Our Yorkshire Farm star Amanda Owen has shared a candid update on life after separating from husband Clive

Clive and Amanda Owen(Image: RENEGADE PICTURES)

Amanda Owen, star of the hit Channel 5 series Our Yorkshire Farm, has opened up about the changes in her personal life since separating from her husband, Clive Owen.

The couple, who were married for 22 years, announced their separation in June 2022. Despite their split, Amanda says she and Clive have found a way to maintain peace and focus on co-parenting their nine children.

Speaking to The Sun’s Fabulous magazine, Amanda said: “Clive and I are separated, but not divorced. He’s now my next-door neighbour and co-parenting is working. Being separated has taken away the friction between us and given us more space, physically and mentally. There’s a sense of peace that we both needed, and I honestly think it’s affected the children positively.”

Amanda, who has built a career documenting life on her family’s sprawling Yorkshire farm, acknowledged the traditional notion that a “perfect environment” for children requires two parents under one roof — but challenged it, arguing that wellbeing is far more complex.

Clive and Amanda Owen(Image: (Image: CHANNEL 5))

“There will be plenty of people who say: ‘The perfect environment for a child is a two-parent family.’ That’s great, but there’s no hard and fast rule, and things change,” she said. “What sort of parent would I be if I were a martyr and said to the kids: ‘We stayed together for you guys?’ Is 20 years of bickering, barking and disagreeing with each other really the best scenario? I don’t think so.”

Amanda, widely known as the Yorkshire Shepherdess, has also reflected on the example her approach sets for her children. She stressed that parenting is not about maintaining appearances, but about showing courage and resilience.

“It’s not about passing on a legacy by separating your children, either. Instead, it’s about showing them that you’re brave enough to stick your head above the parapet and take whatever comes with that,” she explained.

Since the separation, Amanda has continued to juggle her public life with running the farm and raising her family. Her nine children — Raven, Miles, Edith, Violet, Sidney, Annas, Clemmie, Nancy and Reuben — remain at the heart of her daily routine, with Clive living nearby to support a steady co-parenting arrangement.

Amanda Owen(Image: PA)

Amanda and Clive’s marriage, once a cornerstone of the family’s public image, now exists in a new form — one defined by mutual respect, cooperation and a shared commitment to their children’s happiness.

Their family life was made famous through Our Yorkshire Farm, which documented the realities of farming life in the Yorkshire Dales and the unique upbringing of their children.

Amanda has since continued her media career through writing, broadcasting and farm-based projects, remaining one of Britain’s most recognisable and respected rural figures