It turns out that Formula 1 legend David Coulthard once tried to hand Jeremy Clarkson a pub completely free of charge — but the former Top Gear host wasn’t having it.
The 55-year-old ex-McLaren racing driver spilled the beans during a drive-along chat with Jodie Kidd on her YouTube series, explaining how his venture into the London pub scene didn’t exactly go to plan.
Coulthard purchased The Brown Dog in Barnes, south-west London, but the establishment simply couldn’t turn a profit.
He told Kidd: “I bought a pub in Barnes which just didn’t work. It was The Brown Dog, and we couldn’t make it work.”
The Brown Dog did not get off the ground despite David Coulthard’s best efforts
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Rather than simply absorbing the loss, Coulthard came up with a creative proposal for his famous mate.
He approached Clarkson with what sounded like a brilliant deal — take the pub entirely, no strings attached upfront.
Coulthard revealed: “I actually offered it to Jeremy Clarkson.
“I said, ‘Jeremy, I’ll give you the pub. It’s yours, title deeds, but if and when you make money, you start cutting us in.'”
So the catch was straightforward enough — Clarkson would receive full ownership of The Brown Dog, but if he managed to make the place profitable, Coulthard and his business partners would get a slice of the earnings.
Jeremy Clarkson now owns The Farmer’s Dog near his farm Diddly Squat
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Despite the generous terms, Clarkson passed on the opportunity. Coulthard reckons the geography simply didn’t stack up for the 66-year-old, whose life revolves around his Cotswolds base.
“I think it was just too far from where he lives to make it sensible,” Coulthard explained.
He also acknowledged the broader reality facing anyone who fancies running a boozer, adding: “It’s a difficult business.”
It’s hard to argue with that — Coulthard himself had first-hand experience of just how tough the pub trade can be after The Brown Dog failed to deliver despite his investment.
Road closures in the area hadn’t helped matters either.
David Coulthard admitted his venture into the pub business did not go to plan
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Clarkson ended up diving into the pub world on his own terms instead. He bought the former Windmill pub near Burford in Oxfordshire and reopened it as The Farmer’s Dog in August 2024 — and it’s been a massive hit, with tables selling out almost instantly each month.
The venue sits close to his beloved Diddly Squat Farm in the Cotswolds, which fans will know from his Amazon Prime series Clarkson’s Farm.
The show’s fifth series recently landed, and it ended with Clarkson sharing that he had been diagnosed with prostate cancer — though he’s now in remission following treatment.