Jeremy Clarkson's 'last-ditch move' to make Farmer's Dog profit after 'losing fortune'

Jeremy Clarkson is facing a disaster at the Farmer's Dog pub (Image: PA)

TV star Jeremy Clarkson is said to be making a last-ditch effort to try and make some profits at the Farmer's Dog pub, as the new enterprise is "losing him a fortune".

The presenter is planning to extend the areas on the premises where he can sell alcohol, including a new bar, around the pub's curtilage (the area around the property) and a new marquee, according to Mail Online.

The star also has the opportunity to extend his opening hours, as The Windmill restaurant, which he bought to transform into the Farmer's Dog, had opening hours between 6am to 2am.

A source at the council planning department told Mail Online: "The pub already has a Premises Licence which allows them to trade from 0600hrs to 0200hrs.

"The application that has been submitted (on July 28th, 2024) is to vary the current licence with regards to the area that falls under the licence.

Jeremy Clarkson is said to be planning to keep his pub open 20 hours a day (Image: PA)

"They are seeking to extend the area to cover the outside area of the pub and to update the current building plans. There is no change to the times on the licence."

Clarkson is said to have submitted a planning application this summer to extend the area for alcohol sales onto the pub's five acre curtilage, while also setting up a new marquee in an adjoining field and building a new bar upstairs.

It remains unclear why the unusual drinking hours were already in place at the pub, formerly The Windmill restaurant, but it may be down to the RAF Brize Norton airbase being a short distance away, with workers using it to socialise after night shifts.

These hours could allow Clarkson to make back some profit after he admitted the first months have been a "disaster".

Revealing some of the huge costs he's had to fork out, from parking, toilet facilities, traffic marshals and thefts.

Writing about the pub in his Times column, he penned: "It’s warm and there’s a fire and the staff are friendly and young and happy. It’s a proper, traditional pub,' he said.

"By which I mean you’ll love it, and I’ll lose a fortune and develop a skin disease from the stress of running it."