Soaps and quiz shows get my goat but reality series floats my boat

Archaeologist and presenter Jules, 51, is known for Escape To The Country, Countryfile and This Week On The Farm. He lives in Herefordshire with his wife and son, and here he talks about bingeing on US political drama The West Wing and his guilty pleasure – reality show Below Deck... What are you watching at the moment?

Like everybody, we’ve been mining Netflix. One of the things that we’ve really loved is a film based on a true story. So the last thing we watched was 6 Days, the story of the Iranian embassy siege. I live in Herefordshire, the SAS is part and parcel of the fabric of this county and from my garden I can look out across to the Wye Valley and see the SAS station. We’ve also been really enjoying Hinterland, the great Welsh crime drama series and its successor, Hidden. For me, having spent most of my life living in the place where Hinterland is set, it’s been great to reconnect with the area. Something we’d never expected to get into is Below Deck, it’s like Love Island on a multimillion pound super yacht. It’s trash but it’s excellent for switching off to.

Would you say you’re a bingewatcher?

Yes. But we’ve learnt, like many binge-watchers, the cautionary tale of overdoing it. Suddenly, you find yourself at one in the morning thinking, ‘Oh,

we’ll just watch the last one’. Our binge-watching started with The West Wing, which has 120 episodes. We’re looking for a new series at the moment.

Do you ever watch yourself on the TV?

I do, on occasion. I tend to do it on a catch-up platform so I can have a good look through a few in one go. Really, for my own quality control more than anything. In this game, you have to be your own worst judge, so you’re always learning.

What were your favourite shows to watch while growing up?

TV had barely been invented. I absolutely loved All Creatures Great And Small. We’ve enjoyed the new Channel 5 series recently. I loved Howards’ Way and The Great Egg Race too.

Any shows you don’t like?

I’m not a massive soap fan, I don’t really watch them. I’m an old-school historian, so I prefer things that are grounded in reality. I don’t really go for quiz shows, either. But our viewing as parents of a six-year-old is quite limited now.

If you could watch one thing for the rest of your life, what would it be?

I should say This Week On The Farm, shouldn’t I? I do love The Repair Shop, though. The social history that you get through the items, the initiative, care and craftsmanship that goes into it. It would be a good desert island thing. I’d probably also take The West Wing. Probably Band Of Brothers as well. Jules Hudson copresents This Week On The Farm on Thursday, Channel 5, 8pm.

‘ As parents of a six-year-old, our TV viewing is quite limited now’