Tonight I’m ridiculously excited to be heading overseas to Munich in Germany to talk to Alyssa Jade McDonald-Bärtl @lyssland to talk about Cacao farming & chocolate! We hear all about Lyss’s family’s incredible history in Papua New Guinea, and her upbringing in Australia. We then talk about her return to her family roots after a decade in corporate strategy, and the idea for BLYSS chocolate came about after she competed in the World Ironman Championships in Hawaii. We talk in depth about growing organic Cacao in Ecuador and the Philippines, and the 2000 families she works with there, as well […]

Tonight I’m heading down to Northamptonshire in the heart of England to talk to the co-founder & owner of Warner Edwards Gin, Tom Warner. We hear about Tom’s family beef and sheep farm and his early life there, and his decision to study for a BSc in Agri-Food at Harper Adams University. We discuss his subsequent career in the produce industry buying from farmers all over the World, and selling to Supermarkets, and the experiences he had during those 10 years, before an idea to start a business for himself began to take shape. We talk about how he and […]

Tonight Rock & Roll Farming goes international all the way down to Taranaki in New Zealand to talk to Charlie McCaig. We hear all about Charlie’s background growing up as a typical town kid in South-East England, and the family’s later move to rural Shropshire. We talk about his DJ career in the bright lights of Shrewsbury, before his move down to Bristol where he met his future Wife Jody, a New Zealander, and their subsequent move to the other side of the World. We then discuss how they got into dairy farming, initially with some relief milking, (Charlie had […]

Tonight I’m heading up to Dumfriesshire in South West Scotland to talk to the one and only Heather Wildman ( @wildmanheather) Heather tells us about her family and background growing up in Cumbria, and her wide range of experiences in YFC, before going on to talk about her time working for DeLaval and her time spent in New Zealand. We then hear about her time at Minsups and First Milk, before we talk at length about her Nuffield Scholarship, and the amazing experiences she had on her travels. We talk about the thought process that led to her starting her […]

Well this is different. Tonight, I’m not going anywhere. Instead, James Robinson @JRfromStrickley is coming to me. Yes, I’ve relented and agreed to be interviewed. God help you all. Listen as I talk farming, family, fatherhood, history, blogging at fatherandfarmer.com and a little old Podcast called Rock & Roll Farming. Check it out folks..

Tonight I’m heading all the way up to the Isle of Lewis, in the beautiful Western Isles of North West Scotland to talk to crofter and broadcaster Domhnall McSween @SweenyNess After my pathetic attempts at Gallic pronunciation, Domhnall tells us all about the unique part of the World that he lives, some of the amazing archaeological remains he’s found there, and the connection he and his family have to the island. We discover what a croft actually is, and how the society works. We also talk about how he came to be back on the family croft after a brief […]

Tonight I’m heading over the border to the Shropshire Hills to talk to an actual real life millennial, Harper-Adams student Georgie Gater-Moore. We talk about her background and how she got the bug for agriculture helping out on a neighbouring sheep farm as a teenager, despite having no previous links to farming. We discuss the tough time she went through during her A-levels after finding a tumour on her pituitary gland, and how she overcame this with the help and support of her family. Georgie tells us about her fledging sheep flock, and how she funded purchases with her earnings […]

Tonight I’m heading all the way down to Exmoor to talk to upland sheep and beef producer James Taylor @NewlandFarm We start off by talking about his background growing up in a pub with a small farm in the New Forest in Hampshire, and the family’s move to the extensive upland farm where they are now, before moving on to discuss James’s university career at places as varied as Nottingham, Germany, Aberdeen, and The Netherlands. We talk about the various jobs that he did after finishing his studies, and the incredible year that he spent working on cattle ranches in […]

Tonight I’m taking the short journey over the border to Newport in Sunny Shropshire, to talk to the one and only Jim Franklin @MilkMaker73 We hear about his early life in Waikato in New Zealand, where his parents were share-milking at the time, before their return to farming in Shropshire in the mid 70s. Jim then goes on to tell us about the tragic loss of his Mother when he was a teenager, and how they dealt with it as a family, whilst keeping the farm going. We hear about his life growing up on the farm, and also talk […]

Tonight I’m heading up to Northern Cumbria to to talk to Sheep Farmer Rachel Lumley. We talk about ‘Love Lamb Week’ that takes place every year from 1st to 7th September, what it is, how it came about, and who’s involved, as well as what we can all do to support it. Rach tells us how her initial idea grew into what it is today, and the huge challenges involved with getting it of the ground, and in an emotional moment talks of the difficulties she’s faced personally. All this and much more. Rachel’s an amazing example of someone who’s […]