UP CLOSE: The Somerset Crooner, Draycott farmer Andrew Sheldon

Cheddar Nub News aims to be supportive to every element of the community from business and shops to people and charities, clubs and sports organisations.

Everyone is finding it tough at the moment and is desperate to get back to normal.

We are profiling some of these local businesses and groups regularly over coming weeks in a feature called UP CLOSE IN CHEDDAR in the hope that we can be a supportive springboard for their full return to business as usual.

Today we talk to Draycott farmer Andrew Sheldon, who is known to many as the Somerset Crooner.

During a Q and A session he talks about his fundraising and what life has been like as a farmer during the coronavirus crisis.

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Tell us a bit about your personal background Andrew and how you ended up being known as the Somerset Crooner?

Both my parents were farmers in around Draycott and Cheddar. I have always had a love of sheep and as a teenager I had my own flock which just increased over the years.

I started by buying ewes then lambing them down and selling with their lambs in the spring. I also helped out in my father's contracting business round-baling, hay-making, hedge-trimming and different aspects of farming for several years.

In 2013 I managed to get a farm tenancy on a local farm and over the years this helped me widen my skills and while there we kept our own sheep and cattle. We also has a large herd of South African water buffalo on contract for several years and also had a calf rearing business, so a quiet day was very rare.

Unfortunately due to circumstances out of our control we had give up the tenancy and take a new tenancy on a small farm where we are now. We are still doing cattle and sheep but on a smaller scale.

I have a wife Teresa, a daughter Kirsty, two sons James and Daniel, and two grand-daughters Maeve, who is 19 months old, and Lyla who is 12 months.

I have had a love of singing for years but never had the time to develop it. Once we moved I had a bit more time on my hands.

On visiting my local Cider Barn and getting up and singing a couple of songs, people were amazed that I could sing like I did. One of the barmen Michael Redman always joked that I was the Somerset Crooner and the name stuck.

During lockdown someone said I should post a song on Facebook as they had missed the odd nights when we all sang at the Cider Barn. So on April 3 we put a song on - it was Singing the Blues - and everything has developed from there.

I sang a song every single day until May 31 when lockdown was easing and farm work was getting very busy. So we decided to sing several songs on a Sunday.

During lockdown we had a backlog of requests from people wishing good wishes to other family members or friends as they could not see them. The longest one was a request for someone in India who was unable to come home.

I did a doorstep party on April 11 for our neighbours where I took my equipment out on to the lawn and sang for one hour while the neighbours danced or sat on their doorsteps and drives. This had 57,000 views and was global - it was unbelievable.

I have also just completed a charity weekend over last bank holiday and five charities were chosen to get £220 each. They were Cheddar Food Bank, Heads Up mental health service near Wells, Northcroft in Cheddar, Ferne Animal Sanctuary in Chard and the air ambulance.

What do you like about the Cheddar Valley? How are you involved in the local community?

I have been born and bred in and around Cheddar so its my home town. There is not really much time to get involved with the community but we do sell our hay and produce local so try and help those locals who need it.

The coronavirus pandemic has been difficult for the agriculture industry - how has it had an impact on you?

It has had a large impact financially as we have downsized our farming over the years due to the size of the farm and ill health.

What businesses do you like and use in the Cheddar Valley?

We try and use local suppliers to support them - W C Maunders, Cheddar Tyres, Redline car parts and Tweentown petrol station, which has been wonderful throughout these troubled times. If they have not got something they will try and find it for you.

The lockdown has been very difficult for many people - how do you think that Draycott as a village has coped?

These times have been hard, but the Draycott stores have been very good delivering to those who were at risk. I think that Cheddar and Draycott have worked really hard to help everyone.

If there was one thing in the Cheddar Valley you would change, what would it be?

The return of the market gardens as it was years ago, everyone producing their own food, strawberries and plenty of other produce.

You have been a farmer for many years - how has the job changed over the years? What is the most important thing the government could do to improve the situation for the agriculture industry?

Many of the small farmers have now gone due to rising costs and everyone having to get bigger to keep up with things. More help should be available to young farmers and everyone needs to support British farmers and buy British.

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You can check out Andrew Sheldon's Somerset Crooner Facebook page here.

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See our other UP CLOSE profile:

Don Bishop, of Don Bishop Photography in Cheddar

Would you like to be the subject of an UP CLOSE profile or do you know someone who we should feature? Contact [email protected].