AMANDA OWEN AND HER GIRLS PREPARE FOR A SPECIAL FIRST NIGHT AT ANT Y JOHN’S AFTER YEARS OF RENOVATION

After more than three years of hard work, the abandoned farmhouse is finally beginning to feel like a family home — with furniture moving in and Amanda’s daughters preparing for their first sleepover.

Amanda Owen is approaching one of the most emotional milestones in her family’s ambitious farmhouse renovation.

The Yorkshire Shepherdess and her children have spent years transforming Anty John’s, a long-abandoned farmhouse in Swaledale, into a place they can call home.

Now, after countless setbacks, difficult winters and months of building work, the property is finally beginning to take shape.

The latest episode of Channel 4’s Our Farm Next Door: Amanda, Clive and Kids will show furniture being moved into the farmhouse, as well as Amanda’s daughters Nancy and Clemmie preparing for their first sleepover there.

For a family that has watched the building change from a neglected property into a potential home, the moment marks a significant step forward.

FROM DERELICT FARMHOUSE TO FAMILY HOME

Amanda and her former husband Clive bought Anty John’s in 2020.

The historic property had stood empty for decades and required extensive restoration before it could become suitable for family life.

The project has been followed by television cameras across several series, documenting everything from structural repairs and plumbing work to the challenges of restoring a centuries-old building in the remote Yorkshire countryside.

The family has faced difficult weather, delays, paperwork and the complicated process of bringing modern facilities into the old farmhouse.

But progress has gradually become visible.

Freshly painted walls, newly laid oak floorboards and the arrival of furniture are helping transform the once-empty rooms into living spaces.

Amanda has also been collecting furniture throughout the renovation, making the moment it finally arrives at the property particularly meaningful.

A FIRST SLEEPOVER FOR THE GIRLS

One of the most touching moments in the upcoming episode will see Nancy and Clemmie enjoy their first sleepover at the new family home.

After spending so long watching the property being renovated, the girls will finally get to experience it as somewhere to spend the night rather than simply another building site.

The episode also follows the family as they move furniture into the house and continue making the rooms feel more welcoming.

For viewers who have followed the renovation from the beginning, it is a rewarding milestone in a project that has taken years to reach this stage.

A PROJECT BUILT WITH THE CHILDREN’S FUTURE IN MIND

For Amanda, Anty John’s has always represented more than a renovation project.

The mother of nine has previously spoken about wanting to create something lasting for her children and provide a foundation for their future.

Speaking to BBC Radio York in 2024, she described the farmhouse as a project that could provide “very solid foundations for something for the children.”

That vision has remained at the heart of the family’s efforts.

Rather than simply creating a beautiful property, Amanda has been working towards a home with space, history and possibilities for the next generation.

The farmhouse also carries its own history, having once belonged to 19th-century surveyor and mapmaker Anthony John Clarkson, after whom it is named.

A NEW CHAPTER FOR THE OWEN FAMILY

Amanda and Clive separated in 2022 after 22 years of marriage, but they have continued to work together and raise their nine children.

Their family life and the renovation remain central to Our Farm Next Door, which follows the realities of farming alongside the challenges of restoring the historic property.

The latest episode, scheduled for Monday, November 2, promises a particularly memorable moment as the house begins to feel like a real home.

After years of patience, hard work and unexpected setbacks, the first sleepover at Anty John’s is a reminder of what the family has been working towards all along.

For Amanda, the greatest achievement may not be the finished floors or freshly painted walls, but the possibility of creating a place that her children can carry with them into the future.