Amanda Owen was just 21 when she met Clive Owen, 42, and the pair married after she made the first move. The couple became stars of Channel 5's Our Yorkshire Farm, which showcased their farming lives and nine children, despite a 21-year age gap.
Amanda's Bold First Move
According to Amanda, she made the first move on Clive with an extremely forward approach. At just 21 years old back in 1995, Amanda went to Ravenseat farm and knocked on Clive's door asking for a favour. Clive, who was 42 at the time, was divorced and living alone on the sprawling 2,000-acre estate.
Clive said on Our Yorkshire Farm: "I do remember this six-foot something woman knocked on the door. I was very taken with her. You couldn't not be." Amanda had come to borrow a 'tup', i.e. a male sheep.
A Slow Burn Romance
The self-proclaimed Yorkshire Shepherdess explained how the pair gradually got to know each other as Amanda began helping out on Ravenseat. She said: "It was a slow burn thing. We kind of got to know each other. We made friends first then went out a little bit together. With us both coming from non-farming backgrounds we were kind of peas in a pod really but we didn't know that at the time."
Clive also hails from another part of Yorkshire. He grew up in Doncaster and dreamed of being a sheep farmer. He already had two kids with his ex-wife by the time he met Amanda. The pair got married in 2000, five years after they met, and Amanda went on to have nine children with Clive: Reuben, Raven, Clemmy, Sidney, Miles, Nancy, Annas, Violet and Edith.
Family Fame and Separation
The family found fame after being featured on an ITV documentary about farming called The Dales, which was broadcast in 2001. From there, the family was picked up for an episode of New Lives In The Wild with Ben Fogle, which was made by Channel 5's production company. The same company then approached the family for a full series of their own and Our Yorkshire Farm was born.
Amanda and Clive were always keen to make sure her kids learned the value of hard work, and the children mucking in with the reality of life on the farm helped the series become a huge hit. Clive said: "I've always thought when we've been working the kids like to be part of something. It's lovely when they are around to help and they help willingly. I miss them when they're at school. When they're at home it makes a difference definitely." Amanda had added: "I don't feel like that's sort of breeding your own workforce because it's not that. It's a fact of being involved and have that responsibility and being part of something. I think that's a good thing."
Unfortunately, in 2022 Amanda and Clive announced they would sadly be divorcing, but various members of the family have gone on to make more TV appearances, with Reuben Owen given his own Channel 5 series and Amanda Owen given a Channel 4 show, Amanda Owen's Real Farming Lives, on More 4. The family have since reunited on Channel 4's Our Farm Next Door: Amanda, Clive & Kids, which sees the Owens trying to build a permanent home on their Ravenseat farm. Despite their separation, Amanda and Clive are seen working together on camera, with no hard feelings as they help put together a place to live for their children's future.
