Since buying Zestiny Farm five years ago, everyone’s told us the same thing: “You should film this. It’s Clarkson’s Farm on the Central Coast!”
They’re possibly right. I’d already dabbled in reality TV with ‘The Employables’ – three repeats on SBS with moderate ratings and decent reviews. But that experience taught me something important: reality TV is not for me.
Still, if we’d rolled cameras, we’d have captured some absolute gold. The kind of moments that make Clarkson’s Farm so bingeable. Which is why, whenever something particularly chaotic, heart wrenching or hilarious happened, we’d call it a “Clarkson moment” – a reminder we weren’t the only city slickers finding our way in regenerative farming.
The Moments We Didn’t Film:
We’ve had run-ins with councils. We’ve pushed innovation against better advice – sometimes vindicated, often humbled. We’ve launched new produce ventures: berries, aquaponics, even wasabi (without success). We’ve sat through accountant meetings where the maths of farming simply doesn’t add up, yet here we are.
We’ve dealt with animal emergencies – Nutella escaping at last year’s Harvest Festival, foxes in the chicken coop at 3am. We’ve had wildlife encounters – platypus flooded out of their burrows during the big rains.
And yes, we’ve welcomed new machinery with the kind of excitement usually reserved for sports cars. Not a Ferrari tractor yet – but give us time.
We’ve employed some amazing and eccentric characters on the farm – but some stories are better told in person than in print.
In short: Zestiny Farm would have made great TV.
But Here’s What Actually Matters:
Regardless of missing film footage, this journey has been unforgettable for us, our workers, partners, and mates, who’ve been just as integral to our story as they were to Clarkson’s.
And that’s where the real legacy of Clarkson’s Farm emerges – not the laughs or the drama, but the cultural shift it sparked.
Whether you like Jeremy Clarkson or not, his show did something remarkable: it mobilised governments to support farmers and reconnected consumers with where their food comes from. It made people care about soil, seasons, and supply chains. It made them want to experience farming firsthand – to pick fruit, meet livestock, taste what “paddock-to-plate” actually means.
If that sounds like you, we’ve got something better than a TV show.
Join Us at Harvest Festival – June Long Weekend:
This is your chance to step onto a working regenerative farm and see what five years of Clarkson moments looks like in real life.
What’s on:
- Farm tours & talks – the real story, unfiltered
- Hands-on cooking with celebrity vegan chef Elijah Attard
- Meet the animals – Nutella (our Tamworth pig), alpacas, mini-goats, and our famous mobile chicken caravans
- Pick-your-own citrus – lemons and oranges straight from the tree
- Farm produce stall – take home the goods
- Kids’ zone – face painting, activities, farm fun
- GUINNESS WORLD RECORD ATTEMPT – Biggest BBQ Lesson (yes, really)
Turns out we can’t avoid cameras entirely – we’ve already been featured on the Today Show, with more coverage coming. If you want to be part of history (and learn to grill a vegie burger like a legend), sign up for our Guinness World Record attempt in partnership with Australia’s Biggest BBQ.
- Event details & tickets: CLICK HERE
- World Record sign-up: CLICK HERE
We didn’t film our version of Clarkson’s Farm. But you can live it.
See you at the farm.
