Jo Mcgrath © |
Jo Mcgrath © |
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one of the most famous visitors to have stayed at the farm was Emma Thompson , who was writing ‘ The Christmas Tale of Peter Rabbit ’, one of the characters in the book , William the turkey , was inspired by a real life turkey on the farm , whom she met whilst visiting the farm . Other well-known celebrity chefs to have visited the farm include Levi Roots and Anthony Worrall Thompson .
One of the most memorable and interesting moments whilst Jon has been at the farm was when it was used as the location for Hilltop Farm in the film Miss . Potter , who was played by the Hollywood actress , Rene Zellweger . The film had a huge impact on the farm , as the crew spent between 5 to 6 weeks prior to filming dressing the set . As part of the set dressing the film crew built a dry-stone wall and landscaped a vegetable garden in front of the house , all of which had to be removed at the end of filming . The only downside for John was the fact that occurred during his busiest time of the year , lambing and calving . In his own words , I wasn ’ t very good to live with during this period because
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of the disruption , which lasted for three months .
Yew Tree Farm is fortunate to have an artist in residence , Jon ’ s fiancé Jo Mcgrath is a well-known artist and illustrator specialising in animal portraits ,
Jo Mcgrath © capturing the character of both domestic and wild Cumbrian animals . Living at Yew Tree Farm surrounded by Herdwick sheep and Galloway Cattle has heavily influenced her work , especially the Herdwicks . She has an uncanny ability to be able to capture the interesting characteristics of the sheep in her artwork . Her artwork encapsulates her love of the countryside and the animals she illustrates . When she ’ s not painting , she ’ s helping Jon with managing the sheep and cattle on the farm .
Recently Jon and Jo have ventured into business with Gemma Metcalfe and her chef husband , Spencer , who opened the Herdwick Café and Bistro in Coniston . They supply Gemma and Spencer with meat
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from the farm , and the café displays a changing selection Jo ’ s artwork . The café has received several rave reviews from satisfied customers , including Kate Humble , who said ‘ the Herdwick burgers were the best she ’ s ever tasted !’. One of the cafe ’ s attractions , apart from the great food , is it ’ s dog friendly . Described as serving light lunches , and hearty meals Herdwicks has the best views in the village .
This year saw the couple venture into using the farm as a wedding venue , they ’ ve just recently been given permission and have received their license . So with luck the first wedding to be held at the farm won ’ t be too far away .
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SALES :
Mitchells Lakeland Livestock Centre , Cockermouth , CA13OQQ
Telephone 01900 822016 Sat . 6th Oct . 2018 - Tups Fri . 5th Oct . 2018 - Draft Ewes
Harris & Hetherington Station Road , Broughton - in - Furness , LA206HQ
Tue . 2nd Oct . 2018 - Tups Tue . 9th Oct . 2018 - Draft Ewes
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Est 1916
For more information about the breed contact us on :
Tel . 07702 751 477 amanda @ herdwicks . org . uk www . herdwick-sheep . com
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