Three million viewers every evening tuned into the BBC's first 'Lambing Live' series to follow the fortunes of the Beavans on their Llanvetherine farm

Now Kate and Jim Beavan have launched 'Kate's Country School' to give people of all ages and levels of expertise the chance to experience and practice rural skills on a working farm.

Kate says running the courses at Great Tre-Rhew had always been an ambition, 'Lambing Live' merely put their plans on hold for a year.

"We started thinking of diversification four years ago and I decided to take a Masters in Environmental Conservation Management at the University of Glamorgan in Pontypridd," explained Kate, who lectures in Animal Management at Coleg Gwent's Usk Campus and, following Lambing Live, became the BBC One Show's resident farmer.

Husband Jim has a diploma in Hill and Marginal Farming and worked as a shepherd on the Raby estate before returning to manage the family farm. He's widely acknowledged as an expert in sheep husbandry, a skilled stockman and gold seal shearer.

'Lambing Live' was a once-in-a-lifteime - but not to be repeated - experience for the family.

"The BBC looked at 80 locations across the UK. I think they chose us because we were three generations of a family on one farm," said Kate. "We had no idea what would be involved. They came down for a day in autumn 2009 and did some general filming then returned in March for the live production with a crew of 70 including security guards, riggers, catering staff etc Most knocked off at around 9pm and stayed overnight in local pubs but we had a camera crew here 24/7.

"I don't regret doing it but I wouldn't want to do it again. We were only getting two to three hours sleep a night!"

Great Tre-Rhew is a 300-acre mixed farm dating back to the 13th century. As well as 900 lambing ewes (spread between Great Tre-Rhew and The Skirrid, a nearby family farm) the Beavans also have cattle, chickens and geese and now a new enclosure for pigs.

The courses at Kate's Country School are designed for all ages and abilities - from complete novices and aspiring smallholders to students and farmers looking to brush-up or extend their skills. They offer in-depth training, with limited numbers, and professional tuition from Kate and Jim themselves supported by 'a select few specialists'.

"I took the plunge and joined Twitter recently and had 700 followers within days," said Kate.

"We're looking forward to welcoming people into our family and sharing our farm with them for the day. It's going to be very hands-on, with lots of learning, lunch round the kitchen table and plenty of laughs. We're all down to earth here and people need to come along expecting to get stuck in. Hopefully they'll remember their wellies!

"We're starting low key with things we can do ourselves but next year we will add a range of cookery courses and family courses covering topics like foraging, bush craft, al fresco cooking, camping and fishing."

The school's first course this Friday is, appropriately, 'Lambing' - with two more in March.

"We'll deal with the theory first - health and safety, problems that could develop. I'm making a lambing simulator, using a sheep's pelvis, plastic bones and a cuddly toy to go inside, to show the unborn lamb in different positions. But the plan is for it to be very hands on. If there are ewes lambing we'll go straight to the barn."

The courses then move on to 'Sheep Husbandry' in April - dealing with drenching lambs, foetal egg counts for worming, foot trimming, dagging and sheep problems in general - and an 'Introduction to Livestock', designed for people who have bought a bit of land and want to rear a small number of animals.

There will also be butchery courses run by Jim's brother Huw Beavan at the family butchers in Mardy and, in early June, Jim will head 'Shearing' courses, with training up to blue seal standard and instruction on hand shearing.

Then, in the last week in June and first in July, the focus will be on 'Wildlife Habitats'.

"We have so much wildlife here - otters, kingfishers, buzzards, bees and so on and also wildflower meadows.

"The course will include making bird boxes and advice on which beneficial plants to grow to attract wildlife."

On July 20 there will be a 'Country Writing' course run by Kate's father Jack Benson, who has written books on the countryside and, in September, Jim will teach the traditional skills of 'Dry Stone Walling'.

But Kate reckons they're saving the best for last - with 'Apples, Orchards and Cidermaking' in the autumn.

"We made 150 gallons of cider here this year - for the first time since 1959," said Jim. "We still have the original cider-making machinery in the barn but for the purposes of the course we will be using an old-fashioned portable kit, which was the traditional way of doing things.

"We'll be making cider from pure apple juice - with no added sugar or yeast. It's great stuff!"