Victorian Farm facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Victorian Farm |
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Ruth, Peter and Alex on the DVD cover
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| Directed by | Stuart Elliott |
| Starring | Peter Ginn Ruth Goodman Alex Langlands |
| Country of origin | United Kingdom |
| Original language(s) | English |
| No. of series | 1 |
| No. of episodes | 6 |
| Production | |
| Producer(s) | David Upshal |
| Running time | 1 hour per episode |
| Production company(s) | Lion Television |
| Release | |
| Original network | BBC Two |
| Original release | 8 January – 24 December 2009 |
Victorian Farm is a British TV show that takes you back in time. It's a historical documentary series that first aired in January 2009. The show lets you see what everyday life was like on a farm in the 1880s.
Three experts, historian Ruth Goodman and archaeologists Alex Langlands and Peter Ginn, live and work on a real Victorian farm. They use old tools, wear period clothes, and even cook old recipes. The show was filmed at Acton Scott Historic Working Farm in Shropshire, England. This farm is like a living museum, showing how things were done long ago.
The team used old books, like The Book of the Farm from 1844, to learn how farmers worked back then. The show was very popular, with millions of people watching each episode. It was praised by many TV reviewers.
Victorian Farm was so successful that it led to other similar shows. These included Victorian Farm Christmas, Edwardian Farm, Wartime Farm, and Tudor Monastery Farm. The same team of presenters often appeared in these follow-up series. There was also a book called Victorian Farm that became a best-seller.
Contents
Episodes: Life on the Farm
The show had six main episodes, plus three Christmas specials. Each episode showed the team tackling different tasks and challenges. They learned how to run a farm just like people did over 140 years ago.
Episode 1: Starting the Farm Year
This episode showed the team moving into an old cottage. They had to fix it up, replacing the stove and cleaning the chimney. They even had to get rid of bedbugs!
The farmers helped with threshing wheat, which means separating the grain from the plant. They used a big machine powered by steam. They also plowed and planted new crops using horses. To make cider, they picked apples and pressed them. Other fruits were made into spicy chutney. They also got a flock of Shropshire sheep and cooked their first meal: boiled mutton.
Episode 2: Winter on the Farm
As winter arrived, the team prepared for the cold. They stored Mangelwurzels (a type of beet) to feed the cows. They built a pigsty for their new Tamworth pigs and a pregnant Gloucestershire Old Spot sow. A ram was added to the sheep flock to help them have lambs in spring. They also got a huge shire horse named Clumper and learned how to use him for farm work.
Inside the cottage, they showed how laundry was done in Victorian times. It took days! They removed stains, hand-washed clothes, used a mangler, and ironed everything. They also celebrated Christmas with a traditional Christmas tree, plum pudding, and a roast turkey.
Episode 3: Farm Repairs and Pests
The New Year brought new challenges. The farm needed urgent repairs, so they worked with a woodsman, blacksmith, and basket maker. Ruth tried making old-fashioned medicines. When pests attacked their wheat, Alex and Peter joined a pheasant hunt. Alex also learned how Victorian poachers caught rabbits. As spring got closer, the first baby animals were ready to be born.
Episode 4: Spring and New Life
Spring meant lots of new animals! Alex and Peter had to learn how to help deliver lambs and pigs. They faced a challenge when a valuable ewe was in danger and a lame horse threatened their work. They saw many chicks and ducklings hatch, plus eight piglets from their sow, Princess.
The team also used Victorian science to try and save their crops. If they succeeded, they would celebrate at the May Day fair. If not, all their hard work would be wasted.
Episode 5: Summer Work and Fun
In this episode, the team took a trip on a steam train. Ruth started making cheese in the dairy. Alex tried his hand at beekeeping. The sheep were sheared using new Victorian tools to save time. As the days got longer, Alex and Peter even played the new Victorian sport of cricket. It was also time for the important hay harvest, if the weather allowed.
Ruth made cheddar cheese with her daughter, Catherine, using milk from their cow, Forget Me Not. The sheep shearing was very important because the sheep had severe fly strike (a problem with flies). For Alex's birthday, Ruth made him a cake, and Peter bought him a book about setting up an apiary (a place for bees).
Episode 6: The End of the Year
This was the final episode of their year on the farm. They sold the pigs and sheep they had raised. Ruth learned straw plaiting to make a hat and cooked a Victorian-style curry. The main focus was the wheat harvest. Peter and Alex got their farm cart and a reaping and binding machine fixed. They also brewed beer for the harvest celebration.
They finished the harvest just before the rain came. Ruth harvested the last of the corn by hand. Once the wheat was dry and stored, they rang the church bells, enjoyed a harvest festival, and thought about their amazing year. They handed the key back to the landlord and left the farm.
Other Shows Like Victorian Farm
The success of Victorian Farm led to other interesting historical shows:
- Victorian Farm Christmas was a three-part series where the team returned to the farm to prepare for a Victorian Christmas. It showed how people celebrated the holidays long ago.
- Ben Fogle's Escape in Time was a show where families got to live at Acton Scott Farm for a week. They learned and competed in old historical skills.
- Victorian Pharmacy was another show made in a similar style. It focused on recreating a Victorian chemist's shop and included Ruth Goodman as a presenter.
Where to Watch
You can find Victorian Farm on DVD, distributed by Acorn Media UK.
