Celebrity Health – Jimmy Doherty and Shivi Ramoutar

TV presenters Jimmy Doherty and Shivi Ramoutar chat to YHL about their new show, which celebrates wholesome food and countryside living

Farmer Jimmy Doherty and chef Shivi Ramoutar have recently returned to our screens with series 2 of Jimmy and Shivi’s Farmhouse Breakfast on ITV. Set on Jimmy’s Suffolk farm, the show celebrates delicious food and drink, crafts, animals and country life. Here, we speak to the pair about their new series.

Q Are you excited to be back with series 2?

Jimmy: I just loved working with Shivi last year and we are so proud of the series we’ve created. As you would have seen in 2024, Shivi is a dynamo when it comes to cooking in the kitchen. She’s full of fun, vibrancy and can also make an excellent cocktail. We both get a real buzz about great food and drink and meeting the brilliant food producers behind the product. This is what the show is all about – the journey of what you’re eating and drinking.

Q You visit local food and drink producers as part of the show. Why do you feel it’s important to keep highlighting the work of regional and family-run businesses?

Jimmy: It’s so important to keep highlighting the fantastic producers we have in this country. Small businesses are so important to all communities and the more we support them, the better our countryside economy will be. Let’s celebrate our rich food culture and fantastic countryside.

Q How important is it to eat seasonally and locally, for both our health and the environment?

Shivi: Eating seasonally is absolutely key. I’m such a massive advocate for this. There’s a reason we grow certain produce and ingredients at different times of year. They flourish at different times, and it really does balance and play back into what our body needs then and there. Eating locally as well is really important and it’s not very difficult to do because now there are so many ways to preserve food. Things like berries, which are abundant during the end of summer, particularly strawberries, you can find brilliant frozen versions of these. Frozen peas or asparagus; when out of season, you can still cook and eat them from frozen. I strongly encourage eating fresh produce in season – we’re bang on asparagus season right now, so make sure it’s coming from the UK as this will have a greater nutritional value and flavour. Also, it’s a sustainable way to eat. It’s far better than eating fruit and veg that has been imported across the globe.

Q The show celebrates life on the farm. What role do you think the great outdoors plays in boosting our physical and mental wellbeing?

Shivi: Being outdoors really does do something positive for our mental health and reducing anxiety. When I come out of the city, especially when I’m filming in beautiful Suffolk, I can really feel the benefits – it’s so grounding. And I think connecting with nature has us in awe. It’s all about the small things like hearing the birds chirping, the streams babbling. I know it sounds ridiculous, but those little sounds and things in nature that maybe seem insignificant have a massive impact on our wellbeing. It’s really important.

Q Jimmy, how does it feel to have your home and farm turned into a TV studio for the second summer in a row?

Jimmy: It’s a dream come true. I think filming the series on a working farm and wildlife park really added a new dynamic last year and it’s something that you don’t really see in other breakfast shows. As well as having the backdrop of the farm and all the wonderful animals, we go beyond the farm gate again to meet some amazing local producers, as well as having some fantastic new guests and familiar faces drop into the studios.

Q Do you have any tips for how people can reconnect with the outdoors, even if they’re juggling busy lives?

Shivi: If you’re in the city, like I am, I take a moment at certain points in the day to go and sit in the park. I know it’s not the same as being in the countryside, but it’s the best we can do. If it’s a hot day, take off your shoes and just feel the grass on your toes, look up at the sky and absorb some of that beautiful vitamin D. I know we rarely get it! But when we do, that’s even more reason to celebrate and absorb that.

If you can, and have the means or ability to do so, jump on a train and go to the countryside for the day. Maybe take a picnic with you or a good book. Or if you’ve got kids, take a ball and really spend time together. Try to leave all the electronics somewhere else so you can have uninterrupted time in the countryside, connecting with each other and nature. I guarantee you will feel 100% better.

Watch Jimmy and Shivi’s Farmhouse Breakfast on ITV at 8.25am on Saturdays.

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