"We were annihilated by the Australians at cricket, we were destroyed by the Scottish and the Irish at rugby, our Royal Family is in serious trouble, and we have a completely useless government, but we do have Hawkstone."

It comes after the former Top Gear star left fans gutted with an "important announcement" from his Oxfordshire farm. Sharing a snap of a notice board announcing his farm shop's temporary closure on social media. He explained: "UPDATE - We'll be making a few changes to the shop over the next week, so our usual farms how will be closed from Monday 16th to Tuesday 24th March.

"We know some of you may already have plans to visit, so we'll have a temporary shop set up in the lambing barn (just around the back of the usual shop) during that time. It won't quite be the full Diddly experience, but you'll still be able to pick up a few bits while you're here.

"If you're planning a trip and want the shop as you know it, we'd recommend visiting from the 25th March onwards," he added. Fans were gutted by the news, with some already having trips planned. One user mused: "We were visiting the Cotswolds from 20th to 23rd, never mind... another time. Good luck." Someone else shared a GIF of Clarkson with the words: "Absurd times" as another added: "Oh no."

However, others were excited to see what changes were to come on the farm, as one declared: "I'll be coming down in May! So, so excited." Another added: "Good luck, guys, with the refresh. See you in April."

Since then, the team have been updating fans about the changes going on behind the scenes as they shared a sneak peek inside the shop on Instagram. It had been fitted with custom shelves and fridges, and the roof had been fitted with fairy lights throughout the space.

They later shared an update from the farm for fans visiting this week, as a temporary shop was errected in in the grounds. Sharing a snap from inside a small tent, filled with a small number of merchandise, they penned: "We're setting up a pop-up shop on the other side of the tent while work is being done. This will be open tomorrow onwards."

To make up for the lack of a gift shop, the team offered pubgoers a first sample of their new product, beetroot ketchup, which appeared to go down a treat.