Chris Rundle is star struck by farmer David Kennard's celebrity sheepdog – and finds out more about the pair's efforts to keep farming in the public eye

D avid Kennard has been described as one of the best ambassadors British farming has got. He's introduced countless thousands of people to the mysteries of working sheepdogs at the demonstrations he's been giving for years at stately homes and major outdoor events.

And with his outstanding communication skills he's been able to offer wider audiences a rare insight into the world of the working sheep farmer – though he was originally forced to draw on those skills out of necessity, rather than choice.

Like thousands of others across the country, David was devastated by the 2001 foot-and-mouth outbreak, which saw countless thousands of livestock slaughtered, while it also shut down auction rings and financially crippled the beef and sheep industry.

Driven to a point not far from desperation, many farmers decided to grasp the nettle and diversify to open up new income streams. For some this meant clearing out the spare room to start a bed and breakfast operation, others opened farm shops, started mail order sales or took space at their local farmers' market.

David, a sheep farmer since the age of 17, went into the world of broadcast media, gambling his life savings, borrowing from a friend and taking his overdraft to the limit to make his first film.

The Year of the Working Sheepdog, which stripped away much of the glamour and portrayed the ups and downs of farming through the unblinking eye of a camera lens, was a huge success.

Probably because it was conceived and overseen by a farmer it was a frank, no-nonsense portrait of farming life: no soft-focus romanticism, no shrinking from portraying the failures and tragedies, no glamourising of what is still a tough, uncompromising job.

David Kennard's home, Borough Farm, may be on the National Trust's Morte Estate, near Woolacombe in North Devo, and it may be blessed with exceptional scenery. But, lying exposed as it is to the full wrath of Atlantic gales, winters here are as harsh as anywhere.

Books and videos followed rapidly in the wake of the first documentary's success and have now sold well over 200,000 copies.

But the real stardom has been grabbed by one of his charges, Mist, a lean, energetic black-and-white collie, who when she is not performing for the camera is a regular member of the team helping David manage is flock of 800 ewes.

The first two series of Mist: Sheepdog Tales have been ratings successes for Five, with the show captivating the imagination of its young audience.

A third 13-part series of Mist's antics is set to transmit shortly, and meanwhile the second series is being released on DVD on May 18.

This follows Mist's progress as a working sheep dog on Borough Farm as she lends a helping paw to an orphaned lamb, a homeless French ram, a confused alpaca and a brood of ducklings.

There are other adventures, from a helicopter rescue on the nearby cliffs, to a lonely trek across the wilds of Exmoor, to a mystery thief who's raiding the food shed.

Some of the country's leading actors lend their voices, including narrator Derek Jacobi and Una Stubbs.

The commercial success he has scored has underlined David's earlier belief that British farming has some great stories to tell: indeed, they are now being told, thanks to the rash of one-off documentaries and other series which have appeared since foot-and-mouth propelled agriculture unwillingly into the spotlight,

David, however, insists he is just one of many doing his bit to project an accurate image of farming to a society whose view is often distorted.

"I would like to think there are an awful lot of people doing a little bit," he says.

"Whether you are running a sheepdog display or running a B&B, every time someone from the town comes out and stays on or visits your farm, it is a chance to get a positive message across.

"There is so much that is good about British farming that it is well worth shouting about.

"The problem is there have been some awful stereotypes attached to us over the last 20 years. Perhaps 20 years ago some of that was justified.

"For a lot of people there is still this perception that you never see a poor farmer, and all these old things that used to get said, but I think more and more realise there is a problem.

"But farming is changing radically. Farmers are becoming far more environmentally-conscious, partly because we are being forced to, but partly because farmers' attitudes have changed.

"I hope I am doing my bit, but I think there are hundreds of others farmers who are doing their bit as well."