TV favourite Matt Baker has opened up about the frightening moment he knew his family was "in trouble" after an incident at their family farm. His 77 year old mum, Janice, suffered a terrible accident in 2021 when she got knocked over by sheep, resulting in a broken leg. At the time, Matt had just left The One Show and was setting up his own TV production company with thoughts of stepping back from the camera to embrace behind-the-scenes roles.
But life had other plans. Amid developing ideas for his new venture, an alarming phone call from his dad relayed the dreadful news about his mother's mishap and her urgent need for hospital care. Matt swiftly coordinated efforts to round up the family and farm animals, hurrying back to the family estate in the North.
Reflecting on the daunting episode, he explained: "My mum is the shepherdess, I mean there's no doubt about it, she runs the show up there and I knew straight away that we were going to be in trouble. We kind of, as a family, had been waiting for something like this to happen, because it was only ever going to be some farming thing or the sheep that were ever going to tell mum that things needed to change." He continued: "Because I knew the workload that was up there, I felt I had no choice and thought let's just get back up there.
We put all the animals in the trailer and headed up north. I just started to do these changes because we needed to change the sheep that we had." While discussing his farmhouse chaos with TV bosses for fresh programme ideas, one suggested turning Matt's family farm turmoil into a show for viewers.
Initially hesitant, the host wasn't keen on bringing his family into the limelight, but they got on board after he promised to oversee the production. With their blessing, Matt shot a pilot which led to Our Farm in the Dales. "They were actually a big part of the edit process because I was doing it all at home in lockdown," Matt shared on BBC Radio 4's Saturday Live.
"It's unbelievable that all this happened during lockdown." Matt Baker: Our Farm in the Dales introduced viewers to Matt's family, including wife Nicola and kids Molly and Luke. He then hosted 'Our Dream Farm with Matt Baker' on Channel 4 , where seven couples competed to manage a 340-acre farm at Wallington Estate.
At the end of the eight-part series, a livestock auctioneer and his spouse won and began their ten-year tenure. Now, alongside his presenting gigs, the ex-gymnast is also commentating for the Paris Olympics this year. Follow Mirror Celebs on TikTok , Snapchat , Instagram , Twitter , Facebook , YouTube and Threads.
