"The Farm" (2004) TV series 2004-2005

Writer:

Les Keen (writer)

Seasons:

1 | 2

Release Date:

26 September 2004 (UK)

Genre:

Reality-TV

Plot:

Reality TV series, in which nine celebrities have to abandon their lives of luxury for the hard grind of running a working farm.

Plot Keywords:

Non Fiction

Cast

Rebecca Loos	...	Herself (22 episodes, 2004)
Ed Hall	...	Narrator / ... (8 episodes, 2004)
Jeff Brazier	...	Himself (8 episodes, 2004)
Terry Christian	...	Himself (8 episodes, 2004)
Margi Clarke	...	Herself (8 episodes, 2004)
Stan Collymore	...	Himself (8 episodes, 2004)
Paul Daniels	...	Himself (8 episodes, 2004)
Lady Victoria Hervey	...	Herself (8 episodes, 2004)
Vanilla Ice	...	Himself (8 episodes, 2004)
Debbie McGee	...	Herself (8 episodes, 2004)
Richard Neville	...	Himself (8 episodes, 2004)

Runtime:

UK:55 min (including commercials) (22 episodes)

Country:

UK

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Stereo

Company:

Endemol Entertainment UK

Trivia:

Robert Van Winkle (a.k.a. Vanilla Ice) sang his ultra-popular song, "Ice Ice Baby," on the second episode of the television show despite claiming in the first episode that he never would.

Movie Connections:

Featured in "Favouritism: Zippy and George's Puppet Legends (#1.10)" (2005)

Ice Ice Baby!

Mild curiosity had me watching this one. Truth be told it represents everything that is wrong with Channel 5 nowadays. It's tabloid stuff -- a bunch of spoiled ex-stars sitting around on a farm wearing sunglasses all day acting snobby.

However, although I initially scoffed at it, I've (admittedly, shamefully, etc.) become addicted to it.

All because of one person:

A certain Rob Van Winkle, a.k.a. Vanilla Ice. Sure, he might as well be called RIP Van Winkle since his music career is dead, and never really was very highly esteemed in the first place, but he did date Madonna for close to a year and appeared in her "Sex" book, so he was rather popular in 1990 and '91. His "Ice Ice Baby" song was the highest-selling rap record ever. He quit acting/singing for a while in the '90s, tried to make a comeback later but his record company died and as a result no one was aware of his return (not that they'd take notice anyway). In 1998 he came out with a new record and in 2001 he came out with yet another that garnered surprisingly good reviews, featuring Limp Bizkit-like tunes and lyrics with heavy metal/techno remix of "Ice Ice Baby" -- far superior version to the original. I like his new music and he's the best part of "The Farm."

He's a stupid jerk, and when he first arrived at the farm he was a real jacka$$. However, as time has gone on he's tried to change a bit and take on more duties. He's a funny guy and he makes the show amusing. As one of the cast members remarked, "Without Rob this place would be so boring." He might not help out as much as the others, he might be fiercely pro-war and pro-American, he might not be so smart ("I've been to London, Portugal, all over Europe") but what to expect from a Miami kid? He's typical of the area and although he's a bit of a jerk sometimes, he's also pretty nice and the only reason -- at all -- to watch this show in the first place.

After watching him here I've actually grown to like him. He claims he's a born-again Christian (despite his extremely filthy mouth) and he has a wife and two kids back home, so although he's still a "Wild Ninja" he's a cool guy and the sort of person who's very homely and un-Hollywoodized -- yeah, he's spoiled, but not in a "I'm better than you" sort of way. Just in a sort of extroverted way.

He's the type of fool who you'd like to hang out with because he makes you laugh.

The day he gets kicked off the show, I stop watching. As far as I'm concerned, this show might as well be called "Ice Ice Baby." I'd rather watch 60 minutes of the Ice Man than anyone else.

His new album is actually pretty good. I doubt it'll happen, but I hope he makes a comeback because he's a lot better than Limp Bizkit has become recently.

For anyone who thinks I'm joking just listen to his re-mix of "Ice Ice Baby." Some might think he's trying to re-do the song that made him famous. I think it's partly true, but he's actually trying to say, "Hey, here I am, this is the song that made me famous...and I'm changing my image. Here's the new Ice. Here's the new version of the song that made me famous because this really represents who I want to be."

He's an idiot, but I like his personality on the show. It's good contrast to the boring jerks.