Jimmy Doherty | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | (1975-05-24)24 May 1975 (age 49) Ilford, London, England |
| Occupation(s) | Farmer, conservationist, television personality and academic |
| Known for | Jimmy's Farm,Jimmy's Food Factory,Jamie & Jimmy's Food Fight Club,Food Unwrapped,Jamie & Jimmy's Friday Night Feast. Builds on Wheels |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 4 |
Jimmy Doherty (born 24 May 1975) is an English television presenter and farmer. Doherty is known for the showJimmy's Farm, detailing the operation of the Essex Pig Company that he and his wife Michaela Furney own inSuffolk.
Born inIlford, Doherty moved toClavering in Essex at the age of three.[1] A childhood friend ofJamie Oliver, he attended Clavering Primary School and then studied atNewport Free Grammar School. Whilst at Newport Grammar School Doherty ran a magazine called 'The Natural Choice' sparking his love of nature and animals.
From the age of 13 he worked in the tropical butterfly house at Mole Hall Wildlife Park in Saffron Walden, assisting with the menagerie of different animals ranging from otters to chimpanzees. Doherty left Mole Hall, aged 24, to focus on his academic commitments.
He has a degree in animal biology from theUniversity of East London[2] and studied for a PhD inentomology atCoventry University'szoology department.[3]
Doherty served for five years in theRoyal Corps of Signals.
In 2002, he appeared as a friend and guest onOliver's Twist in the episodes "Painting Party in 2002 "Flash in the Pan" in 2003.
He then trained as a pig farmer, where, in 2002, he metrunner Furney, whenChannel 4's filming forJamie's Kitchen took it to theCumbrian farm where he was working.[4]
After returning toEssex to run his own farm, Doherty and Furney set up The Essex Pig Company usingfree range meat production practices. Doherty gained the funds to set up the farm using the proceeds from his first bookOn The Farm which formed a diary of his farming ventures.
The Essex Pig Company, based in Ipswich, Suffolk, raised variousrare breeds, most notably the endangeredEssex, and now theBerkshire,Gloucestershire Old Spots,middle Whites, and Norfolk Horn sheep among many others.
People were eager to visit the farm to see the native domestic animals and buy fresh produce so, Doherty and Furney opened the doors to the farm in 2002. To enter the farm a sign read 'Jimmy's Farm' and whenBBC Two followed their efforts with a series offly-on-the-wall documentaries[5] the name stuck.
In 2008, Doherty presented a series for BBC2 calledJimmy Doherty's Farming Heroes which aired from July 2008 to August 2008, followed by various other series and single documentaries for the BBC. Notably,Jimmy's Food Factory, in which he demonstrated the industrial techniques used in the production of processed foods, ran for two series onBBC One. When the Controller ofBBC One at the time,Jay Hunt, left to becomechief creative officer atChannel 4 at the end of 2010, she signed up Doherty to present exclusively for Channel 4. Doherty's last series for the BBC,A Farmer's Life for Me, was broadcast in February and March 2011.
Since 18 June 2011,Jimmy's Food Factory airs asProSieben BBC Spezial – Jimmy's Food Factory every Saturday on German TV channelProSieben.[6]
In 2011, Jimmy's Farm 'Cambridge Sausage' was named in the top 10 sausages in the UK byThe Independent.[7] The sausage contains 93% pork from the farm and the recipe dates back to 1917.
In December 2012, Jimmy and Jamie Oliver presented the Channel 4 seriesJamie & Jimmy's Food Fight Club. Since 2014, Doherty has co-presented the prime-timeChannel 4 seriesJamie & Jimmy's Friday Night Feast alongsideJamie Oliver.
Doherty and the team ensured conservation was at the forefront of their decisions and created areas at the farm for nature to blossom. As well as a flair for farming Doherty holds a passion for non-native species and, with a great team behind him, the farm applied for zoo status to help endangered species further afield. On 5 October 2016 Jimmy's Farm was awarded its zoo license from the local authority and Jimmy's Farm & Wildlife Park was born. The first three exotic species they welcomed wereReindeer,Tapirs andMeerkats.
In 2016 Jimmy became the youngest ever President of theRare Breeds Survival Trust a charity closely linked to his work and passions. In 2019 he became a patron of theBritish Beekeepers Association.[8] He is also the patron of theBritish Hen Welfare Trust.
In May 2019 Jimmy's Farm & Wildlife Park became accredited by theBritish and Irish Association of Zoos and Aquariums (BIAZA) who represent the best zoos and aquariums in Britain and Ireland that pride themselves on their excellent animal welfare, education, and conservation work. In July 2021 Jimmy's Farm & Wildlife Park became the first recipient of theRare Breed Survival Trust's new Rare Breeds Approved Associate accreditation.[9] This has been awarded in recognition of the farm's excellence in education about the importance of Britain's endangered native livestock and equine breeds and its work to conserve their unique genetic characteristics.
Jimmy and Michaela Furney were married on 22 August 2009. The reception was held at their farm, Pannington Hall inWherstead, Suffolk.[4][10]
They have four daughters, born between 2010 and 2018.[11]
In August 2014, Doherty was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter toThe Guardian expressing their hope that Scotland would vote to remain part of the United Kingdom in September'sreferendum on that issue.[12]
Doherty has close links toIpswich Town Football Club and follows their campaigns. In 2013 Jimmy's Farm created an Ipswich 'Super Blue' sausage named in honour of The Blues. The sausage, like all their sausages, was made with pork from the farm and this one included stilton and garlic.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
