Jeremy Clarkson was criticized for saying he bought his own farm as an inheritance tax evasion more than a decade ago, but the petrol-powered farming hero turned TV sensation is now changing the story.
In 2009, Clarkson, whose Diddly Squat farm is the location and subject of the globally successful Prime Video show Clarkson Farm“Land is a better investment than any bank can offer,” he wrote in a newspaper column. “The government won’t get any of my money when I die.”
After a week in which Clarkson marched with other farmers to protest the government's proposed plan to impose inheritance tax on farmers, he has now said that was not the real reason for his purchase.
In an interview with The Times of London, the broadcaster said: “I never admitted why I really bought it… I wanted to shoot it – I was very naive. I thought it would be a better PR story if I said I bought it to avoid paying taxes.
Clarkson has proven to be a staunch advocate for his new rural farming community, saying government figures do not understand the burden on farmers across the UK. However, he refuted the notion, raised by many, that he should enter politics to represent his group: “I would make a bad, hopeless political leader. I'm a journalist at heart, I'd rather throw stones at people than have them thrown at me.”
