FESTIVE MEMORIES
From hand-plucking warm turkeys to finding a puppy under the tree, Countryfile presenter Adam Henson, 57, shares festive memories of life growing up on his Cotswolds farm
There is always something magical about Christmas on a farm, in a beautiful old farmhouse like ours at Bemborough, where my family has lived since my dad Joe Henson took over the tenancy in 1962. His parents weren’t farmers, but he got the bug in his childhood and passed it down to me. The stone building lends itself to all the traditions of Christmas. Bedecked with holly and large bunches of mistletoe, and with the wonderful smells of the traditional feast filtering from the kitchen, I feel especially connected to the generations of farmers who have gone before me, marking Christmas in much the same way through the centuries. Presents under the tree may have varied, but the need to look after the farm and to celebrate the break is unchanged.
I may be a familiar face from my various TV programmes, most notably Countryfile, but first and foremost I am a farmer, involved in the day-to-day running of this farm in the beautiful, green Cotswold countryside, and I am lucky enough to have lived here all my life. Unlike the ancestors who worked the land before us, many farmers up and down the country today – including me – do not have to work the whole of Christmas Day. Instead, I can settle down to Christmas dinner, my favourite meal, knowing I can fall asleep after if I wish!
There is nothing on that steaming plate I don’t love: turkey, sprouts, carrots, parsnips, roast potatoes, stuffing, gravy. It’s particularly wonderful for me, and many other farmers, because we can look at the food in front of us and know where it has come from. I have experience of growing and raising some of the contents of the dinner plate, and have met many farmers who take care of the other ingredients, so I know first-hand what has gone into it.
I think with age I’ve become softer and more sentimental. Since the arrival of my children, the death of my parents, and something that rocked our family to its core in recent years, which I’ll share with you later, Christmas has become ever more loaded with meaning. As a farmer, it’s a rare chance to slow down and think about how far we’ve come in the year and where to go next, but it’s also about old traditions. When we celebrate in ways our parents did, we’re keeping them alive.
Tree-chopping adventures…
When I was a child, going to get the Christmas tree with my dad was always a big adventure. We lived close to a wood with mixed species of trees, including pines and firs. With the landlord’s permission, Dad made an annual expedition into the plantation with m
