Countryfile presenter Matt Baker has announced a new More4 series, Our Barn In The Dales, which follows him and his wife Nicola as they convert farm buildings into a cottage. The announcement was made on Instagram, where Matt shared a family photograph and revealed the project.
New series with a twist
Posting alongside the photo, Matt wrote: "Hi all, got some big news for all of you who enjoyed 'Our Farm In The Dales' (the series based on our family farm). We're back with a new series, but with quite the twist."
He explained that he and Nicola are converting the barn, stable, and granary at the end of the courtyard into a cottage. The project will be covered across two series: the first will follow the building and conversion work, and the second, next year, will focus on the interiors.
Family and animals feature
Viewers can also expect appearances from the family's animals and Matt's parents, as well as the completion of his father's classic car project. He rounded off the post by saying: "A massive thanks to all our friends and new builder mates who are making our dream happen. See you in a couple of weeks on More4 starting Tuesday 13 October 9pm," reports the Mirror.
Matt's fans were thrilled by the news and flocked to the comments section to express their excitement. One wrote: "We can't wait for you to see it!" "Ahhhh, great. We love seeing you all together," another said, while a third added, "That's brilliant, I can't wait to watch it. When will it be on TV?"
Career highlights and Blue Peter memories
Many viewers will also remember his stint on Blue Peter between 1999 and 2006, when he became a fan favourite and won two BAFTAs for Best Children's Presenter in consecutive years. In a recent interview with Harry Hill on The Harry Hill Show on YouTube, Matt opened up about his extensive career, including his presenting roles on Countryfile, The One Show, and Matt Baker: Our Farm in the Dales.
When Matt left Blue Peter in 2006, he took Meg with him. The dog had become synonymous with the children's programme and died in 2011. When Harry joked about Matt walking off "with the dog", the presenter explained that Meg had never actually belonged to Blue Peter. He said: "The dog was never actually owned by Blue Peter because she came from a neighbour’s farm in Durham. She was a working collie."
Matt also revealed how his interest in training dogs had come up during his audition for the show. He explained: "It’s interesting because when I went down for the Blue Peter auditions, they said to me, ‘Of all the things that you’ve seen on Blue Peter recently, what would you have liked to have done?’ expecting me to say ‘Jump out of an aeroplane’. I said ‘Train the dogs...I’d like to train the dogs. I want a proper dog that can, you know, jump through fire hoops and do all of that and have an action dog, and this dog will come everywhere with me, and that’s what I’d love’. So I got Meg from a neighbour’s farm, she was a working sheep dog and she came down."
Our Barn in the Dales airs on October 13 on More4.
