Kelvin Fletcher recalls surreal experience with tourist board after moving to Finland

Former soap star Kelvin Fletcher has spoken about a moment after relocating his family to a remote destination for an episode of his farming show

Actor turned farmer Kelvin Fletcher has spoken about a moment after he relocated his family to a remote spot, which he has described as 'surreal'.

The former Emmerdale star has had great success with his series, Fletcher's Family Farm, but for this year's Christmas edition of the show, his family have travelled to Finland to stay with another farming family, within the difficult conditions of the Arctic Circle.

The 40-year-old soap star turned farmer was recognised there for his role as Andy Sugden in ITV's Emmerdale and speaking to The Sun's TV Mag, the actor revealed that the Yorkshire soap is a hit in the country. Kelvin said: "We were told that Emmerdale was a very popular programme in Finland.

"You never know how true that claim is but it turns out that it is a very, very popular programme there. A lot of people do watch it and as a result I was recognised. "Apparently when the filming crew was contacting the Finnish board and the tourist board they said, ‘We know that guy.’ So that was a bit strange, from a previous life, if you like."

Kelvin added that he wasn't sure where Finland TV was with Emmerdale: "I’m not sure where they are up to. Normally with overseas territories there’s a bit of a delay so whether they are a year or 10 years behind who knows? But the guys did say they had seen me as a kid. That was a bit surreal."

Kelvin left the soap in 2016 and has since moved into farming with this Christmas Special being aired on Sunday evening (December 29) on ITV1. Kelvin and wife Liz live alongside their 100 sheep, 30 pigs, 10 horses, six chickens, a cat and Ginger the dog - not to mention their four children who are all under seven.

It hasn't always been smooth sailing for the couple, having previously split when he was bombarded by fans' risque texts and images. However, the pair managed to patch things up and are now relishing their farmland bliss. Appearing on BBC Breakfast, Kelvin said: “I think for me, I personally don’t want to seek any sort of validation elsewhere.

“I know how valued we are as a family and what we do in our small family farm, and I share that with every other family farm. You take great pride in producing food and having a real acknowledgement towards nature, towards the habitat. You’re a custodian of the land, and it’s a privilege.”

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