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From the turn of the century, agriculture began to emerge from the depression – leaner, fitter and more diverse than ever before.

Devon was one of the key places where these changes took off and the new location allows the team to take on a new set of challenges – more demanding and dangerous than ever before.

Edwardian Farm goes far beyond the farm

The unique location of the farm, on the Tamar Valley in Devon, allows the trio to travel and explore far more than ever before. The farm sits between the Devon coast and the rolling granite plains of Dartmoor – and both are used extensively.

The team go sea to catch lobster, crab and shrimp, culminating with fishing on a trawler. They go to Dartmoor to learn how the granite rock was carved out; how sheep were cultivated on a hill-farm; experience the annual pony trek, when wild ponies are rounded up and selected for work by farmers; and find out why Sir Arthur Conan Doyle chose it as the setting for Sherlock Holmes' most memorable adventure, The Hound Of The Baskervilles.

Edwardian Farm takes on brand new crafts and skills

Farming in Devon was all about diversifying, and farmers supplemented their income through fishing at sea (for fish, crab, lobster and shrimp); copper and tin mining; lace-making; tourism; trout hatcheries; leather-making; and market gardening.

A river runs through it

The Edwardian Farm sits on the banks of the River Tamar and was once the site of the busiest inland port in Britain. The river is at the centre of life on the farm and the team have many new experiences from sailing in a hand made coracle, building their own trout hatchery and bringing a paddle steamer to the area for the first time in 80 years.

Edwardian Farm goes countrywide

A national rural economy is revealed. Being on the coast, Devon farmers were well-placed to take full advantage of sea and rail networks that enabled faster transportation of goods both inland and abroad.

Market gardening, for example, enabled them to capitalise on a climate which could produce strawberries, daffodils and cherries far earlier than anywhere else in Britain. The arrival of the railways meant they could get these goods up to London and major cities as far away as Scotland within hours of being picked.

Community

Because Edwardian Farm covers such a wide area, the community is rich and varied. From fishermen, boatmen, mining engineers, assayers, foragers and railway signalmen to lace-makers, hedge-layers, dairy maids, school teachers, charcoal-burners, travelling salesmen and even horse whisperers.

The series delves into new areas of social life such as the classroom, the local Methodist church, the football match, the séance, tourism, day-tripping and the pub.