Original title
This Farming Life
Released
3/7/2016
Origin country
GB
Genre
Documentary, Reality
Production companies
BBC, BBC Studios Specialist Factual Productions
Status
Returning series
Number of seasons
7
Number of episodes
84
Documentary series following the struggles and triumphs of five very different farming families in some of Scotland's most beautiful and remote landscapes.
Sea shepherd Sandy gathers in a flock of wild sheep from a remote Scottish island by boat.
George and Sybil gather in their sheep from over six square miles of rugged mountainside.
Crofters club together to dip their sheep in insecticide before mating time.
In the east of Scotland, Martin's sheds are full of pregnant cows.
In the far north, John is expanding his flock and his land.
Sandy Granville surveys the damage to his croft after one of the worst storms on record.
Lambing season is just a month away. Martin tends to 500 pregnant ewes.
Spring arrives and John is expecting 6,000 new lambs, so hires in extra staff.
Bobby and Anne must gather their pregnant ewes from the hills ready for lambing.
Sybil prepares for George's birthday and the arrival of her sister and niece from England.
Martin prepares two young bulls for the Royal Highland Show in Edinburgh.
All the farmers from across the year reflect on what each season means to them.
On Mull, new entrant farmers Janet and Alastair take their lambs to auction.
Newlyweds Mel and Martin introduce the newest member of the family, four-month-old Erin.
Stevie risks the wrath of the buffalo mums when he ear-tags four newborn calves.
Robin and Penny's family arrive in the Highlands for the annual festive ceilidh.
Steven and Tracey turn to technology to increase their chances of female calves.
Alone on the farm, Mel must act fast to help a trapped bull.
Highland cow Goldilocks gives Janet and Alastair a fright when a calving goes wrong.
Mel tries every trick in the book to help a first-time mum bond with her lambs.
Weaning time at the buffalo farm gives Stevie and his neighbours a sleepless night.
David is beset by pests and, out on the hill, his lambs are under threat from predators.
Janet and Alastair find something very unusual in a group of young female sheep.
Dairy farmers Stuart and Aylett Roan take a break from the cows to prepare for piglets.
As the new year begins, we meet three new farming families. Father-and-son team Raymond and Johnny Irvine, Shetland sisters Kirsty and Aimee Budge and the Rodgers family in Co Down, Northern Ireland and buffalo farmer Stevie Mitchell returns.
New entrant crofting couple Lynn and Sandra send their first pigs to slaughter. Raymond’s best bull Major is injured in a brawl.
Inspectors arrive to check Raymond and Johnny’s subsidy claim. Kirsty and Aimee gather the flock in from St Ninian’s Isle. Lynn and Sandra host their first workshop at the croft.
A new family, dairy farmers the McLeans, are introduced. Raymond goes the extra mile to save his lambs. Stevie faces buffalo cow number 666, and Kirsty and Aimee take last year’s calves to market.
The Rodgers face a final TB test. Animals arrive at Lynn and Sandra’s croft. Raymond is kept guessing by his surrogate sheep and a calving boom starts at Kirsty and Aimee’s farm.
In Shetland, Kirsty tackles her first breach birth. Stevie’s favourite pygmy goat Ginger struggles to give birth to twins. Raymond’s cows run amok on their way to the fields and the Rodgers take young heifer Nadia to the Balmoral Show.
Raymond tests the market for his cross-bred valais blacknose sheep. Lynn and Sandra go to their first ever auction to buy sheep and hens for the croft.
Lynn and Sandra face the danger of a drought on the croft. Stevie’s buffalo herd go for a cooling dip in the loch. And at the Royal Highland Show, Raymond and Johnny aim high with their Charolais, while Aimee puts her pony skills to the test.
Lynn and Sandra harvest their first honey. The Rodgers give bull Mario a send-off. Raymond’s flock is under threat from flystrike, and 50 of Stevie’s buffalo escape.
Raymond and a team of volunteers give the valais blacknose sheep a bath. Kirsty and Tom rescue fallen sheep on the isle. Stevie attempts to milk his first buffalo.
Raymond and fiancee Jen take a busman’s holiday to Switzerland to help their friends gather their valais blacknose sheep from the mountaintops but their holiday turns into an Alpine adventure.
In the Highlands, new crofters Lynn and Sandra welcome more new sheep and take delivery of a batch of hens that they hope will lay the foundations of an egg empire.
In Armadale, a hill farmer prepares for one of Europe's biggest sheep sales, while in Haweswater, a couple take on the biggest gamble of their lives by moving to a larger farm 10 miles north.
Father and daughter team Frank and Georgia compete in the Westmoreland County Show, Matt and Murray deal with a DIY disaster and an escapee calf, and Emma and Ewan find out if their pedigree bull is firing on all cylinders.
The stags are roaring on Isla and George’s farm, and Matt and Murray shop for a new tup. Joyce rescues her ewes, and Helen and Graham fear the worst for their poorly piglet.
Ewan trains JohnJo the bull. Isla and George fight to save a poorly deer calf. Matt and Dani reach an important milestone, and Joyce tries to get the best price for her calves.
Disaster strikes for Helen and Graham. Emma and Ewan receive bad news. Frank and Georgia introduce pygmy goat Pluto to the ladies, and Joyce heads to Edinburgh.
Helen and Graham's herd undergo blood tests, and Grey is introduced to sheep for the first time. Matt deals with an unexpected arrival, while Isla and George put their plans on hold.
It’s late winter, and Storm Ciara is wreaking havoc for hill farmer Joyce. Frank and Georgia’s water supply is cut off, and Helen and Graham deal with an escapee.
Emma Gray sells sheepdog Meg for a world record-breaking price. Matt and Dani face the new farm's first cattle TB test. Joyce fights to save a poorly ewe.
It’s a bumper lambing season for Matt and Dani. Emma and Ewan struggle with John Jo, their Whitebred bull, and there’s love in the air at Split Rock Croft.
Coronavirus grips the nation just as lambing is in full swing. The farmers pull out all the stops to keep their businesses afloat.
Emma and Ewan attempt to shear all their sheep, Matt and Murray embark on a dramatic gather, and Helen and Graham are forced to make a decision with devastating consequences.
Emma and Ewan search for a new farm. Matt and Dani embark on a new project. Joyce introduces her lockdown purchase. Frank and Georgia fine-tune a new goat milk ice cream.
Following six farming families in some of Scotland’s most remote locations. Emma and Ewan move to their forever farm on Bute, while cousins Donald and David prepare for a busy lambing season.
Lambing is in full swing for the Cursiter family on Orkney, and it's full steam ahead for the Love family’s dairy plans. Meanwhile, Emma and Ewan struggle to get to grips with their new farm.
Ronnie and Pete prepare for a leggy new arrival, Joanna embarks on a steep learning curve, and young farmer Sean nears the end of a bumper lambing season.
Emma and Ewan hatch a plan to breed peacocks, Barbara gets her pumpkin plan off to a strong start, and Ronnie and Pete turn to cutting-edge science.
Young farmer Sean hits the road for his annual sheep shearing trip, while the Love family press ahead with their dairy plans. Ronnie and Pete prepare for the Royal Highland Show.
Emma and Ewan earn their first pay cheque for the new farm, while Joanna and Donald press ahead with plans for their farm shop and Sean returns home to the family farm.
Emma and Ewan compete in the Bute Agricultural Show, Mike heads to Northern Ireland in search of a pedigree tup, and the drought causes problems for the Love family in Stranraer.
Barbara launches her first sunflower afternoon tea event, Sean and the family are faced with tragedy, and plans finally become reality for the Love family in Stranraer.
Emma and Ewan head to Kelso Ram Sales in search of three new tups. In Orkney, Sean joins the ranks of farmers selling stock online, and it's harvest time in Fife.
Pumpkin season arrives at the Girvans' farm in Loch Ness, Kayleigh’s milkshakes go down a treat, and Emma and Ewan put their new tups to the test.
In Orkney, Sean draws one step closer to his dream. Plans for the farm shop are halted by a dramatic birth in Loch Ness. It’s launch day for the Love family in Stranraer.
The Frasers experience teething problems with their new farm shop. In Fife, Mike and Pete work on their new joint venture. Emma and Ewan get back to training sheepdogs.
Robert finds out how many of his cattle are pregnant in the Cairngorms, the MacDonalds test out their potato harvester in North Uist, and Nikki and Ollie’s cow goes into labour.
The Barclays are finding their feet with the new Fat Lamb business. Rachel and Camy head to Lairg to buy more ewes. Nikki and Ollie find out if their favourite buffalo is pregnant.
In North Uist, the Highland cattle are moved to a tidal island, and pregnancy is scanned. It’s showtime for Camy and Rachel, and in the Cairngorms, Jenni expands her animal menagerie.
Fraser and Carianne head to the mainland to buy new tups. The Barclay family prepare their sheep for the Lanark Winter Show, while Nikki and Ollie try their hand at farming rabbits.
A deep freeze scuppers plans for the Barclays in South Ayrshire. Nikki and Ollie sell their produce at a Christmas farmers’ market. Robert gets to work on the new alpaca arena.
Carianne takes a bull to the Oban Highland Show. The Barclays are up all hours as they start lambing. Rachel and Camy gather in their ewes for an important pregnancy scan.
Rachel and Camy prepare to welcome this year’s Park Cheviot lambs. Nikki and Ollie’s rabbit breeding programme bears fruit. Robert heads to market to sell last year’s calves.
Jenni moves her alpacas to their new arena. The MacDonalds organise a massive breakfast run for their pregnant cows. Nikki and Ollie invest in a new honesty shack.
Carianne searches for the missing mother of a newborn calf. Rachel and Camy are on the hills tending to their Cheviots. John and Heather help to deliver their Beltex lambs.
No matter what time of year, a farmer’s to-do list is never done. On his croft in the Cairngorms National Park, Robert is up to his elbows at lambing time. He has learned much from his dad Donald, but he still needs to call in the vet for a sick ewe. In Moray, Nikki and Ollie head to a local hotel to taste test a new dish made from their own rabbit meat. And in South Ayrshire, lambing is done, and the Barclays begin preparing their best sheep for show season.
Jenni’s alpacas get their annual short back and sides, the MacDonald’s cattle make an epic journey across a tidal sandbar, while Nikki and Ollie down tools for Gala Day.
The Barclay boys hope to win the coveted Young Handler trophy at the Royal Highland Show. Rachel and Camy put their hopes in lamb patch. Nikki and Ollie open their doors to the public.
It’s a big year as Nick prepares to take over the family farm from dad Derek. Jo and Andy await the fate of their swamped crops, and Paul and Mel trade farm tools for fish and chips.
A chasm appears in Andy and Jo’s wheat field, single mum Sally pregnancy-scans her ewes, while the Imrie family discuss an events business set-up to take pressure off the farm.
The Imries wrestle stubborn pigs, while it's Nick’s easycare sheep versus dad’s trad breeds. On Papa Westray, Paul's ram has had a secret rendezvous with two ewes.
John and Antoinette have their hands full, as Ben’s had to take a full-time job. The Morrises have a very difficult lambing, and Sally gets some long awaited news.
With no hospital on Papay, Mel must have her baby on mainland Orkney. Nick and Derek fight to keep a calf alive and a nursery group get a lambing surprise at the Imrie family farm.
In the midst of lambing, Sally's son William gets chicken pox. Storms cause a lambing nightmare for Nick and his easy-care sheep. Jo and Andy must dig up precious wheat fields.
Paul turns to the community for help with a ewe in distress. The loss of some land puts succession into focus for Nick, while Ben and Matt race to get the event site ready on time.
Andy and Jo compete at the Royal Highland Show. Sally juggles sheep and children while shearing her flock, and the Imrie family's event business kicks off in style.
The Imries prepare for their biggest event so far, but online ticket sales go down. Nick has a new business idea, while the Bakers pause shearing to join the Papay fun weekend.
On Papay, Paul and Mel juggle farm work with wedding prep, while Sally’s ewes in Caithness have been struck by a mystery illness. Jo and Andy turn lambs into much needed cash.
The Thomsons thrash out plans for Nick to take over the family farm. The Imrie's farm-to-fork event is hit by a storm, and Sally takes her son to market to sell his own lambs.
Andy and Jo bring in their crops and discover if they've made the grade. Nick and Holly are diversifying to secure their farming future, and the Bakers get their own milking cow.
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