Released today, 16th July is the latest Youtube video from the Sidemen in their Sidemen Sundays series. And for this one “Sidemen Become Farmers for 24 hours”, we had the pleasure of arranging the farm location for their film shoot.
It was Sideman Josh’s idea to take the boys to a farm for their latest Youtube video. We were approached in his search for a farm and farmer who would be up for the job, that was to let the Sidemen get fully hands-on with farm work, on a working farm with plenty to do, and with a farmer who’d be happy to be featured on camera too. No mean task, but we think we match-made quite well!
Where was “Sidemen Become Farmers” filmed?
It’s Sandy Farm in Surrey where the boys spent the day, dressed in dungarees, checked shirts and flat caps.
Chris, the farmer, took on seven farmer apprentices, leading the way from job to job, with the Sidemen setting eachother challenges at every opportunity.
Sandy Farm is a livestock farm, with a large flock of sheep and herd of cattle, set in the rolling landscape of Surrey. The original red-brick traditional farmyard is at the heart of the working farm, and tracks and fields extend in all directions.
The farm has hosted a handful of shoots in the past, but nothing quite so involved as this one. Not many farmers would be up for such a challenge, but Chris embraced it and has himself become quite the hero with the fans’ comments coming through in their thousands “Funniest Sidemen Sunday in weeks and it was also informative + Farmer Chris is a legend”
Says Chris “Having the Sidemen on the farm was a bit different for me to say the least! But to be fair, everyone was really friendly and put me at ease”
Chris, right of picture, with Alex, the shearer.
What did the Sidemen do on the Farm?
All seven Sidemen were there at Sandy Farm on the day of filming, just 2 weeks ago in early July. That’s Josh, JJ, Ethan, Harry, Simon, Vikram and Tobi.
They learned how to round up sheep, pen them up, split off ewes from the lambs, so the ewes could be shorn, and move them on to new grass. With cattle, they weighed them and checked their condition. Harry won the welly-throwing challenge and got to do the Tractor work as a prize, topping thistles in the fields, and moving dung. The boys also got mucky and physical with plenty of dung work, scaling hay stacks, repairing leaking pipes and splitting logs.
The Sidemen were transported in bumpy style across the farm, in the back of a livestock trailer, towed by Chris in his landrover.
Photos: The crew test out the trailer for transport
Aside from some serious (or not so serious) farm work to be done, the Sidemen spent plenty of time creating spontaneous challenges across the day, and having a complete obsession with poo.
Chris, the farmer, kept a level head throughout the day, keeping the boys in check with equally sharp wit and instructions. We’ve huge admiration and thanks to Chris who not only had to supervise across the day, but also featured heavily in the finished film too.
The making of the Film
In order to make the fun work, when dealing with potentially dangerous farm tasks including working with cattle and driving tractors, we were rigorous with risk assessments, instructions, wearing the proper gear, hygiene and Chris remained very close to all that happened on the day. A Health and Safety officer and Medic were also on location, along with Jo from Farm Locations too.
Chris appreciated the professional and respectful approach all the crew and talent took on the day. “It was really full on, but from start to end my thoughts were considered and it was their priority to make me feel happy throughout. I made it clear from the get go that I wouldn’t be involved in anything that mocked farming or put farming in a bad light, including health and safety or animal welfare, and I can safely say the crew shared the same values. They were a really nice group of lads, and a great support crew too.”
Attentive throughout, the crew followed Chris’ lead and were very light on their feet, with a small hand-held camera and drone crew following every step. It was easy to move from job to job and let the activities roll. Chris had also spent the day before filming getting ready for their arrival, moving machinery and animals into place, ready to make the switch between jobs as seamless and fast as possible.
Everyone had a lot of fun on the day, and we hope that the Sidemen fans will love seeing all seven boys enjoying a wholesome day on the farm together, and that everyone, fans and Sidemen alike, have a new-found appreciation of what it’s like to be a farmer.
The Video: Sidemen Become Farmers now released