In the rugged embrace of Yorkshire’s Swaledale, where stone walls whisper secrets and winds howl like scorned lovers, Amanda Owen—the indomitable “Yorkshire Shepherdess”—has poured her post-divorce soul into resurrecting Anty John’s, a crumbling 1800s ruin snatched at auction for a rumored steal. This isn’t just bricks and mortar; it’s her phoenix project, a 40-acre haven for her nine kids, far from the spotlight-scarred Ravenseat Farm where her 22-year marriage to Clive imploded in 2022. Amid the rubble and romance rumors (hello, alleged five-year fling with Robert Davis, which she swears predated the split), Amanda’s documented the grind on Our Farm Next Door: Amanda, Clive and Kids—Channel 4’s voyeuristic lens on exes excavating their future. Electricity zaps in for the first time in centuries, kids haul slate, and Amanda dreams aloud: “A legacy for them all.” But then, her eldest son Reuben—6ft 7in of digger-wielding, no-nonsense grit—drops a six-word haymaker that’s ignited a fan firestorm: “It’s a bit rubbish, innit?”
The viral clip, unearthed from a September 20, 2025, episode, captures Reuben mid-haul on the skeletal roof, sweat-streaked and smirking as Amanda beams over her vision board of tartan throws and Aga dreams. Surveying the skeletal shell—gaping holes where windows should wink, dust devils dancing in derelict drafts—he deadpans to camera: “It’s a bit rubbish, innit?” Cue the cackle from crew, a playful swat from mum, and an explosion online. #ReubenRoastsAntyJohns skyrocketed to 1.2 million views on TikTok overnight, splitting the flock: Team Brutal Honesty hails the 21-year-old’s Yorkshire bluntness as “refreshing as a Dales downpour,” with one viewer tweeting, “Finally, someone calls out the chaos—love Reuben’s filter-free farm boy vibe!” Detractors? They’re baying for blood, branding it “plain rude” and “disrespectful to her grind.” “Amanda’s rebuilding her life post-heartbreak, and her kid shades it on national telly? Ouch,” fumes a Reddit thread with 5k upvotes.
Reuben, star of his own Channel 5 spin-off Reuben Owen: My Life in the Dales—where he bulldozes his way to independence with a fleet of JCBs—has long been the family’s unflinching truth-teller. Fresh off launching his excavation empire (custom digger stickers: “Reuben Owen” in neon glory), he’s no stranger to the spotlight’s glare, having shrugged off his parents’ split as “no massive battle” in a Telegraph chat. Yet this quip peels back layers: beneath the banter lies a lad eyeing escape from Ravenseat’s remote rigors, plotting his own patch while mum clings to family-first fantasies. “This is for the future,” Amanda insists, but Reuben’s rubbishing reveals the rub—post-divorce dynamics where exes co-parent amid concrete dust, kids caught in the crossfire of candid cams. Clive, ever the stoic, chuckles it off: “Lad’s got eyes—it’s a wreck till it’s not.”
The fallout? Electric. Amanda’s Insta floods with heart emojis and “team Reuben” memes, while critics decry the show’s “manufactured drama” exploiting family fractures. But peel the plaster: this “rubbish” remark unearths more than debris—it’s a snapshot of resilience raw, where honesty hurts but heals, and a shepherdess’s dream defies demolition. As Anty John’s beams rise from rubble, so does the question: Was Reuben’s takedown tough love or teenage torque? Fans divided, but one thing’s clear—this Owen odyssey’s far from finished. Tune in; the dust settles, but the drama? It’s just getting dusty.
