have been waiting patiently,” added a second person
A third followed it with: “These guys make farming interesting and also fun to watch while exposing the REAL challenges this industry has been facing a long time without a lot being done to help or resolve!
“I think the farming community really needs this exposure right now – plus more. Hats off to this show.”