14 March 2024 , 22:41
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Matt Baker is looking to Channel 4 to make a new show rivalling BBC's Countryfile.
He has dutifully presented the BBC’s flagship Countryfile for 15 years but now Matt Baker is launching a rival show on Channel 4, made by his own production company. Called Baker’s Britain, it will explore farming and other industries across the nation, “celebrating the extraordinary people, places and things that make up the fabric of life in the UK”.
Just like Countryfile, the new venture will examine how rural communities are faring in the modern day. The four-part series is being made by Big Circus Media, the production company Matt runs with former One Show executive Gareth Collett.
A statement from the firm said: “Matt will join those farming innovatively and discover the remarkable people caring for native wildlife or preserving the countryside for future generations. He’ll join those working in extreme landscapes and champion the remarkable people preserving Britain’s rich and proud history and heritage.”
Matt has been a part of Countryfile for 15 years (BBC/Oliver Edwards)Matt is no stranger to working with the Beeb’s rival channel, having made the big hit Our Farm in the Dales for More4 in which he and his wife Nicola and kids Luke and Molly moved to his parents’ rural holding in County Durham.
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He followed that up with another popular show, Matt Baker: Travels with Mum & Dad.
Matt told The Mirror: “This new series encompasses everything we love as a production company, celebrating the people who make Britain great.
“We look forward to filming in all four nations and continuing our successful relationship with Channel 4.”
Commissioning Editor Deborah Dunnett said former Blue Peter and The One Show presenter Matt had brought a “loyal audience” to the station.
She said the new series would provide a surprising, quirky, celebratory and life-affirming snapshot of Britain, with Matt travelling “from cities to coastlines, workshops to woodlands and farms to factory floors”.