Springing back to life on TV farm
Springtime on the Farm is about to hit our screens again while a new book of the same name tells the story of the Nicholson family at Cannon Hall Farm. Catherine Scott met them. Main pictures by James Hardisty.
Apair of Yorkshire farmers might sound like unlikely television celebrities but that’s exactly what Rob and Dave Nicholson have become. They may not be the next Ant and Dec but the brothers are a double act that the nation has taken to its hearts. Ever since Channel 5 decided to film Springtime on the Farm at their Cannon Hall Farm, near Barnsley, four years ago, the brothers have developed a strong fan base. Three more series, one of which involved filming abroad, are all in the pipeline for this year and just this week their second book, aptly named Springtime at Cannon Hall Farm, was published.
“We wanted a book abut Cannon Hall Farm that showed people what it was like for us growing up on the farm – the good bits and the struggles – but then also about the series and the people we have met and stayed friends with over the last few years and their journeys. Some have made it and some haven’t,” says Rob.
A fifth series of Springtime on the Farm – which has led to seasonal summer and winter offerings – is scheduled to run from April 18 to 21 when the brothers will be joined live by presenters Helen Skelton and Jules Hudson.
“They have become firm friends,” says Rob of the Channel 5 presenters. “In fact we are travelling to London today for Channel 5’s 25th anniversary and we are meeting Jules for a pint beforehand.
“One of the reasons we wanted to go is to say thank you to Channel 5 not for what they have done for us but what they have done for the entire Yorkshire region.”
Some of the series, which is broadcast live on consecutive days from the farm, is pre-recorded and sees the two brothers travel the country in search of inspiring farming stories. But the eldest Nicholson brother, Richard, prefers to stay behind the scenes
“I like live television,” says Dave, probably the more reluctant of the two brothers to be in the spotlight. “It’s over and done with quickly and if I make a mistake, then Helen jumps in and saves me.” Rob enjoys being in front of the camera and it was his appearance on BBC’s Look North that drew the attention of Paul Stead, MD of the production company Daisybeck that makes Springtime on the Farm.
“He was looking for a farm to create a series around similar to something that had already been a success in Ireland and asked if we’d be interested,” says Rob. “There’s is almost no such thing as bad publicity so we decided to do it.”
And so on April 9, 2018, Springtime on the Farm made its debut on Channel 5, celebrating the joys of the British countryside during springtime. It introduced the nation to the Nicholson family and Cannon Hall Farm and the country took them to its hearts.
Rob and Dave’s father Roger heads up the family and comes from a farming dynasty that can be traced back to the 1600s. He has lived at Cannon Hall Farm ever since his father bought the 126-acre property at auction in 1958. Prior to their big move, the Nicholsons lived in Bank End Farm in the nearby village of Worsbrough Dale, where several generations of the family worked the land and made their mark in the farming world. The farm was passed down from brother to brother and from father to son, each of them maintaining the land, growing crops and caring for their animals.
Roger’s charismatic father, Charlie, was himself a highly respected stockman and