Join the Countryfile team as they come together to celebrate the quintessential rural beauty of Britain: Adam Henson is on his farm in the throes of the harvest season, Helen Skelton is in the Lake District, enjoying some of her favourite childhood activities, Ellie Harrison gets to grips with managing her Cotswold orchard, Matt Baker nets a Spring catch in Southport and John Craven is on the summer seas, hoping for a glimpse of one of our most mysterious marine creatures. Also includes an exclusive full length programme the 25th Anniversary episode as Countryfile celebrates its silver jubilee by throwing a party in the form of a traditional country summer fayre.
The Countryfile team explore the people, places and stories making news in the British countryside. This episode explores the county of Northamptonshire
20th anniversary show This week Countryfile celebrates its 20th anniversary. Since 1988 the programme has been reporting on the people, places and stories making news in the British countryside. Swaledale The first ever Countryfile was filmed in Swaledale in North Yorkshire. The sweeping river valley is carved out by the River Swale, but access to the river is an ongoing issue. John Craven heads to Keld on the river bank to revisit a story which Countryfile reported on two decades ago. Many canoeists think they should have access to rivers just like ramblers do in the countryside, however, anglers are concerned that their private, and often paid for, retreats will be overwhelmed. John also explores an institution which the show has become famous for - the BBC weather forecast. Weatherman Bill Giles, who presented the first ever Countryfile weather forecast, takes a trip down memory lane. John gets a surprise when he comes face to face with his dead ringer. Impressionist Jon Culshaw dons the famous red jacket, Wellington boots and glasses for their first meeting.
John Craven visits Weymouth as it prepares to host the 2012 Olympic sailing events.
John Craven heads to Warwickshire, where this year's harvest is in full swing.
John Craven heads to Dunster in Somerset, where a castle is getting a green makeover.
Countryfile Photographic Competition with its theme of Animals in Action is judged.
The team visits the village of Cerne Abbas and reports on British blueberries.
John Craven heads for Castle Howard in North Yorkshire.
John Craven reveals why there's more to Stonehenge than its mysterious standing stones.
John Craven visits Calder Valley to discover how the countryside inspired poet Ted Hughes.
John Craven heads to Calke Abbey in Derbyshire as it prepares to celebrate Halloween.
John Craven visits the farm bought by the public for four million pounds.
Countryfile marks Remembrance Sunday by heading to Cannock Chase in Staffordshire.
John Craven heads to the Fal Estuary in Cornwall as oyster fishing season gets underway.
John Craven heads to Wytham Woods in Oxfordshire to study the effects of climate change.
John Craven visits the Lake District to mark 75 years of the mountain rescue service.
John Craven explores the mines in the Forest of Dean in Gloucester.
John Craven investigates the Christmas preparations in Scotland's Cairngorms.
John Craven celebrates the nation's love affair with the horse.
A look at how the British countryside is transformed with the passing of each season.
John Craven visits the Cairngorm Mountains to assess the ski season and taste the whisky.
John Craven explores the New Forest, where controversial plans are causing concern.
John Craven assesses the impact of a marine improvement programme on the Norfolk coast.
John heads to Cambridge University, while Miriam O'Reilly looks at Britain's rat problem.
John Craven marks the 1,000th episode by revisiting the story of the foot-and-mouth crisis
John Craven visits Kew Gardens to celebrate its 250th anniversary.
John Craven marks St David's Day by heading to the hills of Pumlumon in mid Wales.
John Craven visits Slimbridge to mark the centenary of the birth of Sir Peter Scott.
John Craven is in County Fermanagh in Northern Ireland to explore the UK's first geopark.
John Craven visits Belvoir Castle, and Miriam O'Reilly reports on a vicious plant disease.
Would a huge barrage across the Severn Estuary ruin priceless archaeological sites?
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury mark the 60th anniversary of landmark legislation.
Julia Bradbury and Matt Baker explore the diverse landscape of the North York Moors.
Julia Bradbury and Matt Baker explore the area around Ben Nevis.
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury visit the South Downs, plus James Wong on beating hay fever.
Julia Bradbury and Matt Baker explore the Malvern Hills, and John Craven visits Norway.
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury report from Isambard Kingdom Brunel's Royal Albert Bridge.
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury explore North Kent. It may be known as the Garden of England, but Julia discovers there is more to this place than its apples and pears. Savvy food producers are finding there is a taste here for all sorts of food, like snails. She meets a snail breeder and a woman hoping to put snails on the map of Kent produce. While Julia samples the area's slimy delights, Matt is in the woods, where the locals are finding out new ways to make the trees pay. Elsewhere, John Craven investigates the impact everyday foods have on the environment, and reveals some of the worst offenders. Down on the farm, Adam has his hands full as he readies his farm for spring.
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury visit the New Forest. Matt finds out how the local ponies are keeping an invasive pond weed in check, and Julia gets to grips with some big machinery to help clear the land for a special conservation project. Ellie Harrison is also in the New Forest, getting out of breath as she discovers the delights of adventure racing. John Craven is in Scotland, where deer-stalking is a vital part of the Highland's economy. He investigates why huge numbers of them are being culled to make way for trees. Adam Henson keeps lots of rare breed chickens on his farm in the Cotswolds, but this week he looks to add some unusual egg-laying hens to his collection.
Julia Bradbury and Matt Baker are in Middle England finding out what rural Leicestershire has to offer. Matt meets two young sisters who are keeping the family farming tradition alive. Julia heads over the border to Rutland to discover why wild birds need protection from the local otters, before sampling some of Leicestershire's finest foods. John Craven visits some of the driest parts of Britain to find out who the droughts are hurting the most. And, now the weather seems to be getting warmer, Adam Henson's letting some of his cattle out of their winter housing and back into the fields - much to their delight.
Matt Baker heads to Wales to celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Monmouth and Brecon canal, while Ellie Harrison discovers why the Brecon Beacons provide the perfect terrain for soldiers training for international conflicts. Down on the farm, Adam is keeping a close eye on his indoor lambing sheds, but he still finds time for a trip to Dartmoor to learn about the rare breed sheep which give birth outside. Meanwhile, Jules Hudson is at the other end of the country in Lancashire, discovering why a thriving farming community was evicted from the land eighty years ago. Plus John Craven investigates why badger baiting is on the rise in the British countryside and reveals what is being done to clamp down on this barbaric practice.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison head to the South Pennines, where old rivals Yorkshire and Lancashire collide. It is also home to the Pennine Way, which runs through the backbone of England. Ellie takes in part of the Pennine Way with local poet Simon Armitage. Meanwhile, Matt uses two wheels for some extreme mountain biking. Elsewhere, Tom Heap investigates the controversy surrounding onshore wind turbines. Down on the farm, Adam is taking delivery of thousands of new workers. He is hoping the honey bee will help pollinate his fields of oil seed rape.
Ellie Harrison is in Hampshire, where she delves back into the programme's archives to re-discover some of the amazingly different journeys the team have been on around the UK. Ellie walks in the footsteps of journalist, radical politician, farmer and traveller William Cobbett as she travels through his beloved home village of Botley. She also takes a steam train on the famous Watercress Line and learns about the history of this once busy transport link. And Ellie is not the only one on the train; Julia Bradbury is on the Pennistone Line in Yorkshire, where music helps her journey pass by. Matt Baker is on horseback in Lancashire as he treads an old packhorse route. John Craven is under sail power as he travels around the Llyn Peninsula in the company of dolphins, and Adam Henson explores the Dorset coast by kayak.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison experience the bracing mix of sandy beaches and remote heathland that make up much of the Suffolk coastline. Matt heads to the seaside town of Southwold to help spruce up the famous beach huts. Ellie is further inland, exploring the old industrial waterways which now inspire a host of artists. Tom Heap is on the opposite side of the country, finding out why we are still digging up one of our greatest natural defences against climate change, peat. Meanwhile, Adam Henson pays tribute to an extraordinary race horse.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison are amongst the rolling hills and wooded valleys of Exmoor. At this time of year red deer are shedding their antlers, so Matt goes to see if he can find some, while Ellie gets to try her hand at falconry with a Harris hawk. Tom Heap is in the north of England investigating the growing problem of abandoned and neglected horses. Meanwhile, Adam Henson goes to meet a farmer who is losing half his Longhorn cattle to TB.
Countryfile is in County Durham. Matt Baker visits the family farm, where his children give him a hand with lambing. Julia Bradbury learns more about an adder project on the moors, and she discovers why the River Wear has been named as one of the 10 most improved rivers for cleanliness in the country. Helen Skelton gets up close to a naked reclining lady over the border in Northumberland as she looks at a new landscape sculpture from artist Charles Jencks. John Craven investigates the devastating new virus to hit the countryside, Schmallenberg. And Adam is on his farm, where his kunekune sow has just given birth.
A unique insight into how the Furness Peninsula has been shaped by nature and man.
Matt and Ellie discover the ancient woodlands and industrial heritage of Nottinghamshire.
In Lochaber, Matt Baker goes on the greatest railway journey in the world.
Julia Bradbury and John Craven explore the Usk Valley, known as the gateway to Wales.
The team visit England's most northerly county, Northumberland.
In a special edition of Countryfile, Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury explore Hampshire.
Matt Baker explores the East Sussex coastline and looks at some of its iconic legacies.
The Countryfile team explore Anglesey, Wales's largest island.
Ellie Harrison spends the day with expert woodsman Ben Law in West Sussex.
Countryfile visits the Royal Forest of Dean, one of our most ancient woodlands.
John Craven and Julia Bradbury head to rural Leicestershire.
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury explore Somerset's countryside and coastline.
The team visit the heart of rural England, exploring the chalk-lands of the South Downs.
Countryfile is deep in Gloucestershire exploring some woodland treasures.
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury visit the RSPB bird reserve at Snettisham.
The team help with the preparations for a seasonal celebration deep in rural Warwickshire.
Ellie looks back at the men and women who have been inspired by the British countryside.
Adam Henson takes a look at our favourite four-legged friends in the countryside - horses and dogs. He invites some of the most charming of the breeds onto his farm in the Cotswolds, sees how heavy horses still pull their weight in the fields and finds out whether his gun dog has any natural instincts at all. Looking back into the Countryfile archives to see how the two animals are an integral part of rural life, Adam revisits the time when Julia Bradbury and Matt Baker raced husky dogs in the snowy Cairngorms, when Ellie Harrison became the quarry for a pack of blood hounds and when Jules Hudson spent a day out with the Light Cavalry.
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury head to the Hertfordshire countryside. Julia finds out how a super food is providing the perfect habitat for shrimp. She gets up early to catch a glimpse of one of our rarest birds feasting on them. Matt meets the county's finest flyball teams before putting his own dog - Annie - through her paces on one of their courses. He also joins the rural special constables helping local police stamp out crime. Hertfordshire constabulary aren't the only ones trying to maintain law and order in the countryside; officers across Britain have got their hands full tackling crime against wildlife, as Tom Heap discovers. On his Cotswold farm, Adam is busy moving some rather feisty ponies. Also, he reveals the person named Farmer of the Year in the BBC's Food and Farming Awards.
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury head to Exmoor, a bleak and remote place where moorland and farmland give way to a spectacular coastline. For centuries its wild beauty has inspired writers, painters and poets. Julia is on the trail of a little-known photographer who spent his days capturing life on Exmoor. A hundred years ago, Alfred Vowles photographed everything from villages to building to hunting. He produced thousands of postcards using just a folding pocket camera, a tripod and his trusty old pushbike. Julia finds out about the man behind the picture and she puts his techniques to the test, recreating one of his many photographs. Vowles wasn't the only one captivated by the landscape of Exmoor; novelist RD Blackmore literally put this place on the map when he penned the book Lorna Doone, which was to give birth to Lorna Doone country. Matt turns investigator as he tries to discover if this fictional tale is more fact than fiction. Elsewhere, Tom Heap is in Leicestershire finding out how the Schmallenberg virus looks set to spread across the country, with devastating effects for farm animals. Down on the farm, Adam takes his Exmoor foals to a world-class equine centre in Cheshire for some basic training.
Matt Baker and John Craven head to South Wales. Matt is on the coast finding out what's being done to rejuvenate its spectacular sand dunes to prevent them from turning in to giant grass hills. Further down the coast, Matt is put to the test when he joins a local college rugby team who use the dunes as an outdoor gym. Further inland, John Craven unearths a tale of deception. In 1944, seventy German Prisoners of War tunnelled their way to freedom from a prison camp in Bridgend. It was the biggest escape attempt on British soil. John discovers how they managed to do it right under the noses of the guards and he helps to create a 3D model of the escape route. He also meets a woman whose family aided the capture of two of the escapees. Elsewhere, Tom's on the trail of our fastest growing source of energy - bio-mass and Adam's investigating a winter crop.
Countryfile comes from the snowy Yorkshire Dales. John Craven explores the historic ruins of Jervaulx Abbey, once home to Cistercian monks who would have farmed the land around the abbey. It is thought that the monks could have made the very first Wensleydale cheese with their own French recipe; John attempts to help make cheese on the site for the first time in more than 500 years. Julia Bradbury goes on the hunt for Britain's native red squirrel. Few people know that Yorkshire is a red squirrel stronghold, but Julia meets a photographer who feeds the squirrels and regularly sees more than 20 a day from his hide in the forest. Jules Hudson is also in the Dales, following in the footsteps of Britain's most famous vet, James Herriot. He goes out on the farm rounds with a young veterinary couple who specialise in large animal work. Tom Heap investigates rural poverty, and Adam Henson is on his farm in the Cotswolds learning more about the rural folklores surrounding our weather.
Countryfile heads to the north Cornwall coast. Matt Baker explores its secret glens and historic ruins on a quest to find out about Cornwall's ancient mythological past. James Wong meets the volunteer cliff rescuers looking after us and our best friends. Meanwhile, Julia is on a farm in East Sussex which has a holistic approach to agriculture. Tom Heap is at the other end of the country on the Orkney Islands, finding out whether tidal power could satisfy our need for new forms of renewable energy. Down on the farm, Adam has got his hands full rounding up all his lambs ready for market.
In this edition of Countryfile, Adam Henson ventures no more than 10 miles from his Cotswolds farm as discovers the delights of the local food available right on his doorstep. His mission is simple: he is to collect the ingredients to make a pizza for his family's evening meal. He visits a local flour mill for the dough for the pizza base, a local halloumi cheese maker and a man who makes meatballs from his herd of Hereford cattle. It is an unusual combination, so what his daughter Ella make of it? Adam also delves back into the Countryfile archives to dig out the best of the foodie stories covered on the programme. Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison take each other on in the battle of the Yorkshire puddings, Julia Bradbury is on her home turf in Leicestershire tucking into stilton cheese and pork pies, Jules Hudson is out fishing off the Cornish coast for sardines and Katie Knapman discovers the unusual taste of Yorkshire sushi.
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury are in Bristol, a city with the countryside on its doorstep. Matt visits the Avon Gorge, where some of the rarest plants in Britain are clinging on to life. Julia is on a mission to find the wildlife making the city their home. She heads to the harbourside in an attempt to catch a glimpse of one of our most elusive mammals - the otter. She also meets some hardy folk from the Henleaze Swimming Club who take to the water for a winter swim. Elsewhere, the scandal of horse meat in our food has shocked us all, but Tom Heap finds out it is not the only problem when it comes to illegally produced meat being imported from Europe. And Adam's finding out what's being done to preserve and conserve one of our rarest breeds of cow.
Countryfile heads to the wild, rugged and dramatic landscape of Northumberland. From its moorland to its coastline, its beauty belies violent times. It is a county where we first encountered a fearsome new threat brought in on the seas. Julia Bradbury unpicks the history of this ancient kingdom and she learns how it has also influenced the local dialect. Further in land and thousands of years later, an unknown soul was forging ahead with green energy. Matt Baker finds out how Lord William Armstrong, a pioneering Victorian, came up with a revolutionary plan to use the power of water to power his house. It was to become the first home-grown hydroelectric scheme in the world, and plans are afoot to fire it up again. Ellie Harrison finds out how the ancient art of willow spiling is helping to reinforce river banks in the Northumberland countryside. Elsewhere, Tom Heap finds out what impact the proposed new high speed rail link (HS2) is going to have on the countryside and the people living in it. And Adam travels to Shropshire to see how science is helping to protect and preserve the rare breed Hackney horse.
In this special 25th anniversary edition of Countryfile, His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales is guest editor. The stories and locations featured reflect many rural issues that are close to his heart. Whether it's the plight of struggling hill farmers, apprenticeship schemes to encourage young people into farming, or innovative schemes to get school kids growing their own food, the Prince shares his passion for the countryside and the people in it. The Countryfile team learn too of his love of hedgelaying, of farming, and of walking in the country, as we spend time privately with the Prince on his Highgrove Estate in Gloucestershire.
Countryfile is in Lyme Bay, where the rugged west Dorset and east Devon coastlines meet. Julia Bradbury is exploring its rich geological history, which has made this place a fossil hunter's paradise. Matt Baker learns there are other treasures to be hand on the coast; inside Beer Caves some of our rarest bats are roosting. The network of caverns provide the perfect habitat for no less than nine of the eighteen species of bat found in the UK. Matt finds out why conservationists are replicating this habitat in a new bat cave being built outside on a reserve. Ellie Harrison is also on the hunt for rare species too; a South Devon cow, known locally as the 'orange elephant', that was once a common feature in the Devonian countryside. Ellie meets a farmer on a mission to bring back the orange elephant as a milking cow. Elsewhere, Tom is investigating the impact one of the wettest years on record has had on farmers and wildlife. And lambing is in full swing on Adam's farm, but some of his ewes need a bit of helping hand.
Countryfile visits the glorious Golden Valley, on the borders of Herefordshire and Wales. Matt Baker is with the hill farmers trying to make a living from sheep, whilst Julia Bradbury is in the foothills of the Black Mountains, making friends with some llamas. She also visits the Brecon Beacons National Park to find out why it is one of the few places in the world to be designated as an international dark sky reserve. Tom Heap discovers what is being done to protect the seas that surround our island nation as he travels to Lundy to investigate Marine Conservation Zones. Adam Henson is on manoeuvres with the British Army. Soldiers serving out in Afghanistan are working closely with Afghan farmers. The troops are being trained in basic agricultural practice so they can pass on their knowledge - Adam finds out more.
In this special edition of Countryfile, Ellie Harrison charts the arrival of spring. She is on St Michaels Mount in Cornwall, where the season comes early. The daffodils are in full bloom, the days are getting longer, and the islanders are busy getting everything ready for the start of the tourist season. She catches up with the boatman launching a newly refurbished ferry, joins the team given the stately rooms a deep spring clean, and talks the chaplain to find out why St Michaels Mount is such a place of pilgrimage. Whilst Ellie is on the island, she looks back at some of the best spring stories to have featured on Countryfile. These include the time Julia took to the skies above Herefordshire in search of our ancient orchards, and when Matt went to Exmoor to look for signs of our biggest mammal. Plus a second look at what happened when Adam went on a spring round-up with a difference. And since this is Easter Sunday, Ellie rings in spring on St Michael's Mount in time-honoured fashion.
Countryfile is in the county of Northamptonshire. Matt Baker is exploring a section of the Grand Union Canal and finding out about the huge amount of work that goes into keeping it ship-shape for the thousands of visitors who come every year. Julia Bradbury is discovering some of the hidden heritage of the county. Her first stop is Rushton Triangular Lodge - a folly built by a Catholic in the 16th century. She then travels to Canons Ashby - another house full of symbolism but this time it's the illuminati at work. Julia will also be visiting a farm on the site of a scheduled listen monument where the farmers have a unique take on diversification. They make gin from the spring water that flows through the land and claim to be the only artisan gin makers in Northants. Britain's deer population is booming and these days, if you are lucky, you can even spot them on the fringes of some of our largest cities. But in many parts of the country these beautiful animals are now seen as a pest that destroys our natural environment and brings danger and disease to humans. So, is it time for drastic action? Tom Heap finds out. Adam Henson is heading back to Cheshire to collect his wild Exmoor ponies. They've been in training for few weeks now - but will they be tame enough for him to handle?
Countryfile is in the eastern county of Suffolk. Matt Baker explores the boating heritage of the area, as he puts the finishing touches to a very special boat called the Nancy Blackett. She was once owned by the author of Swallows and Amazons, Arthur Ransome, and inspired some of his later work. Matt is hoping she is ship-shape and ready to sail by the end of the programme. Ellie Harrison is on the only island off the county's coastline, Havergate Island. It is an important site for the RSPB, as it is home to pairs of avocets - but Ellie is hoping to see spring hares boxing. Ellie also finds out about Suffolk landscape artist Gainsborough. Inspired by the Suffolk countryside, Ellie tries to re-create one of his most famous paintings - but how will a group of 10-year-olds measure up against the master? Tom Heap investigates whether there is a lack of enthusiasm when it comes to plants and getting green-fingered. Adam Henson is joined on his farm by pop superstar JB from boy-band JLS. JB has bought a plot of land which he is keen to farm, so seeks advice from Countryfile's resident farmer.
The Countryfile team heads to Calderdale in West Yorkshire. It is the most southerly of the Yorkshire dales and perhaps not as well known as its northern cousins, but what it lacks in fame it makes up for in beauty. Ellie Harrison follows in the footsteps of Whitely Turner, whose book A Springtime Saunter Round and About Bronte Land was first published 100 years ago. It takes in some of the most stunning landscapes of the area including the village of Haworth where the Bronte family lived. Ellie explores some of the landscapes which inspired the writer Ted Hughes. Ted was born in 1930 in Calderdale and it inspired much of his writing. Matt Baker looks at the food revolution which is happening in the area. Through a scheme called Incredible Edible, Todmorden hopes to be the first self-sustaining town in the country. Matt sees how they plan to achieve this by visiting one school where fish poo is the key. The area is home to the largest concentration of reservoirs in the country. They were built to support the mill industries during the Industrial Revolution, but what are they used for now the mills have closed? Helen Skelton finds out with a bit of wind-surfing and some springtime restoration work. Also on the programme, Britain's bees are disappearing fast and in the last few years a pesticide, vital to many farmers, has been getting the blame. Now Europe wants it banned. Tom Heap investigates if this is a sensible scientific move. On his farm, Adam Henson is really feeling the effects of the bad weather with crops impossible to sow into the hard ground. Adam also travels to North Wales though to see the devastating and heartbreaking effect the harsh weather has had on lambing there.
Ellie Harrison visits the historic Sudeley Castle in Gloucestershire, which is hundreds of years old and has seen many kings and queens of England pass through its doors. Ellie finds out what it takes to be a tour guide at the castle; she has to learn her facts, as she is due to lead the final tour of the day. Ellie finds out about the history of the castle including how Henry VIII's widow, Katharine Parr, came to be buried in the church there. She also takes a tour of the gardens and meets garden designer Sir Roddy Llewellyn to find out what he has in store for the historic gardens. She meets some of the feathered residents who now live at the castle, from barn owls to snowy owls, and from eagle owls to a rare collection of pheasants. Throughout the programme, Ellie delves back into the Countryfile archives to dig out some of the best stories which showcase our country's rural architecture. Matt Baker explores the bastle houses of Northumberland, Julia Bradbury meets the resident of a Fog House on the Anglesey coast, and John Craven is with a harpist in the Mussenden Temple in Northern Ireland.
Countryfile is in Cambridgeshire. Ellie Harrison takes a sneak peak behind the scenes at Newmarket, the home of horse racing. She finds out what it takes to maintain the course and meets some of the jockeys of the future. In the north of the county, John Craven is on a literary journey in the village of Helpston. It was the home of one of our greatest countryside poets; John Clare wrote about the landscape around him. John Craven explores his countryside and discovers why Clare never received the critical acclaim of his contemporaries. But John Clare wasn't the only unsung hero to have called this place home; James Wong finds out about a little-known but crucially important Victorian naturalist - Rev Leonard Jenyns - who devoted his life's work to the flora and fauna of Cambridgeshire. For a lot of people, the British countryside is a playground; a beautiful landscape where we can satisfy our need for peace and relaxation or our hunger for adventure. Tom Heap investigates whether its popularity is in danger of ruining the natural world that we love. Down on Adam's farm, the fields are buzzing with new life, but some of the new arrivals need a helping hand.
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury are in the county of Hampshire. Matt explores the maritime history of the area by helping out on the largest and most powerful warship of her time, HMS Warrior. Julia is in Portsmouth where a story of an epic journey of naval heroism began with the unbelievable bravery of the Cockleshell heroes she also visits the only wasabi farm in the UK. Tom Heap investigates how, when it came to innovation in farming, Britain used to be a world leader. But with a global food shortage on the horizon, have we still got what it takes to meet the challenges of the future? Adam Henson is on the hunt for a new White Park bull for his farm in the Cotswolds - but can he afford the high asking price?
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury head to the Thames Valley, on the doorstep of London but far away from the madding crowd. This picturesque countryside has at its heart the river that bears its name. Matt takes to the water with an Olympian to find out what makes Henley-on-Thames such a breeding ground for gold medal winning rowers. Meanwhile, Julia is at Burnham Beeches on the hunt for giant wood ants with an unusual defence mechanism which led to the discovery of formic acid. John Craven visits the Household Cavalry as they take part in an equine health survey launched by the charity Blue Cross. Elsewhere, Tom Heap is on the south west coast to find out why our seabirds are in decline; and down on the farm, Adam's Highland bull Eric is causing a bit of a stir.
Countryfile travels to Yorkshire and the Humber, a dynamic landscape where expansive skies take in views over its low-lying countryside and its dramatic coastline. Matt Baker is out on the Humber estuary. When the tide retreats it reveals a large expanse of saltmarsh and mudflats; beneath it, a banquet awaits the thousands of wading birds that flock here. But to make sure there is enough food for them, the marsh has to be managed. Matt finds out about a new project that has been set up which brings together farming and conservation. Also, he visits an agricultural college where the girls are giving the boys a run for their money when it comes to farming. It's not just the coastline that is a rich breeding ground for wildlife; Julia Bradbury discovers it can be found in the most unlikely of places. Leconfield is an MOD defence school for transport. It is here that military personnel learn how to drive combat vehicles; but away from the track, a small army of volunteers are doing their bit for nature. Julia joins them on a night-time operation looking for deer. Wildflowers were once a common sight in the British landscape, but in less than 70 years more than 95% of them have disappeared. Tom Heap finds out why. Down on the farm, Adam helps a friend buy a herd of Hereford cattle.
Countryfile is in the historic kingdom of Fife. Matt Baker explores Tentsmuir forest - a haven for wildlife where the artist in residence has set up a virtual trail so that any visitor is guaranteed to see badgers, otters and other animals which make their home in the forest. James Wong finds out all about the old fishing boat called a Skiff. Once used for fishing off the north Scottish islands, this sturdy rowing boat is now raced by local clubs up and down the coastline but how will James fair in a regatta? Helen Skelton is also in Fife, at Falkland Palace which was once the playground of royalty in the 16th century. Mary Queen of Scots would once have gone hunting and hawking there and the oldest surviving real tennis court is still seeing some action - not least when Helen takes on Mary in a singles match. Ellie Harrison is on the mut-flats off the Hampshire coast looking for native oysters and Little terns. Tom Heap is across the Irish sea investigating one of the most controversial issues in the countryside - culling badgers. The cull in England to reduce the spread to bovine TB may be new but in ireland they've been doing it for years. Tom looks at what the Irish experience can tell us about the best way to tackle this costly problem. Adam Henson meets a dog with a rare talent. Jess, the eight-year-old springer spaniel bottle feeds the lambs on her owners Devon farm.
The Countryfile team launch their annual photographic competition. The theme is 'Our Living Landscape', with the 12 best photographs making up the 2014 calendar, which will be sold in aid of Children in Need. Chris Packham and Jo Brand are on hand with some top tips, and John Craven has all the details on how to enter. The rest of the team are in the Teign Valley in Devon. Matt Baker is at Castle Drogo, the last castle to be built in England, which is about to undergo one of the National Trust's biggest ever restoration projects. John Craven finds out about a community farming scheme called Chagfood. Katie Knapman explores the river Teign and sees if a project to clean up the water is having any effect, and Helen Skelton explores the mystical and magical side of the area. It has inspired artists, musicians and film makers, but will it have any effect on Helen?
Ellie Harrison and Matt Baker head to North Wales where Ellie gets up close to a strange and wonderful coastal habitat, whilst Matt heads to Rhyl for the annual Woodfest - A celebration of wood working, forestry, and chainsaw carving! James Wong meets the woman who is mad about bluebells, and Tom reports on the deadly disease that is ravaging our native ash trees. Elsewhere, Adam is puzzled by how one of his white park cattle has given birth to a belted Galloway!
The Countryfile team are on the coastal flatlands of Kent. This beautiful but remote area is a haven for wildlife and a huge variety of flora and fauna. On Romney Marsh, Matt Baker finds out about the gangs of smugglers who once used the area to deal in alcohol, tobacco, guns - and even sheep! Julia Bradbury visits Scotney Castle and discovers something precious lurking in the waters of the old swimming pool. Tom Heap is in the north of England, asking if multi-million pound plans to bring super-fast broadband to more of the countryside are worth all the effort and expense. And on his farm, Adam Henson becomes one of the first to use a new vaccine which will protect his sheep against a deadly virus.
In this special edition of Countryfile John Craven visits the Lake District, England's biggest national park. He makes a journey by steam train, takes a ride on a steamer on Lake Windermere and finishes his journey on foot atop Orrest Head to catch one of the Lake District's most famous views. Whilst he journeys in style, John looks back at some of the best stories to have featured cars and boats and bikes on Countryfile. Like the time Julia took to two wheels for a hair-raising ride through Grizedale Forest. Or when Matt took to the water in the last Morecambe Bay prawn boat afloat. And John himself takes a trip back down memory lane as he returns to his teenage stomping ground at the Isle of Man TT races.
The Countryfile team explore the Cambrian Mountains, one of Wales' best-kept secrets, nestled between its more famous neighbours - Snowdonia and the Brecon Beacons. Matt Baker takes to the saddle to help round up sheep on the hills and meets the farmers trying to put Welsh mountain lamb on the foodie map. John Craven discovers why writers and artists have taken inspiration from the landscape. He puts his painting skills to the test when he joins a local arts group. In the Elan Valley, Jules Hudson finds out about one of the largest Victorian engineering complexes in its day: a series of dams built to hold back Welsh water destined for the taps of Birmingham. Elsewhere, Julia is in Kent, putting her fears behind her to find out about a ground-breaking conservation project; and Adam gets a day off from the farm to visit a project where working horses have become more useful than a tractor. Tom Heap investigates claims that the illegal use of lead shot is leading to the unintentional deaths of wild animals.
Ellie Harrison and Adam Henson head for the Shetlands, the most northerly inhabited place in the UK. Ellie meets the islanders farming seaweed to eat, tries her hand at an ancient Viking version of chess and goes in search of one of the UK's rarest birds - the red necked phalarope. Adam gets up close to rare native Shetland cattle and sheep, then takes a twirl with a dancing pony. And Tom Heap reports on how a new approach to animal inspections is helping improve welfare on farms.
Julia Bradbury and Matt Baker head for Essex, where Julia tests her mettle walking one of the country's most dangerous footpaths. Matt joins the kids learning all about food by growing it themselves. Tom Heap looks at a new European agreement that will affect our farmers, our landscape and even our pockets. And Adam is at the Norfolk Show celebrating 40 years of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust.
Countryfile celebrates its silver jubilee by throwing a party in the form of a traditional country summer fayre. Adam's farm in the Cotswolds is a frenzy of activity; there are stalls, food, entertainment and bunting as far as the eye can see. Along with 250 lucky Countryfile viewers, Matt Baker, Julia Bradbury, John Craven, Ellie Harrison, Adam Henson and Tom Heap are there to get the party started in good old-fashioned style. Matt finds out about the importance of country fayres to rural communities, while Julia discovers what life is really like on Adam's farm when the cameras aren't rolling. John puts Matt and Julia's countryside knowledge to the test in a quiz, ably assisted by impressionist Jon Culshaw. He also reveals just how much money the Countryfile calendar has raised for Children in Need since it began - with a little help from Sir Terry Wogan. Over in the produce tent, tensions are high as members of the audience and the presenters take part in a grow it, bake it, preserve it competition. Matt and chef Nigel Slater are on hand to judge and award the rosettes. Ellie is out on a wildlife walk with local school children seeking out nature on our doorstep before putting the finishing touches to the schools environmental garden. Tom takes a look at a precious gift which has shaped our British landscape and which none of us could live without - water. It has been a running theme throughout all Countyfile's 25 years. And the finale - a challenge set by Adam - tests how well the Countryfile presenters fare geese herding.
Ellie Harrison and John Craven are in the beautiful Wye Valley on the border of England and south Wales. Ellie faces her fear as she scales a sheer rock pinnacle called the Longstone, before zipping along a wire high above the ground in a risky manoeuvre called a Tyrolean Traverse. John, meanwhile, is on safe ground, finding out about the daily lives of the monks of Tintern Abbey before turning his hand to making their favourite tipple - mead. Tom Heap investigates fracking, the controversial new method of extracting gas from the ground, and Adam looks at two contrasting approaches to dairy farming.
John Craven is in Northumberland on the trail of one of Britain's most enigmatic sea creatures; the white beaked dolphin. He joins wildlife cameraman Ben Burville as he attempts to get close enough to film them and then hooks up with the scientists looking to learn more about these little known animals. John also visits the site of a stunning Bronze Age burial mound where bones and artefacts are dropping out of the cliffs, and he meets a man with an unusual collection that can be seem from space. Tom Heap investigates the spread of GM technology from plants to animals and the recent good weather has been a blessing to Adam Henson whose fields have suddenly burst into life.
Julia Bradbury, John Craven and Jules Hudson are in south Oxfordshire where Julia explores the magical Wittenham Clumps and learns how they inspired one of our greatest landscape painters. John lends a hand down on a farm with a difference where people with learning difficulties are getting first hand experience of working on a real life farm. Jules meanwhile take a trip round the Oxfordshire lanes in a vintage Morris car and goes in search of the enigmatic Mr Morris. Tom Heap investigates the rise in rustling of livestock and Adam's doing a bit of wheeling and dealing selling a prized Cotswold ram to buy a top quality Gloucester old spot pig.
John Craven visits north Devon in search of the perfect bank holiday day out. But for him it is a working day out too. He visits Lynton where he lends a hand on the water-powered cliff railway, serves up cream teas at Watersmeet and puts on his pads and whites to go in to bat for Lynmouth and Lynton Cricket Club. During his day out, John looks back at some of the best days out that Countryfile has featured. There was the time Julia took to the hills as an Edwardian lady to hike in an old fashioned way, when Matt went looking for deer in the Scottish Highlands and found himself witnessing one of the rarest spectacles in nature, and the time Ellie braved the waves surfing for some winter sun.
Ellie Harrison and Matt Baker head for South Wales' Gower Peninsula. Ellie visits Swansea Docks to see how its once filthy waters are now so clean that mussels thrive there. And she finds out how little yellow fishes are helping people flush their waste water down the right pipes. Matt joins the divers pulling tonnes of waste a year out of the waters off the peninsular, before hitting dry land to hook up with the volunteers keeping its beaches pristine. Adam explores the threat to livestock from nuisance dogs, and John Craven reveals the final twelve photographs to make it into next year's Countryfile calendar.
Ellie Harrison and Matt Baker head for Staithes on the north Yorkshire coast. It is an old fishing village that has long been a magnet for artists. Matt meets the new breed of painters putting Staithes back on the art map, and even offers up his own contribution to the village's annual Arts and Heritage Festival. Up on the moors, Ellie discovers an ancient bee bole - the only one of its kind in the UK. Boles were places where bees would have been kept centuries ago. She also meets the family of bee keepers doing all they can to keep our native black bees alive. Back down in the village, Ellie has a close encounter with a feisty lobster and learns all about traditional Staithes bonnets. Tom Heap investigates solar power and asks why we are installing so many in farmers' fields when we have so many spare rooftops. Adam is busy harvesting his wheat, which he shows us is much more versatile than we think. And wildlife cameraman Richard Taylor Jones goes looking for kingfishers to film near his Kent home.
Ellie Harrison and Matt Baker are in Dorset for the Great Dorset Steam Fair. It is the biggest steam gathering in the UK, and Matt goes behind the scenes meeting the enthusiasts keeping the boilers stoked and wheels oiled. In an echo of Dorset's agricultural past Ellie spends time with a Romany gypsy family. They were once the main seasonal workforce, but now there are few left living the old life. She then meets the lady bringing a bit of tropical heat to Dorset's rural byways, before throwing down the gauntlet to Matt back at the Steam Fair. Julia looks at the efforts being made to help small furry animals cross one busy Kent road. Jules Hudson is in Wales' Elan Valley to find out the part played by its reservoirs in the Dambusters raids. And Adam looks at the threat to livestock from nuisance dogs.
Ellie Harrison and Matt Baker are in Devon, where Ellie gets to witness a very special homecoming. She meets Joey - the lifelike horse puppet that features in the successful stage play, War Horse. Joey has come to Iddelsleigh - the small village that inspired the story - and Ellie is there to greet him. Ellie then heads to North Devon to find out how beavers are being used to help manage the last of the region's rare culm grassland. Just a few miles away, Matt is deep in the woods at the start of a massive multi-million pound programme to regenerate some of the country's last tracts of pristine ancient woodland. Wildlife cameraman Richard Taylor Jones shows us the stars moving across the heavens with some amazing 'starlapse' photography. Tom Heap asks whether the number of domestic cats in the UK is posing a threat to our wildlife. And down on Adam's farm it may be harvest time, but there are still animals to be looked after. So Adam has a seasonal stock take.
Countryfile is in Shropshire. Its countryside is rich picking for some of Britain's finest homegrown foods. Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison head to the small market town of Ludlow for its annual food and drink festival. This place is up there with the best when it comes to all things local. Matt samples a few delights on offer at the festival, and he meets the farmer putting the county's native breed of sheep back on the culinary map. Meanwhile, Ellie finds out how rare breed pigs are giving our continental cousins a run for their money, and doing their bit for conservation too. Elsewhere, Tom Heap looks at the threat that non-native invasive species are posing to British plants and wildlife - and even to our own houses. But, as he discovers, some home-grown species also seem to be upsetting the delicate balance of flora and fauna in the countryside. And Adam is in Wales catching up with two sheep dog handlers representing Wales in this year's One Man and His Dog competition.
The team are in Abergavenny, a town famous for its markets and its food. Matt Baker is looking at the history and heritage of the old mining town of Blaenavon, seeing how the old spoil heaps have become rich habitat for a surprising number of creatures. The spoil heaps have also been made into a world-class BMX bike trail - Matt takes on some local young people in a time trial. He also sees how one old pit is now producing cheese rather than coal. Julia Bradbury is combining her love of food and art; she is at the Abergavenny Food Festival, where a group of artistically minded local people get together to make huge sculptures based on the food on show. Julia also explores the Monmouthshire and Brecon canal, and joins the team of volunteers restoring the waterway and bringing it back to life. Helen Skelton is in Scotland, meeting two of the contestants in this year's One Man and His Dog. John Craven heads to Essex to surprise the winner of this year's photographic competition - and to launch the Countryfile Calendar for 2014. Tom Heap is in Lincolnshire, investigating the criminal gangs behind widespread illegal hare coursing in the countryside.
In this special edition of Countryfile, John Craven is in Somerset where something strange is going on: a mast. Once every ten years or so, trees, shrubs and hedgerows all produce a super abundance of fruit. John finds out it is nature's way of compensating for bad seasons. He then heads for the hedgerows, where amongst the blackberries he finds the odd wild apple tree - the result of casually discarded apple cores. He starts picking and soon has enough to take along to a community apple pressing event, where he catches up with the original cider-drinking superstars, The Wurzels. During his Wild Harvest, John looks back at some of the best of all things autumnal to have featured on Countryfile. Like the time Matt hooked up with Antony Worrall Thompson to celebrate British sweet chestnuts. Or when Julia got a lesson in the science of autumn from BBC weatherman John Hammond. And the time Ellie went to Wales to discover the dark arts of mushroom growing.
John Craven visits the remote and strange landscape of Crummack Dale in the Yorkshire Dales. Here he learns about the Norber Erratics - giant boulders scattered after the last ice age, which have inspired painters, poets and dancers. And in a Countryfile exclusive he witnesses the first ever release of captive bred native crayfish anywhere in the UK. Ellie Harrison is in Kent, discovering the old industrial sites that are amongst the best nature reserves in the country. Tom Heap investigates whether our love of foraging is threatening the countryside. And Helen Skelton and Adam Henson meet more contestants taking part in this year's One Man and His Dog competition.
For the first time, Countryfile is home to the BBC's One Man and His Dog competition, showcasing the time-honoured skills and traditions of sheep dog trialling. The very best sheep dogs and their handlers from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales compete to become the 2013 champions. Matt Baker takes to the commentary box to take us through all the trialling action. Julia Bradbury finds out if the collie really is the brains in the operation, or if the simple sheep has been pulling the wool over our eyes. And Adam is in Bala in North Wales - the birthplace of sheep dog trialling - helping farmers bring down more than 900 Welsh mountain sheep from the hills.
The team are in the county of Hertfordshire. When Matt Baker and his family moved to the county 18 months ago, they took on an orchard of 16 apple trees along with their new house. Matt brings in the experts to learn how to look after his new orchard, and discovers what varieties of apples it might hold. Julia Bradbury is exploring the Hertfordshire countryside, which inspired the world-famous sculptor Henry Moore. His love of the landscape was evident in his work - especially his love of sheep, as Julia soon finds out. Ellie Harrison is also in Hertfordshire. looking at the wildlife hidden in its reservoirs. The dumping of rubbish on farmland is costing millions of pounds a year in clean-up costs - and damaging the environment. Tom Heap investigates the scale of the problem and finds out what is being done to stamp it out. Adam Henson is away from his farm and in Cornwall, helping to reintroduce sheep to the mystical ruins of Tintagel Castle - not an easy task, as he soon finds out.
On this week's programme, the team are in the wilds of Cannock Chase in Staffordshire. Julia Bradbury explores how with more than two million visitors a year coming on foot, mountain bike and horseback, volunteers are key to managing the landscape. She'll also be at the ancestral home of the Earl of Lichfield, Shugborough Hall, seeing how the local council manage a stately home. Matt Baker is celebrating the centenary of Staffordshire's county council farms. He joins in at milking time for first time farmers Giles and Emily and has a surprise for one farmer who first appeared on Countryfile as a teenager in 1995. As Countryfile marks Remembrance Sunday, Jules Hudson looks at the role Cannock Chase played as a training ground for troops. From the spread of Spanish slugs to disease resistant ash trees, Tom Heap is finding out why more and more organisations are using the public to gather and analyse huge amounts of information about the countryside. But can people power ever be as effective as the work of trained professionals? Adam Henson is in Ireland. This year the country has suffered its worst ever fodder crisis. Adam meets the man who thinks he's got the solution, he can grow fresh green fodder every day of the year - whatever the weather!
The team are in the coastal county of Suffolk. Julia Bradbury celebrates the centenary of the birth of one of our greatest composers, Benjamin Britten. He was inspired by many aspects of the Suffolk countryside, so Julia spends some time looking at one of his less well known operas, Curlew River. Matt Baker is with some of the county's best loved but rarest farm animals, the magnificent Suffolk Punch heavy horse. Ellie Harrison is also in Suffolk, meeting some alpacas on a farm where they are ultrasounding the pregnant mothers to be. Julia Bradbury is also looking for wildlife in an unlikely place, Sizewell B Nuclear Power Station. Tom Heap is in Scotland, finding out why hill farmers think they are going to get a raw deal in the future. Then he heads to Wales, where upland farmers are challenging the controversial view that they should no longer receive subsidies. Adam Henson is away from his Cotswold farm this week and is in Wales, where a young woman has won a competition to run a sheep farm in Snowdonia for a year - as Adam arrives, she is just taking in her first load of ewes.
Countryfile looks at the part the landscape has played in making scientific breakthroughs, and the way in which such breakthroughs have changed our understanding of the land we live in. John Craven heads to Wytham Woods, Oxford University's 'laboratory with leaves'. It is 70 years since Charles Elton first made scientific observations in these woods; John walks in his footsteps to find out how Elton's work still plays a part in shaping our ideas of the world, and meets the scientists carrying his work forward. John also looks back at the best of Countryfile's forays into the world of science, including Matt Baker's look at the pioneer of natural history; Gilbert White and Julia Bradbury's trip to the coast to uncover the story of the palaeontologist and fossil collector, Mary Anning; the time when Adam learned how Hollywood wizardry is helping scientists breed the perfect pig; and when Tom Heap found out how robotics could transform farming in the future.
The team is in the Peak District, where John Craven looks at the secrets this familiar landscape is hiding deep underground. There's the precious shining mineral called Blue John, of which a new seam has just been discovered, thanks to a family riddle. In 2014, part of the Tour de France cycle race route will take in the highs of the Peak District. Ellie Harrison tests out part of this challenging route with a seasoned cyclist. Along the way she finds out the history of a very special site where tanks were tested ahead of going to the front in World War II. Helen Skelton is also in the Peaks, in the village of Tideswell which is trying to persuade local people to buy their food from the village shops. She takes part in a local initiative which teaches people where their food comes from in the countryside, and also learns to shoot at targets and then cook up a delicious game pie. Over the last few decades more and more of the fish we eat has come from farms. Tom Heap is in Scotland to see fish farming for himself, discover the benefits and find out about the controversy that this relatively new form of farming has caused. Adam Henson is on Exmoor, helping out with the annual round-up of wild native ponies.
The Countryfile team are in Cheshire, where John Craven looks into the history of silk in the area. It all started with farmers making buttons for extra cash, and developed into an industry supporting 70 mills along the rivers. Helen Skelton is also in the county, meeting renowned fantasy author Alan Garner OBE. Cheshire born and bred, Alan's work has been inspired by the landscapes of the county. Jules Hudson is at Beeston Castle. On a clear day the stunning ruin looks out across nine counties. Jules looks into the history of the fortress and hunts out some of the wildlife species who live there. John Craven is also be at Jodrell Bank Observatory, seeing how telescopes in farmers' fields are leading the way in the technology we take for granted. Four years ago, the government announced plans for a national path around the whole of the English coastline. Tom Heap investigates why less than 1% of this project has been completed, and travels to Wales to discover why their own coastal path has been such a success. Adam Henson is on the Mendip Hills in Somerset on a family dairy farm with a difference. They produce 14,000 tonnes of cheese a year, and it is all run on 100% green energy.
Countryfile is in North Cornwall. Matt Baker visits a stately home with an interesting past. Prideaux Place has been in the same family for fourteen generations and once housed American soldiers during the Second World War as they prepared for the D-Day landings. Matt gets access to the 'American Wing' which has remained untouched since 1943. Prideaux Place is thought to have the oldest fallow deer park herd in the country. Matt helps catch one special buck that's got himself in a spot of bother. Meanwhile, Helen Skelton is finding out why artists, writers and poets flock to Cornwall for inspiration. She also gets on her bike to test out a new woodland trail where cycling and conservation are working hand in hand. And Adam's in Dorset meeting a young shepherd and his Christmas lambs that are taking centre stage in a nativity. Tom Heap learns about plans to expand British farming to make the most of the increasing global market for dairy products. He travels to Wales to meet a farmer who is increasing his herd of dairy cattle and believes this is an opportunity not to be missed. But, Tom also hears from those who can't afford to expand - as well as people concerned about the consequences of producing more milk.
The Countryfile team celebrate the festive season with a woodland Christmas at Westonbirt Arboretum in Gloucestershire, lighting up a mile-long stretch of enchanted woodland with glitter balls, lasers, meteorite lights and bubbles full of smoke. Julia Bradbury acts as lighting apprentice for the day, learning from the experts how to create a magical festive display. Matt Baker learns about the history of the ancient woodland, and how the Forestry Commission keep the trees happy and healthy. John Craven is with the volunteers who run the hedgehog hospitals. They are overflowing at this time of year with juvenile hedgehogs who need fattening up before they go into hibernation. Tom Heap finds out how farmers capitalise on Christmas. Some sell Christmas trees and mistletoe, while others have reindeers for Christmas events. Adam Henson is on his farm settling his animals in for the Christmas period, with his father and his son lending a hand. He also visits his local agricultural college in Cirencester, seeing how the students there prepare for their break and tracking down the choir for a few carols. Ellie Harrison is with Michelin award-winning chef Tom Kerridge as they cook up something tasty with partridge and pears in the woodland. The whole team come together at the end of the programme for the big light switch on and some festive cheer.
Ellie Harrison explores the plight of some of our most endangered animals. From water voles to wildcats, Ellie finds out what is being done to bring them back from the brink. She looks at plans to reintroduce big cats like the lynx, and finds out more about the beavers and wild boar already at large in the British countryside. Ellie spends the day at a wildlife sanctuary in Kent, where she helps get the water voles ready for their winter health check. She ventures into the lair of a wild wolf pack, and she gets up close to a wildcat kitten that has already had a fight for life. During her time at the sanctuary, Ellie looks back at some of the wildlife winners and losers that have featured on the programme in the past. These include Julia Bradbury's visit to the Yorkshire Dales to take perfect pictures of red squirrels in the snow, and Matt Baker's journey underground to see how old man-made caves are providing the perfect habitat for horseshoe bats. There is also another look at John Craven's visit to the Lakes to see for himself the final chapter in the 20-year reintroduction of red kites.
John Craven looks at the year ahead and introduces some of the best Countryfile films from the last few years, all with the help of the Countryfile calendar. John visits the Killerton Estate, where the staff are busy preparing the house, grounds and parkland for 2014 - and there is plenty to do! He starts with one of the estate's many farms, where lambing is already underway even though spring is a still a few months off. Pausing to help rack some cider, made with apples from the estate orchard, John then discovers that Killerton House also holds a stunning collection of original clothing, some of it dating back to the 17th century. He then heads into the woods to help to clear up by turning waste wood into charcoal. Finally, as the day draws to a close, John joins the estate workers for a barbecue - and perhaps a little sip of cider.
John Craven and Helen Skelton head to Surrey. John explores the countryside beloved by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and gets a sneak peek inside his former home. He also discovers that it was a Surrey resident who was instrumental in the formation of the National Trust. Helen meets an artist with an all-consuming passion for horses, then meets the inspirational people she hopes will get her back in the saddle. Adam takes a trip to the North Yorkshire coast to meet a farmer who keeps a rare breed of sheep - the Leicester Longwool. In 2012 David Cameron told Countryfile that he was going to make it easier for communities to stop big housing estates being 'plonked' right next to their villages. Two years on, has the prime minister kept his promise? Tom Heap investigates.
Countryfile's winter special is a celebration of Britain's beautiful countryside in this, the harshest of seasons. This winter has been a particularly tough one for wildlife when their only options are to sleep, feed or flee. Ellie Harrison is in the Cairngorms where winter is often felt most keenly. As well as exploring the mountain tops she also takes a canoe safari around a Loch, looking for the hardy wildlife which has to survive whatever the weather. Julia Bradbury joins weatherman John Hammond in the Chilterns where, with the help of a giant map and some trusty props, they learn why the UK gets the unique winters it does. It's been especially apparent this year that the coast is often hardest hit by winter storms but whilst it might wreak havoc for us, it brings a special kind of treasure for beachcombers. Adam Henson is on the north Cornwall coast to find out more. Matt Baker is in Suffolk to see how farmers keep food on our tables whatever the winter weather. He's with carrot producers as they bring in their harvest, and with the help of the London Vegetable Orchestra, he plays a mean tune on a carrot. Britain's foremost landscape artist Andy Goldsworthy visits his favourite spot in Dumfries and Galloway to create a new work of art especially for the programme and explains why the countryside in winter has so much to offer him as an artist.
Ellie Harrison and John Craven are in North Pembrokeshire, visiting the Gwaun Valley and Preseli Hills. Ellie delves into the distant past, discovering a landscape full of Iron Age treasures. John helps to give an ancient forest a new lease of life before sampling the local homebrew. Tom Heap is in the north of England, investigating claims that our uplands are in crisis and that farming is partly to blame. And Adam Henson is having a tough start to the new year on his farm, with some devastating news about one of his favourite animals.
The Countryfile team is in Worcestershire. Matt Baker visits Witley Court, which was one of England's most stunning country houses until it burned down in 1937. Now, Witley Court is a spectacular ruin which still holds the clues to a bygone age. Helen Skelton is in the Wyre Forest, one of the largest remaining ancient woodlands in Britain, where she hunts for the creatures who make this special habitat their home. Helen also visits the county's famous apple orchards, where she sees how essential they are for our winter birds, and cooks up a Malvern pudding with some of the apples from the orchard. Jules Hudson is also in the county, on the Severn Valley Railway, meeting the volunteers who spend the winter months spring cleaning the trains and the tracks. Every year we throw away millions of tonnes of food in the UK, so could some hungry animals stop it all going to waste? Tom Heap looks at the idea that discarded food could be turned into pigswill. But, as he discovers, not everyone is quite so keen. Adam Henson heads to Somerset, one of the areas worst affected by the winter floods, to meet a farmer who is battling on despite more than 95% of his land being under water.
The Countryfile team is in the Lake District, looking in detail at some of the locations featured in the opening titles of the programme. Matt Baker visits the beach the horses race across, meeting the riders and their steeds. Matt is also at Blea Tarn, where the wild swimming was filmed. He meets a wild swimmer who takes to the water even in February. Helen Skelton recreates the rock-climbing scene and meets the family who pioneered the sport in the area. Ellie Harrison is also in the Lake District, meeting world-renowned graphic artist Russell Mills. She hears the extraordinary story of Russell's inspiration, Kurt Schwitters, his journey to Cumbria from Nazi Germany and his life and work in the Lake District. Ellie also explores some of the landscapes which inspired one of our most famous poets, William Wordsworth, and sees the link between the poet and a unique gingerbread made in the area. Tom Heap is in Yorkshire, looking at the damage that winter storms have done to the British coastline. He begins at Spurn Point, where, despite the use of tonnes of concrete and rock, this thin spit of land was breached and the road was washed away. With predictions of more frequent and severe storms, Tom asks what's the best way to protect our shores in the future. Adam Henson is in Kent, visiting one of the finest, record-breakingly expensive bulls in the world.
The Countryfile team visits the rural county of Wiltshire. Matt Baker looks at the pig industry. The county has a long and proud history with the animal, and Matt visits a farm containing the oldest pedigree herd of pigs in the country. They are Tamworths, and Matt helps out with the piglets who are just a few days old. He also sees how the meat from the pigs is cured and smoked. Jules Hudson is at one of Help for Heroes' recovery centres at Tedworth House, meeting some of the servicemen who have suffered life-changing injuries or illnesses whilst serving their country. He sees how working in the countryside helps in their recovery and also helps set them up with skills for a career outside the forces. Julia Bradbury is in Cambridgeshire looking at the birds that call the UK home in the winter months. She heads to Ely with urban birder David Lindo to see what they can find in the city, before heading to Welney Wetland Centre to feed the swans who have made the long journey from colder climes. With huge swathes of our countryside under water, Tom Heap asks whether rural areas are being sacrificed so our towns and cities can keep dry. Down on the farm, Adam finds out about a parasite that is affecting cattle, including some of his own.
Countryfile is on the Isle of Portland, off the Dorset coast. When the programme asked for suggestions of locations the viewers would like to see featured on the show, many suggestions came in for Portland. Matt Baker visits Portland's three lighthouses. One is now a bird observatory, one the former home of birth control pioneer Marie Stopes, and one is still in use today. Julia Bradbury explores the famous Portland stone quarries on the isle. She sees how sculptors are now making the most of the stone, and how groundbreaking camera techniques are helping with the conservation of the area. John Craven is also on the isle, going out to sea with a tug boat captain in the harbour. Adam Henson finds out how to be a dog's best friend with the help of a dog nutritionist, who gives Adam the lowdown on how to keep our furry friends in tip-top condition.
The Countryfile team explores the coast and countryside of Kent. Matt Baker island hops to Elmley Marshes on the Isle of Sheppey. It is a peaceful place that has become a haven for wildlife. Out on the marshes, he meets the farmers managing the land with conservation in mind and joins wildlife enthusiasts out on a bird safari. Further inland, Ellie Harrison explores an ancestral pile being transformed on a grand scale. Knole has been a show home for many distinguished owners through the centuries but it was the Sackville family that made it their home for 300 years. Still partly a private home, a large part of the house is now managed by the National Trust. Ellie gets special access to rooms previously unseen where work is underway to repair and catalogue everything from photos to expensive objet d'art. John Craven finds out about a lesser known Kent produce, Kentish blue cheese. He visits a dairy farm using its own milk for its cheese and learns the secrets to making a fine blue. Helen Skelton is in the Wiltshire countryside. A place that has provided inspiration for artists, poets and writers for centuries. One of our most famous war poets, Siegfried Sassoon, chose to live in Wiltshire for the last 36 years of his life. Here he continued to write poetry and prose, motivated not by the horrors of war but by the beauty he found in the countryside. Tom Heap discovers that there are hundreds of thousands of disused mines and mine shafts beneath the British countryside. They may be out of sight, but they are still causing problems on the surface - subsidence, water pollution and in extreme cases collapses that open up huge holes in the ground. Tom asks whether we should be doing more to find these old workings and make them safe.
Countryfile heads north of the border to find out how Perthshire has earned its reputation as big tree country. Ellie Harrison meets the scientists travelling the globe to bring endangered conifer species back to Scotland and also discovers what impact nature's own lumberjack, the beaver, is having on the countryside. Perthshire's vast reed beds provide roofing material for thatchers and are also an important habitat for birds. John Craven lends a hand with the harvest and also finds out what is being done to safeguard Perthshire's fruit-growing tradition. Selling meat from animals slaughtered according to religious law is a controversial topic in the UK. Now there are fresh calls for both Halal and Kosher meat to be labelled in the supermarket, especially if the animals were killed without being stunned first. But do we really need to put more stickers on our food? Tom Heap investigates. Meanwhile Adam Henson has his hands full as the new arrivals come thick and fast down on the farm.
The team head to Somerset, a county which has taken a battering from the winter storms since December, leaving large parts of the Somerset Levels flooded. As a result, communities and animals had to be evacuated. Matt Baker meets some of the resourceful locals who have come together to create a silage food bank, with contributions coming in from farmers from all over the country. Matt also visits a beef farmer to find out how he is coping with aftermath of the floods. Ellie Harrison discovers that human resilience and ingenuity are a common feature in the character of its people. She makes herself at home in the glorious Exmoor landscape where a remarkable woman spent sixty years drawing, painting and writing about this wild place. Hope Bourne was to become known as 'the woman of Exmoor'. Tucked away in the streets of Somerset's Castle Cary is one of only two factories left in the world using horse hair to make textiles. John Craven tries his hand at weaving and discovers it has a proud tradition here. Turning waste into electricity seems like the perfect way of creating power, and as such the last few years have seen anaerobic digestion units spring up all over the country. But, as Tom Heap finds out, while some claim AD has become too successful, others are worried we're starting to pull the plug before it has really got off the ground.
Ellie Harrison is on the beaches of Norfolk. They took a battering in December from the biggest storm surge in 60 years. But now they are bouncing back. Ellie visits the RSPB's big reserve at Snettisham to see for herself what's being done to repair the damage done by the storm. She goes to Hunstanton to meet Michael Kennedy. He has spent twenty years walking the beach picking up pebbles to help protect the cliffs there from the elements and she visits the RSPCA rescue centre where they are just about to return seal pups scattered by December's storm back to the wild. Ellie also looks back at some of the best bits of Countryfile to have featured beach-themed stories. Like the time Matt Baker helped clean up one of our most beautiful stretches on the Gower Peninsula. Or when Julia Bradbury witnessed one of the biggest spectacles in the bird world at Snettisham a year before the storm. And when Adam Henson went on a welly safari off the Dorset coast.
Countryfile is in the beautiful County Durham, a place Matt Baker likes to call home. He grew up on the family farm in the Durham Dales and this week makes an extra special visit to help his mum with lambing. Beyond the farm, Ellie Harrison explores one of Britain's great undiscovered secrets. The farmsteads of Weardale used to have a thriving farming community, but now only ruins remain. Ellie finds out about the people who lived here and learns what is being done to preserve a part of Weardale's evocative heritage before it disappears forever. She also takes a trip along the River Deerness, one of the many tributaries of the River Wear, where volunteers are out in force monitoring fish passes and rebuilding the banks of the river. Meanwhile, Adam takes a trip to Cornwall to see a breed of sheep more at home in the Swiss Alps, and Jules Hudson joins the steam enthusiasts preparing the Severn Valley Railway for the start of the tourist season. Working dogs play a vital role in the life of the countryside, and the best ones are worth many thousands of pounds. But, as Tom Heap discovers, these valuable animals are now becoming the victims of organised crime.
Countryfile has an exclusive interview with the Princess Royal. Tom Heap speaks to Her Royal Highness at her home, Gatcombe Park in Gloucestershire, which she runs as a working farm. The princess discusses many of the big issues confronting the British countryside today and gives Tom a rare glimpse into her life on the estate. Countryfile presenter Ellie Harrison also lives in Gloucestershire, and she is looking for ideas about what to do with her own slightly more modest smallholding. The initial plan is to plant wild flowers, so she travels to meet the experts at Kew Gardens who have the perfect seed pack to start her off. But it's not just Ellie who is being encouraged to plant native wild flowers; the Countryfile audience also have the chance to get a free packet of seeds to plant in their own gardens.
The Countryfile team visit the Merseyside coast around Southport. Matt Baker looks at the history of shrimping in the area, and meets one of the last shrimpers to harvest the shellfish with a horse and cart. Matt meets the men who have restored an old shrimping cart found rotting in the basement of a museum. He helps make the last wheel before getting it back on the beach for one last chance to find shrimps. Ellie Harrison is on a family potato farm as they sow the year's first crop, and she discovers why Lancashire is such a fertile farming area for potatoes. On the Fiddlers' farm she also finds out why they have diversified into making their own crisps, with a factory on the farm and the unique flavour of lancashire sauce. Ellie also looks at the damage done by the winter storms last year. Many pine trees were felled by the high winds, but Ellie meets the apprentices learning how to turn the fallen trees into something more useful. Presenter and keen amateur photographer Shauna Lowry is out with two brothers who are inspired by the seascapes in the area. We also hear from Antony Gormley about his standing men statues on Crosby beach and why he thinks it is the perfect landscape for them. The statues are now home to hundreds of barnacles. Shauna meets the scientist studying them and finds out which part of the statues they favour most. Adam Henson looks at the technology of farming and eyes up some clever new bits of kit. Over the last few decades there has been a dramatic decline in farmland birds across the UK. Tom Heap investigates the cause of their demise, and asks what we can do to bring them back.
The team head to the Isles of Scilly. Ellie Harrison looks at the problem of rats on the islands and the devastating effect they have had on the local seabird population. On one island, St Agnes, they have been running a seabird recovery programme which is the biggest island community project in the world - with all 72 residents on the island taking part. They believe that in 12 weeks they have killed 3,300 rats, so the birds will now be safe from predation. At Penzance, Matt Baker boards a plane containing 50 ducklings, aiming to get them to the only duck farm on the islands. Matt also visits the only dairy farm on the islands, which supplies the only local milk. The farmer has ten dairy cows, but again it is a good way of keeping an income coming into the farm when the flowers have finished. Ellie Harrison visits the beautiful privately owned island of Tresco, where the signs of spring are all around and they have recently imported some red squirrels. The plan is to implement the rat eradication programme on Tresco, so Ellie finds out how they are going to protect the squirrels whilst they do this. Tom Heap finds out why farming is one of the most dangerous British industries and looks at ways that we could make it safer. Adam Henson visits a dairy farm where cows are not the order of the day. In this milking parlour, 2,500 ladies produce goats' milk every day. But what makes this farm special is that the farmer here has come up with an outlet for the billy goats too.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison go in search of the great icons of Yorkshire. A small magazine called The Dalesman is celebrating its 75th anniversary by naming the top 75 icons of Yorkshire as voted for by their readers. Matt and Ellie celebrate with them by marking those icons too. Matt Baker strides over the Yorkshire Dales whilst a brass band plays. He meets The Dalesman's first editor, Bill Mitchell, to talk about the magazine and some of its famous contributors, including JB Priestly and Alan Bennet. He also takes in Yorkshire music, food and tea. Ellie Harrison explores the history of Bolton Abbey and why people have been visiting it for hundreds of years. She follows a nature train which has been there since 1810 and takes in Strid Wood and the Valley of Desolation. She also meets the ladies of the Cappuccino Cycling Club from Harrogate who are being photographed carrying their bikes in their undies to raise money for the Air Ambulance. Ellie also travels across the Yorkshire Moors to get to Whitby, where she goes hunting for Whitby jet with a jet hunter. She learns how unique it is, found only on a short stretch of the Yorkshire coast, and sees how the fortunes of Whitby were built on the jewellery made from it in Victorian times. Adam Henson meets the three finalists in 2014's prestigious Outstanding Farmer of the Year award. Will it be a vegetable farmer from Scotland, an organic beef farmer from Bristol or a dairy farmer from Somerset? Tom Heap investigates the claim that the current crisis over abandoned horses could be at least partially solved by eating horse meat. He asks if eating their meat would really increase the value of horses and whether we could export more abroad. Tom also tries a horse meat taste test on the British public.
In this edition of Countryfile, Ellie Harrison explores some of Britain's most spectacular hills and mountains. She exclusively reveals that one of Britain's most iconic mountains is up for sale, getting a tour of the estate and meeting the people who live and work on the land. In addition, Ellie looks back at the best bits of Countryfile to have featured hill-and-mountain-themed stories - everything from the challenges of farming on a mountain to the walkers and climbers seeking out adventure and dramatic scenery.
This week Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison are in the Lee Valley, the green lung of London. It has provided fun and fresh air for city dwellers for more than four decades but, as Ellie discovers, there is an incredible array of wildlife here too. She takes to the water to see what is being done to clean up its chalk streams and she discovers why common terns are making the Lee Valley home. As well as being its lungs, it is London's larder too, as Matt finds out when he meets the Sicilian siblings who have turned salad growing into a thriving family business. The Lee Valley is also home to the Olympic Water Park, where volunteers from the RNLI are busy carrying out an essential flood training exercise. Ellie finds out first-hand how important these mock drills are in saving people's lives. Down on the farm, Adam goes in search of a new Gloucester bull that will help improve his herd. There's little doubt that climate change is going to affect our future, but what about the present? Tom Heap looks for proof that it is already having a significant impact on the British countryside.
Britain's landscape is undergoing an extraordinary transformation. Awaking from the winter slumber. As the days get longer and warmer, we're all trying to spring back to life. A day of spring is a lifetime for some and the beginning of life for others. Survival is down to one simple thing - timing. In this Spring Special edition of Countryfile, the team follow twenty four hours of this glorious season. Ellie Harrison is up with the larks listening out for the dawn chorus as native birds are lured back to our shores by the promise of warmer weather. Now though what they're after is a mate. And they're not alone. Millions of wild creatures are settling down to breed. Out on the Somerset Levels, Matt Baker is in pursuit of one of our largest breeds of bird - the crane - recently returned home after disappearing from our wetlands. He tracks them down as they get themselves ready for breeding. As the spring day unfolds, the team witness some of the miracles that emerge. John Craven finds the beauty in blossom that will become fruitful later in the year. They see the rise of the midday mayflies to dusk, when whole communities come together to celebrate the season at Padstow's Obby Oss festival. But none of this would be possible without our weather. Adam Henson goes on a voyage of discovery with weatherman John Hammond to find out the secrets behind April showers.
Countryfile is in Shropshire, where Matt Baker discovers the garden that inspired Charles Darwin's thinking. He gets stuck in restoring the fabled 'Thinking Path' in the garden of Darwin's birthplace and helps survey the garden's wildlife for the first time since Darwin's day. Ellie Harrison is in Shropshire's own 'Lake District,' where a special restoration project is creating the right habitat for one of Britain's rarest mammals, the water vole. She also visits the RAF base where a big project to breed one of the most productive honey bees is being run with military precision. John Craven uncovers a secret wartime plan than saved thousands of lives during the Second World War, but was almost unheard of until now. And Adam Henson is on HM the Queen's Balmoral Estate in Scotland, where he handles rare Balmoral ponies and witnesses the birth of the first of the new season's foals. Few animals look as calm and relaxed as cattle, so it is hard to believe that, every year, walkers are seriously injured, and in a few tragic cases killed, by bulls and cows. Tom Heap asks whether we should we be frightened of a field full of animals.
Countryfile is in Buckinghamshire where Matt Baker visits Waddesdon Manor and discovers the Rothschilds, a family that shaped the landscape of the entire county. He explores the legacy left behind by Charles Rothschild, founder of the Wildlife Trust, and he gets his hands dirty on the estate's farm, where cutting-edge environmental experiments are taking place to inform the government's HLS schemes. Ellie Harrison is in Wendover Woods discovering creatures great and small: from tiny, rare Bechstein bats to a monstrous, mythical beast, rarely seen in the wild, but loved by children everywhere! John Craven is finding out about the much-prized and now incredibly rare box wood, which changed the face of printing as we know it. Britain's new high-speed train, HS2, is now on its final approach, and Tom Heap asks the developers of the new line whether they can live up to their environmental promise of no loss to biodiversity. He also meets people from Buckinghamshire and beyond who believe it is bound to have a negative impact on our countryside. Adam Henson visits HM the Queen's Balmoral estate in Scotland on a mission to find a replacement for Eric, his highland bull.
Helen Skelton is in Snowdonia looking at how the landscape has undergone many transformations down the ages. From heavy industry and hard work, to high octane thrills and fearless fun, Snowdonia is an area that has never stood still. Helen visits the traditional slate mines that first shaped the land. She learns of the part nuclear played in making Snowdonia a powerhouse of 20th century energy production. And she takes to a high zip wire to test her nerves in Snowdonia's latest adrenaline playground. Whilst she's seeking the ultimate in thrills she looks back at some of the other ways Countryfile has shown the transformation of our landscape. Like the time Julia and Matt helped light beacons as the entire length of Hadrian's Wall was transformed by light. Or how Jules Hudson discovered the part that the landscape has played in transforming the fortunes of soldiers blighted by war. And the time Ellie Harrison visited Canvey Island to see for herself the amazing transformation old an old brownfield site to major wildlife reserve.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison are in Port Talbot in South Wales. Ellie takes to the water to have a go at the country's fastest-growing watersport. Matt is in pursuit of a strange and unusual animal in the magnificent Margam Park. New face Shauna Lowry tells the story of the biggest electricity-generating waterwheel in Europe. Tom Heap looks at predictions that from 2015 more than 40 British beaches will be labelled as unsuitable for bathing because of new European regulations on water quality, and Adam Henson meets the old boys of a little-known pre-war farm training scheme.
Ellie Harrison and John Craven are in and around Oxenhope in West Yorkshire. They see how the county is gearing up for the start of the Tour de France. Ellie gets on her bike and lends her wheels to the artist using the Yorkshire hills as a canvas. John Craven talks to the farmers about what it means to have this giant art in their fields and then hooks up with the cycling artist who has immortalised England's steepest incline in glass. Ellie also tells the tale of a world-beating woman cyclist who took on the men back in her day and beat them. Meanwhile Tom's investing the use of neonicotinoid pesticides and Adam travels back to Snowdonia to meet the young farmer who won the farm! Plus, more than a year since the European Commission decided to restrict the use of an insecticide that's thought to contribute to the decline of the British bee, Tom Heap investigates the impact of this controversial decision on farmers and asks whether the evidence for a ban is any stronger twelve months on.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison visit Lincolnshire, where Matt meets one of the last surviving members of the Dambusters squadron. He takes a turn in one of the few remaining Lancaster bombers and looks at how the old Dambusters airfield is being returned to nature. Ellie goes looking for a man who is two inches high and pink! The man orchid is one of our rarest flowers, but it thrives in Lincolnshire. Ellie also helps take down the sails on the only eight-sailed windmill in existence. Meanwhile, Adam is wheeling and dealing for a new white park bull, and John Craven is joined by two new celebrity judges as he launches this year's Countryfile Photographic Competition with its theme 'Animal Magic'.
Countryfile is in the Peak District where John Craven is on the set of the BBC drama, The Village. He gets behind the scenes to meet the cast and explores the impact filming has had on the real village of Hayfield. He also reveals an unusual and exciting archaeological treasure discovered in the heart of Dovedale. Adam Henson tries to get to the bottom of an age-old problem with sheep. Helen Skelton dons her walking boots to discover the intriguing links between the Peak District and the British Raj - from dyeing cloth to the introduction of sandals. She also meets a local photographer to give her some tips on how to take the perfect animal shot. A new report says that the shooting industry is worth more than £2 billion to the UK every year. Tom Heap investigates claims that its contribution to the British economy and the countryside goes largely unrecognised.
Countryfile is in Gower, south Wales, where Matt Baker explores Whiteford Burrows, one of the most important and richest sand dune systems in Britain. He hunts for flora and fauna and meets the Welsh mountain ponies who have made this environment home. He also explodes previously unearthed World War II ordnance on the sands with the MOD. Ellie Harrison joins him for the final massive detonation. Adam Henson is getting hands on with his sheep to explore the wonders of wool, while wildlife cameraman Richard Taylor-Jones is on the lookout for fox cubs, a creature he has never before managed to catch on camera. In honour of the World Cup final, Ellie Harrison meets the locals who have turned the old Swansea football pitch, Vetch Field, into a haven of growing and community spirit. She also discovers Vernon Watkins, Dylan Thomas's best friend and confidant, who was a remarkable poet in his own right. Ellie meets Gwen Watkins, Vernon's widow, who tells her about his poetry, inspired by the beauty of the landscape around him. Selective breeding of animals has made a huge difference to food production - lambs produce more meat, cows provide more milk, chickens lay more eggs. But is there a downside? Tom Heap investigates concerns that animal welfare is paying the price for increased productivity.
Countryfile takes a trip down memory lane with the legend John Craven as he celebrates 25 years on the show. To mark this quarter of a century, for one week only he'll be guest editor and decide exactly what goes into the programme. John meets fellow presenter and good friend Adam Henson on his farm to reminisce. They discuss the changes in farming over the years, the adventures he's had and the people he has met along the way, from prime ministers to pig farmers. John sets various missions for the rest of the Countryfile presenters. Back in 1989, John investigated the growth of organic farming on his first ever Countryfile appearance. A quarter of a century on, Tom Heaps looks back at that investigation and reveals brand-new research on the health benefits of organic food. Ellie explores the highs and lows of endangered species in the UK, a cause close to John's heart. And Matt does what John loves best; taking a drive in the beautiful British countryside in a classic sports car - only Matt does it in an Aston Martin!
Matt Baker joins the foragers scouring the coast of Cornwall for free food. But he's going to have to take to the waves if he wants spider crab, and that means freediving - something he's never done before. Anita Rani makes an explosive entrance in her first Countryfile as she blasts 26,000 tonnes of rock in the world's biggest china clay quarry. Helen Skelton tells the story of the gardeners from Heligan who went to France to fight in World War I. And she steps back in time with the modern-day gardeners turning the clock back a hundred years in honour of their early forebears. Adam is like a big kid with a new toy when he takes the keys of a massive new combine harvester. And Tom investigates whether deputy prime minister Nick Clegg's plans to bring back garden cities could have a detrimental impact on our countryside.
The Countryfile team head to the Cotswold County Show in Cirencester for a celebration of the best of rural Britain, bringing along special guests weatherman John Hammond, MasterChef winner Phil Vickery, poet Ian McMillan, cartoonist Tony Husband and an England cricketing great, to join in the day. Ellie Harrison tries her hand at archery, Matt Baker discovers how 100 years ago the showground played host to soldiers rather than summer revellers, Adam Henson takes up the show's theme of 'where town meets country' inviting some city viewers for a taste of life on the farm, Tom Heap takes to the treetops for a unique view of the local wildlife and John Craven gets a helping hand from MasterChef winner Phil Vickery to cook up a seasonal feast. Weatherman John Hammond joins the team to explain the science of our summer weather, poet Ian McMillan and cartoonist Tony Husband capture the day in poetry and pictures and a cricketing great makes a surprise appearance for a Countryfile v guests cricket match to round off the day.
Earlier in 2014 we asked for viewer suggestions as to where we should go to film, and so John Craven and Shauna Lowry head for the Sperrin Mountains in Northern Ireland. Shauna takes a walk into this little-known but beautiful region. She learns it was the birthplace of the great poet Seamus Heaney and visits an old blacksmith's forge made famous in one of his well-known poems. John learns about the unique relationship between one of our most endangered species and fish found nowhere else but Northern Ireland. Shauna takes us on a tour of her old stomping ground around Strangford Lough, before joining John panning for gold on the pretty Ballinderry River. James Wong has the latest from the Grow Wild campaign to get people planting wildflowers. Adam's joined by Dr James Logan as they explore the creepy crawly world of ticks, one of nature's biggest pests, and Tom Heap asks whether a new wave of garden cities really can provide a perfect blend of town and country.
John Craven and Anita Rani are in Herefordshire exploring the county's burgeoning foodie culture. John meets Simon Cutter, a farmer breeding pure Hereford cattle - not just for their meat but because they are the number one grazing cattle. And Simon is as keen on restoring his wildflower meadows as he is his cattle. Anita finds that there's more power in flowers than meet the eye. She catches up with the botanist looking to extract nature's goodness from his fabulous fields. She also takes part in a harvest with a difference as she helps one producer get in a huge crop of blackcurrants, and she joins John to put her taste buds to the test as she samples a unique take on the traditional pork pie. Adam's in Shropshire meeting the farmer bringing a little taste of South America to Britain with his quinoa. And Tom asks if using gas to kill badgers is the right solution to stopping the spread of bovine TB.
In this bank holiday edition of the programme Helen Skelton looks at how the British countryside has shaped our childhoods down the ages. Playground. Classroom. Sports field. It's been all things. She travels to Northamptonshire to rediscover the works of one-time children's favourite author, Dennis Watkins Pitchford. Better known as BB, he was as big as Enid Blyton in his day. Book in hand, Helen explores the countryside that features in BB's stories. While she's there she looks back at some of the best films on Countryfile that have featured kids and childhood.
Jules Hudson and Ellie Harrison are in Staffordshire exploring its wide open moorlands and the imposing millstone grit ridges of the Roaches. It's a landscape of myth and legend as Jules discovers when he goes in search of the mysterious green knight, hears about the mermaids that haunt upland pools and visits the eerie Luds Church. Ellie meets one of the very last survivors of the Women's Land Army and finds out that their vital wartime role is at last being recognised with a new memorial statue at the National Memorial Arboretum. Ellie gives the sculptor a hand casting of one of the most important bits. It's also the fiftieth anniversary of the foundation of the Peak District Mountain Rescue. Ellie recounts the tragedy that led to the Rescue's formation before putting the expert skills of the rescue team to the test. Adam meets the young farmers whose mobile milking parlour could transform the lives of many in the dairy industry. John Craven is joined by celebrity judges Bill Bailey and Charlotte Uhlenbroek, to select the 12 final photographs from this year's Countryfile Photographic Competition. These dozen pictures will grace the Countryfile Calendar for 2015. Viewers will then be given the chance to vote for their favourite.
Countryfile is in the heart of England on the beautiful borderland of the Black Country, where Matt Baker explores two of the most important 18th-century English gardens - Hagley Park and the Leasowes, both of which are going through major restoration projects. He discovers the history of the great men behind the gardens, George Lyttelton and William Shenstone and gets stuck in restoring the cascades at Hagley Park. With a little help from Ellie Harrison he adds the finishing touches by releasing 100 golden rudd into the lake. Ellie explores the mysterious Kinver Rock Houses. Inhabited right up to the 1960s, they are now a haven for wildlife. She also discovers how the rich geology of the area sparked the onset of the Industrial Revolution. Meanwhile, Adam Henson's competitive streak comes to the fore when he and his son Alfie take their poultry to the Cheshire Show. Antibiotic resistance has been called one of the greatest threats to modern human health. Charlotte Smith investigates whether giving medication to farm animals is making the problem worse.
Countryfile is in Norfolk, where Jules Hudson is given privileged access to the MOD training grounds in the Brecklands. He explores the purpose-built Afghan village in the heart of the British countryside and discovers the story behind the evacuation of the villages on the site during World War II. He also helps a tenant farmer wean his lambs and discovers how the MOD works in partnership with farmers and Natural England to protect and manage this special site. Anita Rani is on the Norfolk coast, meeting an artist who is inspired by the workers of the land and spends her time outside painting them - in all weathers. Anita also discovers the history behind the humble Norfolk shepherd's hut and meets Phyllis, who hasn't seen a hut since she helped her grandfather with lambing 70 years ago. There are still large parts of rural Britain with little or no mobile phone coverage. Charlotte Smith discovers that this is not just a cause of frustration, it can be bad for business and, in extreme cases, puts lives at risk. So what's being done to keep us connected in the countryside? Shauna Lowry and Helen Skelton meet the teams representing Scotland and Wales in 2014's One Man and His Dog sheepdog trial competition.2
Countryfile is in Devon, where Matt Baker explores Dartmoor. He discovers the story of a WWII bomber which crashed on the moor and hears about one man's mission to find the truth behind what happened on that fateful night. Matt helps with a geophysics search of the site to see if the key to the crash can be unearthed. He also meets with a farmers' co-op in Dartmoor, where 50 farmers work together. Matt takes to horseback to help them with a cattle round-up. Anita Rani meets a sculptor who is inspired by the ancient trees in the Devon landscape. She dons her snorkel to help him look for one vital ingredient in the river Dart - bog oak. She also finds out about a groundbreaking countryside project which aims to turn lives around and get offenders back into work. Many people dream of owning a second home in the countryside or by the sea. But are these holiday retreats doing more harm than good? Charlotte Smith investigates.
Countryfile plays host, for the second year running, to the One Man and His Dog sheepdog trials. Matt Baker and Helen Skelton present all the action from Byland Abbey as some of the finest handlers and their dogs from across the British Isles compete against each other. Between the rounds, Helen explores the beauty of the surrounding hills and reveals how Byland Abbey and its monks were once at the heart of Britain's wool trade. She also discovers how nearby Ampleforth Abbey is still going strong. Its monks still work the land, but today they sell cider rather than raise sheep to help support themselves.
It's been one of the best harvests in years, so Matt's in Lincolnshire where they harvest on a big scale. He sees for himself how the very latest technology is helping farmers get the harvest in quickly and efficiently. Matt also discovers how science could change the face of harvests to come, when he meets the farmers growing veg that's been designed to look better, taste better and resist drought better. Ellie's in Devon where old harvest traditions still linger. She meets the last living maker of Devon's famous harvestware - the vessels used to carry cider to workers getting the harvest in - and she visits the old-time garden where they grow fruit and veg just like Granny would have done. And like our forebears Ellie learns how to make preserves using just what's left when all the fruit and veg has been picked. Adam is on a farm where the crop they harvest is not for eating, but rubbing on your skin - lavender. Tom looks at how crops could be modified to carry health-giving substances like omega 3. And John announces the winner of this year's photographic competition.
In this edition of Countryfile, John Craven explores the life and work of one of our greatest ever composers, Ralph Vaughan Williams. He meets world-renowned conductor Christopher Warren Green, who plays Vaughan Williams' best-loved work, The Lark Ascending, on the lawn at Vaughan Williams' childhood home. He also meets a maker of traditional instruments like the dulcimer and psaltery, instruments which had an influence on the music Vaughan Williams made. John spends time with the acoustic ecologists stringing violins from trees and burying microphones in the forest floor, using the landscape to make their music. And in a rousing finale John presents Christopher Warren Green with Ralph Vaughan Williams' very own baton with which to conduct the Capel Choral Society in their rendition of Vaughan Williams' Linden Lea. Ellie also looks back at some of the best bits of Countryfile that have featured music. Like the time Matt got a lesson in bell ringing, when Julia went on the trail of Benjamin Britten in Sussex, or the time Adam joined the shepherds in the Swiss Alps, yodelling to bring their flocks down off the mountains.
In this seasonal special the team look at how autumn marks a time of transformation for the wildlife, landscape and communities of our countryside. Matt Baker heads to Wytham Woods in Oxfordshire to take part in a citizen science project aiming to identify the first signs of autumn. He also joins the University of Oxford using hard science to take an autumn health check of the woodland and reveals how the conkers of horse chestnut trees are under attack from an army of tiny predators. Ellie Harrison takes to the land as she tries her hand at the Mendip Ploughing Match and takes renowned chef Raymond Blanc back to where his culinary journey first began 55 years ago - foraging in the forests. Tom Heap is joined by weatherman John Hammond as they canoe down the River Wye to take in its autumnal splendour and reveal the science behind the season. And Adam Henson pays a visit to a turkey farm that's using fireworks training to make sure its birds are safe come bonfire night. Our regulars are joined by wildlife cameraman Richard Taylor-Jones, who heads to Skomer hoping to glimpse some of autumn's newest arrivals - grey seal pups. And leading contemporary sculptor Simon Gudgeon unveils his latest seasonally-inspired work.
Matt and Ellie are in Northumberland, where Matt finds out how the rock cliffs of the Whin Sill gave rise to some very rare grassland. He also discovers that Hadrian's Wall is one of the last strongholds of one of the UK's rarest plants. He then dons full Roman regalia and learns that most of what we know about Roman armour comes from a world famous discovery at Hadrian's Wall 50 years ago. Ellie is with the amateur astronomers enjoying the best dark skies in England and learns about the different ways you can photograph stars. She also visits Allen Banks - the famous gardens laid out by Victorian superwoman Susan Davidson - and joins in the effort to restore their renowned picturesque viewpoints. Adam's in the market for a rare breed Portland ram, and former farmer and trained butcher Gareth Barlow looks at the British beef industry. Tom Heap investigates the impact that falling milk prices are having on British dairy farmers.
Countryfile is on the Isle of Wight, where Matt Baker takes a stroll along the oldest pier in the UK - Ryde Pier. He finds out about its fascinating history and the important role it played in the rise of the seaside holiday. He also hops on board a boat to get his hands dirty helping with the pier's ongoing restoration project, working against the clock as the tide rolls in. Ellie Harrison explores the science behind the idea that a breath of fresh air is good for you, and she visits Osborne House, Queen Victoria's magnificent Isle of Wight home. She discovers Prince Albert's love for horticulture and, in particular, the trees which he planted throughout the gardens to celebrate special family occasions. Ellie also heads to Victoria and Albert's private beach, where Queen Victoria took her very first plunge into the salty depths. Former farmer and trained butcher Gareth Barlow teaches the younger generation about the virtues of eating beef. He also meets the woman who's on a campaign for people to eat beef in the week. Ahead of Remembrance Day, Adam Henson meets a young farmer putting his own take on the time-honoured classic, the poppy. And Tom Heap investigates claims that current education reforms could put school farms under threat.
In an extended programme for Remembrance Sunday, Countryfile explores Word War One's lasting legacy on the landscape of the western front and the part played by those on the home front in winning the war. Matt Baker uncovers a subterranean network carved out by allied troops from the chalk of Arras and learns about the role played by mule-men like his great-grandfather in the war. Ellie Harrison reveals the iron harvest of bombs still unearthed by farmers today, Tom Heap goes on a very personal investigation to the start of trench warfare, John Craven reveals how we adapted tractors to make the world's first tanks and Adam Henson discovers how man's best friend became his greatest ally when dogs were trained for front-line duties by the British army.
Ellie Harrison takes a look back through the Countryfile archive to revisit the crafts of the countryside. She also visits Acton Scott, a historic working farm, to try her hand at some of the traditional skills people are still practising today. She also has a go on a pole lathe crafting a wooden plate and helps make a cob oven with a group of children, before getting stuck in with the age-old craft of blacksmithing by making a poker. Along the way she learns the importance of keeping rural skills alive. The programme culminates in Ellie and the other craftspeople and children coming together to feast on the ultimate artisan sandwich - served on hand-crafted wooden plates, made with bread warmed in a traditional cob oven and stoked with her own forged poker. Clips from the archive include Matt Baker learning the craft of wheelwrighting and Helen Skelton turning her hand to crafting rakes. The programme meets plenty of the characters who have honed and perfected their skills over many years and are keeping these crafts of the countryside alive.
Countryfile is in Berkshire. John Craven visits the county's agricultural college where, after more than a decade, the agricultural course is back up and running. He meets the native species, including polecats and pine martens, kept here for the students to study. He also discovers the picturesque village of Cookham, the inspiration for great British artist Stanley Spencer, and meets the painter's two daughters. Shauna Lowry is in the valley of the racehorse, exploring the gallops where hundreds of horses train each day. She meets the son of legendary author and jockey Dick Francis, and discovers how injured jockeys get back into the saddle. Wildlife expert and author Sanjida O'Connell is walking the Ridgeway, the Roman road which wends its way across the county. She explores the inspiration this landscape has had on storytellers and authors across the years, including the much-loved author of Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame. And Adam Henson visits a very special dog's home which takes in and rehabilitates collies. The RSPB say it's time to get tough in the fight against the persecutors of British birds of prey. But is the wider shooting industry being unfairly blamed for the actions of a criminal few? Tom Heap finds out.
Countryfile is in Lancashire. John Craven will be exploring one of the county's hidden jewels. Buried beneath undergrowth, he finds a landscape which was once a true spectacle but is now almost lost to the ravages of time. Ellie Harrison is exploring the sculptural art of the area with a spectacular work built by a local artist to celebrate the Forest of Bowland's 50 years as an area of outstanding beauty. Countryfile favourites Ian McMillan and Tony Husband are back, this time in Tony's home county where he'll be trying to convince Yorkshireman Ian of the the joys of the Lancashire countryside. Adam Henson is on his Cotwolds farm as his Exmoor ponies are DNA checked before being rehomed. After claims that commonly used pesticides could be banned in the future, Tom Heap asks how essential chemical products are to modern farming.
John Craven and Helen Skelton are in East Sussex, where Helen meets the shepherds keeping the old southdown sheep breed alive. She discovers a long-forgotten chronicler of the county's rural past and meets 85-year-old Shaun Payne, who tells her the secrets of the mysterious shepherd's stones. Helen then goes on a fossil hunt with some local schoolchildren, and dinosaur hunter Ken Brooks shows Helen the footprints of what is said to be an iguanodon. John takes a stroll round the genteel grounds of Batemans - a grand country house where Rudyard Kipling sought solace and peace. John then takes a turn in a boat on Kipling's Pond, built with the money the author won for the 1907 Nobel Prize for Literature. Joe Crowley's first stint on Countryfile sees him right in the thick of it with the Sussex Wildlife Ambulance. The team are called out to a stag that's in distress and Joe is on hand to help out. Meanwhile, Adam Henson learns how the latest cutting-edge science is being used to detect animal diseases early. Also, the British beaver lost its battle against extinction hundreds of years ago, but now they're back on a river in Devon. However, as Tom Heap discovers, they may have brought an unwelcome visitor with them.
Ellie Harrison and Matt Baker are in the beautiful but little-known Clwydian range which spans Denbighshire and Flintshire in North Wales. Ellie discovers how this landscape influenced 18th-century artist Richard Wilson - said by many to be the father of British landscape painting. She also hooks up with the children of a local primary school where the pupils are turning a tidy profit by running their own chicken farm. Matt joins the conservation team cutting back the heather in the uplands and meets the brewer putting all those offcuts to good use in his heather-infused ale. Anita Rani spends the day with the sniffer dogs trained to sniff out not explosives or stolen cash but endangered animals, and Adam takes a look at how cutting-edge science is being used to create the perfect cow. From stealing priceless objects to stripping the lead from church roofs, heritage crime is a growing problem in the British countryside. Tom Heap investigates what is being done to protect our history.
It's Christmas and the Countryfile team have all made a pledge to meet up at the famous Christmas market in Bath. But before they do they're out and about. Ellie's on a farm gathering holly and ivy and meeting the artist who designed this year's Christmas stamps. She then experiences Christmas Georgian-style, making old-fashioned mince pies in a period kitchen. Adam's in the fields with foreign seasonal workers, before sitting down to a traditional eastern European Christmas feast. John gets his hands on the first ever Christmas cards and discovers that it was the Victorians who gave us another staple of Christmas - the cracker. Weatherman John Hammond tells us all about how snow is formed. Matt Baker's at the market learning about its history and trying his hand on a few stalls. Once the rest of the team arrives with their gifts, Matt leads them and the crowd in a rendition of one of our best-loved Christmas tunes. While the rest of us are relaxing, for some Christmas is the busiest time of year. Tom Heap meets a rural rector who looks after ten different parishes to find out how he copes. Tom also asks whether communities in the countryside lose out when they have to share their vicar.
The Great British landscape gives us much to celebrate all year round. But as the bare bones of winter signal the end of yet another year - there's still one big celebration to go - New Years Eve. John Craven is on the South Downs gathering goodies to throw his own festive party, toasting the taste of the South Downs. He visits Plumpton Agricultural College - which has a sparkling reputation for English wine. He learns how fine fizz is made from the grapes grown on the chalky downland. What's good for the grapes is also fantastic for funghi - as John finds out when he snuffles for truffles in the surrounding woodland. Plumpton College also make the perfect accompaniment for their wine - cheese. John gets stuck into the 'cheddaring' process - seeing just how farmhouse cheddar gets its unique hard texture. We also welcome back some old friends to help us celebrate - as John takes us on a trip through the archives to revisit some of the rural revelries and seasonal celebrations we've taken part in over the years. Like when Clare Balding joined Matt at a festival in South Devon celebrating one of the area's finest residents, the humble crab. Ellie made some new friends when she welcomed in the Spring with the traditional Obby Oss festivities in Padstow. And Matt celebrates the fruits of the land at Harvest time on Tatton Park.
Adam Henson presents a special edition of Countryfile looking at rare breed farm animals. Starting with his own old spot pigs, he tells the story of some of our rarest farm animals and the threats they face. It is an interest that Adam got from his father Joe, who was one of the founders of the Rare Breeds Survival Trust. There's a chance to see the two of them returning to the place where it all started, on the Orkney Islands, before Joe advises Adam on a potential addition to the farm, some longhorn cattle. Adam's also joined by his daughter Ella to help train his exmoor ponies. Plus there's a look back on some of the times we have featured rare breeds on Countryfile in the past. Ellie Harrison learns to plough with a rare shire horse, Matt Baker follows tamworth pigs from farm to fork and Adams discovers how the latest technology can help guarantee the future of our rare breeds.
The team are in Somerset revisiting some of the areas and people hit by last year's floods. Matt Baker pays a return visit to farmer Geoff Miller, whose home and business were under water a year ago. Matt discovers whether Geoff's land is bouncing back and if his cattle are now thriving. Helen Skelton explores the bird life of the area and learns why some birds flourished in the floods while others, like the barn owl, were left fighting for survival. She also hears about a rescue team whose help during the floods was unprecedented. Anita Rani is in Dawlish where the storms also hit hard, to find out about the restoration of the devastated railway line. Adam Henson is on his Cotswolds farm, where he gets to grips with a very large bit of agricultural kit. How our homes, businesses and farmland are defended from flooding is a controversial subject. Tom Heap finds out what the victims of floods think about what's being done to keep them dry in the future - and talks to the minister responsible for protecting them.
The team are in the Lake District. Matt Baker finds out about a charity opening up the adventure of the Lakes to all. He discovers a piece of mountain rescue equipment which is being used to enable wheelchair users to abseil. Ellie Harrison climbs to great heights on Helvellyn to help predict the weather with the hilltop assessors. She also visits Keswick to find out about early tourism in the Lakes and the recreation of a 3D model of the landscape which was designed to draw in the tourists. Sanjida O'Connell is on the banks of Coniston Water trying her hand at the Cumbrian craft of oak swill basket making. Adam Henson travels to Wales and learns the secret origins of white park cattle. In isolated parts of the countryside, providing a good doctor's service is a real challenge. Tom Heap travels to Scotland to see if experiences there could help to improve rural healthcare across the whole of the UK.
The team are in the Highlands of Scotland following in the footsteps of poet Robert Burns. John Craven is at the Falls of Foyers finding out about the great man's Highland tour. Foyers on the banks of Loch Ness is a stronghold for the elusive red squirrel - John discovers why. He also visits Killiecrankie, where he meets a fiddle player inspired by the work of a contemporary of Burns, musician Niel Gow. And he discovers how this landscape shaped the first battle of the Jacobite risings. Ellie Harrison meets world-renowned photographer Colin Prior. Along with a group of local poets, she learns how to take inspiration from the landscape via the lens. She also heads into the Cairngorms where she takes the reins, learning how to drive a pony and carriage. The hygiene standards in British farming are some of the best in the world. So why are hundreds of thousands of people still getting food poisoning from chickens every year in the UK? Tom Heap investigates.
Ellie Harrison and Matt Baker are in West Yorkshire where Ellie joins one of Britain's best poets, Simon Armitage, on a yomp across the snowy moors. She's following the Stanza Stones trail - a series of rocks with verses written by Simon carved upon them. Matt visits a farm run by volunteers where they are farming with wildlife in mind. Joe Crowley tells the tale of the Cragg Vale Coiners, an outlaw band responsible for one of the biggest counterfeiting crimes in history. Adam visits a farm where they are using French percheron heavy horses to work the land. Plus, the first of the Food and Farming Awards packages. Tom Heap visits a state-of-the-art laboratory at Pirbright that will soon become our first line of defence against a host of exotic diseases that target farm animals, horses - and even humans.
Ellie Harrison is in Leicestershire reporting on the drastic decline in farmland birds. She joins the farmers learning how to spot rare birds and hears how they are creating the right habitat for wild birds back on their farms. Ellie then visits an alpaca farm where the animals are not being bred for their valuable fleeces or even their meat but for use in therapy for people with mental health problems. Over the border in Rutland, Matt Baker tells that wetland birds are in decline too. He joins the volunteers on Rutland Water, helping to survey the migrant bird population and lending a hand to restore the habitat of one of Britain's rarest wetland species, the bittern. See what Adam Henson is doing to encourage wild birds back onto his farm. He is joined by wildlife cameraman Richard Taylor Jones to see if they can catch a glimpse of rare corn buntings, once common in the Cotswolds but now seriously in decline. Wind turbines - love them or hate them, they now produce so much electricity every year that we have to pay millions of pounds to turn them off. So is it time to stop building onshore turbines? Tom Heap finds out.
Ellie Harrison and Matt Baker are in Gloucestershire looking at life in the county ten years on from the hunting ban. Matt visits the oldest pack of foxhounds in the country and finds out that the best way to exercise them is to jump on a bike and pedal like mad! He also helps carry out a health check on the deer at Berkeley Castle. Ellie visits the new services on the M5 and finds how they're redefining motorway services for the 21st century. She then meets the local producers supplying the services with gourmet food products. John Craven takes a look at Woodchester Mansion, a relic of Victorian architecture which was never finished but is now home to rare horseshoe bats. Tom Heap takes a look at the pros and cons of the hunting ban and hears from people on both sides of the debate. And Adam's rounding up sheep on the sand dunes in Merseyside.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison are in Suffolk finding out how erosion has shaped the landscape, swallowed up whole towns and inspired award-winning authors. Matt takes to the sea with scientists using the latest technology to get a look at Britain's Atlantis, the lost town of Dunwich, swallowed by the sea centuries ago. He later joins extreme artists who rush out to sketch the coast each time a storm tears more chunks out of it. Ellie finds out how erosion plays its part in recreating important saltmarsh habitats. She also meets award-winning author Helen MacDonald and hears how Helen overcame personal grief through a love of goshawks and turned the experience into a literary smash. Adam Henson joins the Gloucestershire Fire Service as they train to rescue animals in emergency situations. For most people it's one of life's essentials, yet milk frequently costs less than water. Tom Heap asks if paying more for your daily pint would help struggling dairy farmers make a profit.
Countryfile is in Pembrokeshire to mark St David's Day. Matt Baker is in the heart of St David's itself. With the help of the local community, he forages for food to make the traditional Welsh dish cawl. Ellie Harrison is out at sea trying to spot a frequent and much-welcome visitor to these shores - the porpoise. Anita Rani visits the most westerly farm in Wales and discovers the home of Farms for City Children, where kids can get their hands dirty learning the agricultural way of life, from feeding lambs to milking goats. Adam Henson is in Scotland meeting a very important ram which sold for more than £152,000. But what makes him so special? In many cases the packaging on processed food tells us where it was made, but not where the ingredients come from. Tom Heap looks at calls to change the law to provide more information about what's in our food and finds out what that could mean to the people who make the products.
The team are in rural Cheshire. Matt Baker is finding out about agricultural apprentices. He follows Jason, a young farmer, as he goes about his daily tasks on his dad's busy dairy farm. Here he gets the chance to put into practice everything he learns in the classroom at Reaseheath College. With the help of one of the college assessors, Matt puts Jason through his paces in a practical examination on the farm. Ellie Harrison is at Tatton Park, where she's hoping to spot the elegant courtship ritual of one of the county's finest feathered friends, the great crested grebe. She also visits Quarry Bank Mill, where she discovers what life was like for Victorian mill apprentices and meets a modern-day heritage builder apprentice working on the site to restore it. Ellie help hims re-hang the bell in the mill's clock tower. John Craven visits a seasonal spectacle at Rode Hall, where the masses flock to see the beautiful blanket of white. The snowdrop's arrival reminds us that spring is just around the corner. Getting your own home in the countryside can be tough. Wages tend to be lower - and property prices higher. Tom Heap asks whether we should be solving the problem by building more affordable houses in rural areas.
The team explore the watery east of Northern Ireland. Matt Baker discovers the Irish hares who have made a rather unusual location home - Belfast International Airport. RSPB reserve Portmore Lough is the first site in the country to offer a year-long residential volunteer programme. Matt meets the volunteers who put him to task with all aspects of practical work on the site - from fenland management to feeding the hardy konik ponies. Helen Skelton takes to the coastal waters at Ardglass harbour to find out how the remote communities in the area have come together to share their boat-building skills. Helen joins them in the water to race their handmade boats. She also explores the beauty of Strangford Lough and meets an artist who's lucky enough to call this place home. Finally she discovers a remarkable marine habitat unlike any other. Adam Henson's in North Yorkshire, where he discovers how farming has shaped the limestone landscape for thousands of years. He meets farmer Neil Heseltine, who explains how his prized belted galloway cattle are helping preserve it. Every year millions of people flock to the almost unspoilt landscapes of British national parks, but preserving pristine countryside comes at a price. As Tom Heap discovers, it is claimed that cuts to budgets are now threatening the future of these areas.
Countryfile is on the Isle of Man. Adam Henson finds out about the much-forgotten naturalist Edward Forbes, whose contributions to marine biology and oceanography fed into Darwin's theories. Adam explores all creatures great and small on the island, following in Forbes's footsteps and investigating the local rock pools with a group of young marine enthusiasts. He finds out about farming on the island, from the school that has farm-assured status to the native Manx Loaghtan sheep. One animal you wouldn't expect to find living wild on the Isle of Man is the Australian wallaby. Adam goes on a safari to find this unexpected beast. We'll also be taking a trip back through the Countryfile annals to look at some of the most fascinating creatures we've spotted over the years.
Matt Baker and Shauna Lowry are in Hampshire. Matt meets the farmers who started with nothing more than a handbook and an empty field. Four years on, their farm is thriving. Shauna explores the New Forest and meets the ponies, donkeys and cattle that graze freely on this land. The number of road accidents involving animals here is high, so measures are being put in place to prevent them, as Shauna discovers. Helen Skelton meets world champion darts player Scott Mitchell. He is the son of a farmer and with his winnings vowed to buy his dad a new tractor. Charlotte Smith is at London Fashion Week discovering the links between farming and fashion. She also visits a farm where rabbits are kept for their wool. Adam Henson visits a nature reserve where three of his Exmoor ponies are starting a new life helping with conservation grazing. Compared with wind and solar energy, tidal power has barely created a ripple in the UK. But as Tom Heap finds out, that could change dramatically in the years to come if plans to build six new tidal lagoons go ahead.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison are in the Brecklands of Norfolk. And this being Easter Sunday, there's an abundance of bunnies. Matt finds out the important part rabbits play in maintaining the Breckland heath. He learns too about the history of warrening, where rabbits were farmed for their fur and meat, and discovers that it's the way rabbits graze the heath that makes it so good for one of our rarest visiting birds - the rare stone curlew. Ellie goes on a forage with a difference as she joins the artist raiding old barns for scrap metal to make sculptures with. Ellie also visits the mysterious Grime's Graves, the remains of Neolithic flint mines going back 6,000 years. She is shown how to make a flint tool, Neolithic style! Adam Henson profiles the second of Countryfile's Farming Heroes as part of the Food and Farming Awards. James Wong is in Liverpool launching this year's Grow Wild campaign. The humble spud has been part of British life for 400 years. But these days the supply of fresh potatoes is outstripping demand - so should we be eating more or growing less? Tom Heap has been finding out.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison are in the uplands of north Cumbria. Matt meets photographer Ian Lawson, who has spent years photographing the hill shepherds and their herdwick sheep. Matt hears the tale of farmer Joe Relph, who's leaving after a lifetime in the fells, and then catches up with the cooperative aiming to put herdwick wool on the fashion map. Ellie is hoping to catch a glimpse of a black grouse lek - that strange courting dance that these rare birds do at the start of the breeding season. She also meets the farmers of the future at a special agricultural college, before finding out that there's more to dry stone walls than meets the eye. Countryfile's cameras have been granted exclusive access to the first ever excavation of one of our largest stone circles. Helen Skelton is on hand with her trowel and Adam Henson meets the second of our Farming Heroes. Taking off-road vehicles into the countryside can be great fun, but it doesn't always go down well with the people who live here - or with other visitors. Tom Heaps finds out what is being done to tackle illegal off-roading and asks whether people who enjoy driving or riding through the countryside legally are being unfairly tarred with the same brush.
In this themed programme Ellie Harrison, John Craven and Anita Rani explore Britain's woodlands. Ellie is high up in the canopy with the scientists collecting leaf buds to learn more about the effects of CO2 on woodland. She then helps release some hedgehogs, one of the nations' favourite and most-threatened woodland species, back into the wild. John finds out what it takes to manage your own woodland and discovers that the return of the old craft of coppicing is proving a boom to wildlife. He also joins the conservationists using novel methods to increase the dormice populations in Shropshire's woods. And Anita discovers how to build with baked wood - using a new technique that hardens and weatherproofs timbers making them much more durable and better for building with. Adam Henson has the third and final of the Countryfiles Farming Heroes nominees. The biggest threat to British trees is disease - and in many cases there's no cure. Tom Heap investigates the threats to our woodland and finds out what we can all do to defend our trees.
John Craven and Ellie Harrison are in the Peak District. John meets Roy Taylor, who has worked for the RSPB for 20 years. Diagnosed with motor neurone disease in autumn 2013, he is now entirely dependent on a wheelchair, but this hasn't stopped him. John discovers Roy's inspirational story and his aim to make the countryside more accessible to all. John also finds out about a new piece of kit called the mountain trike, which allows wheelchair users to get over much rougher terrain and therefore enables them to explore places that were once unreachable. The National Search and Rescue Dog Association is 50 years old this year. Ellie discovers what it takes for trainers and search dogs to become fully fledged life savers. She also visits Lane Farm End Trust, a working hill farm where disabled and disadvantaged young people get to connect with nature. One particular rare breed of pony, the eriskay, is making a huge difference. Anita Rani puts on her walking boots to explore the magnificent Pennine Way, discovering how it has changed in the 50 years since its creation. Adam Henson discovers the norfolk horn, a breed of sheep which helped make East Anglia of the Middle Ages rich. One in five people in the UK have hayfever, and more are suffering from it every year. Tom Heap asks what's causing this increase and finds out if there is anything we can do to stop it.
As the landscape bursts back into life, we celebrate spring. We don't just see the season changing around us - we feel it, smell it, taste it and hear it. Spring isn't just a feast for the eyes - it awakens all our senses. Five of our presenters each discover their own sense of spring. Matt Baker gets a real feel of spring in north Wales, where he meets a hotchpotch flock of orphan lambs. Ellie Harrison journeys through the Top of the Spring Pops - gathering seasonal sounds of nature to soothe the soul. Anita Rani gets a rather unusual taste of spring at a barbecue with a difference, while John Craven captures the ultimate smell of spring with a scientist known as Doctor Smell!
Countryfile celebrates Britain's farming heroes past and present. Adam Henson is in Bristol at the BBC's prestigious Food and Farming Awards to reveal the winner of this year's first ever Countryfile Farming Hero. He also tells us about his historic hero, the father of selective breeding, Robert Bakewell. Matt Baker champions Harry Ferguson, the man who invented the tractor that changed the face of farming forever. Ellie Harrison discovers more about her heroes, a group of men who set up the RSPCA, giving animals rights for the first time in history. Anita Rani finds out how a milk maid helped Gloucestershire doctor Edward Jenner pioneer a treatment that saved millions, even billions, of lives. And Tom Heap champions a man whose efforts gave farmers a voice and helped to feed the nation when it needed it the most.
Anita Rani returns to her home turf of Bradford to explore the countryside on the edge of the city. She discovers the rural gems right on her doorstep and the journey that has been made for centuries from the urban sprawl to the fresh air of the nearby moors. The team also look back through the archive at the times when they have explored the places and stories where town meets country. They revisit the time Matt Baker took to the dizzy heights of the Avon Gorge in Bristol to discover its flora and fauna, and when Ellie Harrison unearthed some extraordinary rock homes on the outskirts of Stourbridge.
Countryfile visits Warwickshire, where Matt Baker explores Charlecote Park and the River Avon which runs through its grounds. He discovers the plants and wildlife that thrive here and the watermill which harnesses the power of the river. Anita Rani is up to her knees in mud to discover what it is really like to be a pig farmer, and she also gets behind the wheel of a heritage Land Rover to discover its history as a workhorse of the countryside. Helen Skelton explores Middleton Hall and the much-overlooked naturalist John Ray. Adam Henson gets stuck in with the asparagus harvest. Green waste is often used to fertilise farmers' fields but, as Tom Heap finds out, it is not always as green as it's cracked up to be.
Countryfile visits the Channel Islands, where Matt Baker explores the legacy left on Jersey by naturalist Gerald Durrell. Ellie Harrison helps with an unusual habitat restoration on the site of an old holiday camp, then hotfoots it to Guernsey to discover the island's long history of growing tomatoes, which has all but died out. John Craven visits Sark to find out about island life and the dairy which produces the unrivalled Sark cream. Charlotte investigates black grass, a resilient weed which is rapidly becoming the scourge of British arable farmers. Meanwhile, Adam Henson finds out about woolly pigs!
Matt and Ellie are in Somerset, where Matt is following in the footsteps of a legendary caver who first explored the caverns beneath the Mendips a century ago. He puts himself to the test squeezing and struggling through small dark spaces and finds that there's as much to Somerset below ground as there is above. Ellie tickles her taste buds with flavours of the sea as she visits the community-run project that's putting Porlock's once-famous oysters back on the culinary map. She also meets a man who makes furniture out of nothing but deer antlers. John discovers how a booming taste for cider is throwing our ancient orchards a lifeline, and he meets the scientist proving how important ancient orchards are for some of our rarest bee species. Meanwhile, Adam is on the Somerset coast helping round up the only 100% pure-bred herd of beef shorthorn in the country. Tom Heap investigates the growing demand for venison and asks whether we should be farming more deer in the UK.
Matt and Ellie are in Nottinghamshire, where Matt visits the village where they farm just as they did in the Middle Ages. This year being the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta, he also visits the tree in Sherwood Forest where King John held early parliaments, and goes hunting for ancient trees as part of the Woodland Trust's Tree of the Year campaign. Ellie goes bird spotting in Nottingham city centre with urban birder David Lindo and is surprised when a falcon chick literally falls at her feet. And she gets a lesson in horse anatomy with nothing but a tin of paint and a paintbrush. Joe Crowley takes a look at the first new pylon design in 90 years before donning the hard hat to scale one of the traditional types. Adam meets the young warden with the most dangerous job in farming. 24-year-old Ellie Crossley has just taken charge of the Chillingham herd - the last truly wild herd of cattle on earth. And Tom looks at rural crime and a nationwide survey that aims to examine the extent of the problem.
Matt and Ellie are in East Yorkshire, where Ellie takes to the water near the mighty Bempton Cliffs, home to a quarter of a million seabirds. She helps with an important bird count where, for the first time, the RSPB are using a drone to help gauge numbers. She also joins photographer Steve Race trying to capture images of dive-bombing gannets and finds herself at sea with the fishermen who are fishing for litter, an eye-catching scheme by those on the front line to pull rubbish from our waters. Matt is on the 10,000 acre farm where they don't do things by halves. Big machines. Big fields. And thousands and thousands of pigs. He also tries his hand at fly fishing on the UK's most northerly chalk stream. Adam looks at the county breeds of Lincolnshire. Tom asks whether the government is doing enough to provide legal campsites for the travelling community. John is joined by Bill Bailey and new judge Naomi Wilkinson to launch this year's Countryfile Photographic Competition.
John Craven is on Dartmoor, where he's exploring the working landscape both past and present. He joins the rangers restoring ancient leats - the old watercourses that powered mills, farms and tin mines. He meets the farmers carving out a living 'on the granite', as those who work Dartmoor call it - Andy Bradford and his daughter Jo are farmers who have diversified out into forestry and Nepalese-style camping pods. John also discovers a fascinating visual record of Dartmoor's farming community going back decades. Photographer Chris Chapman has documented the highs and lows of farming life, from the beauty of newborn spring lambs to the horror of foot-and-mouth disease - he has trained his lens on all aspects of the life here. And for the big finale, John meets respected local folk musician Jim Causley, whose music captures the spirit of the working landscape - especially his ode to the old mines, The Cry of the Tin. In this programme, we also show again the best items in which Countryfile has featured our working landscape, including Anita Rani blowing up tonnes of rock in a china-clay quarry in Cornwall, Matt getting up close to one of our rarest breeds of working horse - the Suffolk punch - and Helen bouncing around in an underground amusement park in Snowdonia's slate-mining region.
Countryfile is in Cornwall, where Matt Baker tests his sea legs on the hunt for basking sharks. He finds out about the many and varied species of shark that live in these waters and scours the shore line for shark egg cases. Ellie Harrison is on the stunning Cornish headland finding out about Operation Neptune, a project set up fifty years ago by the National Trust to map the entire coastline of the UK. Today a very different map is being produced charting the sounds of the shore. Ellie also gets up to her knees in stinging nettles to dispel their bad name. John Craven explores the partnerships between local Cornish food producers and the Eden Project. Tom Heap is also in Cornwall, finding out about how quarrying the rich underground resources there could threaten precious marine life. And Adam Henson meets some African agricultural experts learning new skills in the UK.
Countryfile is in Derbyshire. Matt Baker follows a new pilgrimage trail set up to mark the 350th anniversary of the plague. He visits Eyam, known as the plague village, and, with Anita Rani's help, gets to grips with the age-old tradition of well dressing in Bakewell. Anita also meets the woman who breeds giant otters and a man who grows furniture. Joe Crowley is at Haddon Hall capturing fish - with a camera. Adam Henson is in Snowdonia herding sheep, and Tom Heap discovers why millions of tonnes of soil are being eroded from farmland every year.
Countryfile comes from Northumberland. Matt Baker meets the artist who has learnt to dive so he can capture on canvas what lies beneath the North Sea. Matt dons his wetsuit to join him on a dive at the Farne Islands. Anita Rani finds out about the fisherwomen who worked these shores and meets the rangers who provide around-the-clock protection for a colony of little terns. Wildlife expert Patrick Aryee discovers how seals and other wildlife can thrive here in the harshest of conditions. Adam Henson meets Snowdonia's newest shepherd, and Tom Heap has the results of the national survey on rural crime.
The Countryfile team visit the Kent County Show for their summer special. Including tales of unlikely exhibitors - none other than Sir Winston Churchill and the youngsters following in his footsteps to champion cherries fit for the queen. Friend of the show John Hammond explains just why Kent is so fruitful with a weird and wonderful experiment demonstrating why the county's climate is so good for growing. There are jaw-dropping displays from the Metropolitan Mounted Police, as well as a Spitfire fly-by marking the 75th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. Football Focus and 5 Live favourite Dan Walker joins us to commentate as our presenters pit their wits against each other in a race with a difference!
In this programme, we look at all things sheep. Joe Crowley heads to the Yorkshire Dales to visit a traditional upland farm where the shearing is in full swing. He lends a hand and hears how on this farm they've found a niche market for their wool. Joe meets the hand-weaver who's provided this niche market, and has a go at this long-forgotten art. He then heads to a dairy in Thirsk, where they are making their own version of feta cheese using ewe's milk. Finally, Joe hits the streets to find out what people reckon to the taste of sheep milk, and asks why we don't drink more of it. Anita heads to Hereford, where she meets the first-time farmers putting mutton back on the map. She discovers that, with the right approach and right preparation, mutton can be as high-end as good steak. She then heads for west Wales to meet the artisan felt worker making incredibly lifelike birds from wool that she either buys or forages for in the fields. Adam is in Cumbria to see the breaking up of the most famous herd of fell ponies in the country. Tom finds out why lamb prices are plummeting and what can be done to halt the slide.
John Craven travels to Llandudno to look at what it takes to make a great summer holiday - a seaside destination is top of his list. He meets the farmer-turned-entrepreneur who's breathing new life into Llandudno's Victorian pier. He strolls along the prom, has an ice cream and finds out why it is that Llandudno has been a top destination since Victorian times. And, like generations before him, he takes the tram to the Great Orme - a tourist getaway that's home to some of the country's rarest flora and fauna. He joins the conservationists on the hunt for one of our rarest butterflies - the silver-studded blue - and meets the farmer whose herd has been specially chosen to help conserve the natural beauty of the Orme, before heading back down to town for the ultimate seaside treat, courtesy of the oldest Punch and Judy show in the UK. Plus, a look back at other summer holiday ideas Countryfile has featured. Including Ellie Harrison paddleboarding off the South Wales coast, Matt Baker taking a sightseeing ride on a motor trike, and Anita Rani walking part of the Pennine Way in its 50th anniversary year.
The Country Land and Business Association's annual game fair is one of the highlights of the rural calendar. This year it comes from the magnificent setting of Harewood House near Leeds. Joe Crowley and Anita Rani are there, soaking up the atmosphere and taking a peek behind the scenes to give Countryfile viewers a flavour of what's on. Joe tries his hand at the latest craze to hit the angling world - kayak fishing - before hooking up with the junior gun dog handlers going all out to be top dog at the fair's gun dog competition. Even Joe's own dog Oscar gets in on the action, but is he any match for the stars of the show? Anita strides out with the lady clay pigeon shooters taking the boys on at their own game. And she meets the conservationists who are bringing the endangered grey partridge back from the brink. Adam's also in Yorkshire with another of his looks at our county breeds, and Tom is in Scotland investigating controversial plans to reform land ownership north of the border.
In this harvest-themed programme, Matt visits a farm in Buckinghamshire where they do things the old-fashioned way. That means scythes, steam-driven reaper binders, and vintage tractors. Even the wheat is old-fashioned. On this farm they grow prehistoric varieties like those found in Tutankhamun's tomb. And, as Matt discovers, this ancient wheat makes delicious pasta! Ellie is at a secret site in Dorset where they are just about to harvest an incredible crop. Very valuable. Very potent. Opium poppies. Grown under licence from the government for medical use. She also visits the farm where they grow more everyday herbs and plants to be used as ointments and tinctures. Ellie then meets the people behind a project to captive breed and release into the wild one of our most-beloved creatures - the harvest mouse. And Adam's on his farm, juggling looking after his livestock with getting on with his own harvest. John Craven is joined by Bill Bailey and Naomi Wilkinson to pick the 12 winning entries in the Countryfile Photographic Competition. Then you'll get the chance to vote for the overall winner - which will the grace the cover of the Countryfile Calendar for 2016.
Countryfile is in Cumbria, where John Craven takes to the skies with the Environment Agency to discover a new line of defence in the battle against flooding - river restoration. Returning the rivers to their original meandering routes also has a positive impact on wildlife, as John finds out. Anita Rani meets the rural farming community that lost its livelihood to foot and mouth. The community is now pulling together and, with the support of rural reverend Sarah Dunn, are rebuilding their lives and businesses. Anita also meets the horse whisperer whose life was turned around by her love of horses. Will Anita have what it takes to tame a feral pony? It is almost two years since a group of controversial pesticides were banned from fields across Europe over fears they were harming bees. Charlotte Smith discovers that the search is still on to find conclusive evidence to back up that fear, and that there is no end in sight to the ban. In three weeks' time, Countryfile hosts the One Man and His Dog 2015 sheepdog trial championship. Between now and then we meet the teams from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales, all hoping to take home the trophy. Adam Henson heads to Ireland to meet the team hoping to retain the title for the Irish, and Charlotte Smith goes north to meet the Scottish contenders.
Countryfile is in West Sussex. John Craven meets the current members of the first Women's Institute in England to discover the impact the WI has had on rural life over the past 100 years. He dons his apron to find out about the cookery and campaigns of the institute. He also visits the Arts and Crafts property Standen House, where he explores the restoration of the gardens. Beneath the British countryside lies an untapped energy resource - shale gas. The government seems keen to make the most of it - but at what cost? Tom Heap looks at fears over fracking. With two weeks to go until Countryfile's legendary One Man and His Dog 2015 sheepdog trial, we meet the remaining two teams. Adam Henson heads to Wales, and Charlotte Smith meets the English team. In two weeks' time, England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland will go head to head for the trophy. Matt Baker launches the countdown to the first ever Countryfile Ramble for Children in Need. For one weekend, Countryfile will encourage the whole country to ramble and raise money for some of Britain's most vulnerable young people. Matt and his fellow presenters will lead the way on rambles of their own, which the public will have the chance to join.
Adam Henson is in the Lake District discovering the joys of the great outdoors. The countryside is open and free to everyone, and getting out and about is not only fun and inspiring - it is also good for body and mind. Adam explores all aspects of spending time outdoors, finding out about one of the first British adventurers, Millican Dalton, and getting mountaineering tips from an award-winning mountain leader. He also discovers the challenges faced by a farmer trying to keep her land open so everyone can benefit from the right to roam. This year marks the 80th anniversary of the Ramblers. Adam meets a family out on a holiday hike logging what they spot along the way - the good, the bad and the ugly! We also look back through the Countryfile archive to revisit the times we've featured the benefits and delights of the great outdoors, including Ellie Harrison taking part in an adventure race in the New Forest, Matt Baker finding out about a special bit of kit which enables wheelchair users to abseil, and John Craven looking back at a groundbreaking TV documentary. Matt Baker also reveals more about a new way in which Countryfile is harnessing the power of the great outdoors to benefit some of Britain's most disadvantaged youngsters. The first ever Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need takes place on Saturday 10 and Sunday 11 October. Matt and his fellow presenters will be leading the way on a weekend of sponsored rambles which aim to get the whole of Britain out rambling to raise money and help change lives.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison present Countryfile One Man and His Dog 2015. The best shepherding talent from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales go head to head, all hoping to take home the coveted trophy. Each nation's team is made up of the most promising young handler and the winners of last year's national trials. Their combined scores will determine which nation wins. This year's competition take place in the shadow of Chirk Castle in North Wales. As the competition unfolds, Ellie also explores the castle's history, the conservation work helping ensure a future for the estate and how the rare welsh sheepdog is making a comeback to give the more common border collie a run for its money.
Anita Rani and Helen Skelton are on the coast of Morecambe Bay in the far north-western corner of Lancashire. Anita is taking a cycle ride along the coast near Silverdale - a stretch of the bay that is fabled for its sunsets. She also takes a detour to Leighton Moss RSPB Reserve, where the black-tailed godwits are putting on a spectacular autumn show. The otters frolic in the shallows. And if she's lucky, she'll catch a glimpse of an osprey fishing in the reedy pools. Helen is down on the sands with the hardy souls getting their thrills from kayaking some of the fastest tides in the UK. Also in this programme, Matt's in north Wales for the third of our Children in Need ramble films. Adam helps Ellie get to grips with her new herd of dexter cattle. Tom's finding out if it's possible to build a badger-proof farm. And John announces the winner of this year's Countryfile photographic competition.
Matt Baker and Helen Skelton are in Cheshire, where Matt is at the magnificent Lyme Park, hoping for a glimpse of one of nature's most exciting spectacles - the annual red deer rut. He joins photographer Gary Lomas at dawn, and together they try to capture this magnificent event. Matt also meets a former TV actor who gave up the limelight for a life in the country as a trainee National Trust ranger. Helen is out at dusk with the conservationists on a bat hunt at Tatton Park - and if she's lucky, she might just see one of the rarest bats ever sighted in the UK. Helen also looks at the rising popularity of gin and meets the family firm making bespoke gin from plants they forage in the woods. James Wong is at Norton Priory - home to the National Quince Collection. He learns of the important work being done to preserve one of our oldest fruits and tries his hand at making quince jelly. Also in this programme, Adam heads to Devon to look at Dartmoor sheep and ponies, and Tom Heap looks at the reasons why mental health issues such as depression are a particular problem in the farming community.
This edition of the countryside magazine revels in the colours of autumn. Ellie Harrison visits Perthshire, known as big tree country, where the woodlands are a kaleidoscope of colour by both day and night. Matt Baker is in the orchards of Kent to look at the changing face of the UK apple industry. Autumn is the start of rutting season, and Adam Henson gives a red stag the surprise of his life. Meanwhile, John Craven cooks up a colourful autumnal pudding with 2014 Great British Bake Off winner Nancy Birtwhistle.
Matt Baker and Shauna Lowry are exploring North Wales. Matt is in Conwy joining the Jones family at the start of the mussel-fishing season. The Joneses still fish using the traditional wooden rakes that have been in use since the 13th century. Matt finds out that it takes strength and skill to handle these 15-foot implements. Matt then pays a visit to San Sior Primary School in Llandudno. When Countryfile was there last year, the pupils were rearing their own chickens and selling the eggs. Now the children have started keeping bees with a view to selling the honey. Meanwhile, Shauna is on the Llyn Peninsula getting a riding lesson on one of the most famous breeds of horse in the world - the lusitano - a pure white Portuguese horse famous for its tricks and stunts. New presenter Sean Fletcher visits Capel Celyn, where 50 years ago villagers were evicted to make way for the building of a new reservoir. Sean meets the displaced families still living with that legacy. Tom finds out if claims that broccoli can lower cholesterol are true by going on a special broccoli diet. Adam dons some hi-tech goggles to find out how the animals on his farm see colour. And Countryfile pays its own tribute to Adam's dad Joe, farmer and rare breed champion, who died recently.
In this special extended edition of the programme, Countryfile brings you the first ever Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need. For one weekend in the autumn, thousands of people answered the call to ramble through our rural landscape and help raise vital funds for the charity. Our presenters led the way, joined by Countryfile viewers and inspirational youngsters who've been helped by Children in Need. Matt Baker is on a mountain ramble cum scramble more than 3,000 feet up Tryfan in Snowdonia. Matt's joined by Ella, a youngster who's severely visually impaired but is determined to conquer the mountain and inspire others. Ellie Harrison is on a six-mile trek along the Jurassic Coast, joined by 14-year-old Grace. Grace was helped by children's bereavement charity Winston's Wish when she lost her dad to cancer six years ago. Adam Henson takes on an eight-mile hike through the Peak District, accompanied by some teenagers from the Sheffield Young Carers project who look after relatives with long-term mental or physical illnesses. Anita Rani is joined by hundreds of Countryfile viewers to take a four-mile ramble around Windsor Great Park. With them are children from the Lollard Street Adventure Playground in central London - a safe, green space for inner-city children to play. John Craven rambles around Loch Leven in Kinross, Scotland, joined by 13-year-old Cameron, who has brittle bone disease. Tom Heap drops in on some of the sponsored rambles members of the public have been putting on in Northern Ireland.
The team explore Cambridgeshire. Matt Baker finds out how Cambridge University students past and present are reaching out from the city and having an impact on the countryside - in their study and play! Joe Crowley looks at how the restoration of the Great Fen has meant the race is on to dig out a Spitfire which crashed 75 years ago. Ellie Harrison is in the Peak District discovering the part it played in WWII. And Adam Henson meets JB from JLS, pop-star-turned-turkey-farmer.
Ellie Harrison is in the pretty market town of Frome in Somerset. She discovers the town's love for local, fresh produce, making tasty pakoras from greens picked by the roadside. She also finds out about a field-to-fork revolution which is taking this place by storm. It's called the Food Assembly and could change the way we shop for our produce. Ellie meets the two mums who set up this scheme in Frome and a dairy farmer who has bought into the Assembly's concept.
Countryfile is in Dorset. Matt Baker explores a woodland architecture school, where the surrounding trees become the building materials. Ellie Harrison meets a group of retired gentlemen who are keeping hold of their rural ties through a very special countrymen's club. She is also on the hunt for kingfishers at the RSPB's most urban reserve in Weymouth. Jules Hudson meets the butcher whose family business has been running since Henry VIII was on the throne, and Adam Henson takes stock on the farm as winter draws closer. Tom Heap asks whether the business benefits of dredging British ports to allow bigger ships to use them outweigh concerns over the environmental impact.
Countryfile is in Shropshire, where John Craven visits a seed bank working with the Woodland Trust to help save our endangered native trees. He also explores the farm of the brother and sister building on their father's legacy as a pioneering organic farmer. Ellie Harrison meets urban artist and ornithologist Matt Sewell to discover how to draw birds with chirpy characters. She is also on the hunt for the elusive Shropshire pine marten, thought to be extinct in England. And Adam Henson finds out how painting cattle to make them more visible at night could cut down animal deaths on the road. Providing enough food for billions of growing farm animals is no easy task - so could insects be the answer? Tom Heap gets an exclusive look at European trials where they are feeding pigs and chickens with maggots.
Ellie Harrison and Joe Crowley are exploring the NC500 - a new 500 mile scenic loop that takes in some of Scotland's remotest and most beautiful places. Ellie is in the west near Applecross where she comes face to face with the fearsome Belach na Ba - the 'Pass of the Cattle'. At more than 2,000 feet, it's Britain's highest road. Lucky for her, she gets to ride pillion on a motorbike to the top of the pass, where she meets Mark Beaumont, who has cycled the full 500 mile route non-stop in 37 hours. Ellie then snakes up the coast to Ullapool to find out how one small native fish could be the answer to the salmon-farming industry's prayers. Joe Crowley is in the east, riding the NC500 through Sutherland's fertile planes. He stops off to meet the young couple who have jacked it all in to live the crofting life and discovers they are just two of an increasing number of young people going back to the land. He then drives on to the Black Isle - so called because of its rich black fertile soils. Here, he meets the farmers growing premium barley destined for the whiskey industry. Tom's investigating the high number of traffic accidents that happen on our rural roads, whilst Adam discovers that the future of UK energy production may be straw powered!
Ellie Harrison and Matt Baker are in the Peaks in Derbyshire, looking at how the geology there gives rise to two distinct landforms - the Dark Peak and the White Peak. Matt is in the White Peak discovering that the limestone that characterises the region is the remnant of an ancient tropical reef. He ventures underground to see how the action of rainwater down the millennia has carved fabulous forms and caverns, which gave rise to the area's chief industry - lead mining. Ellie is in the Dark Peak, where it's gritstone that marks out the landscape. She takes a walk with an artist who maps the land and creates three-dimensional maps in metal. Ellie then ventures further north to catch a glimpse of England's last remaining population of mountain hares. At this time of year they shed their dull coats for cloaks of white. But, as Ellie discovers, this could make them vulnerable in a changing climate. Sean Fletcher is at Haddon Hall helping with some of the restoration of this famous building. He visits the quarry where they get the gritstone to make the repairs, and he gives Haddon's fabled gargoyles a wash and scrub. Also in this programme, Adam Henson recounts the story of the tractor, from its origins in the age of steam to the hi-tech GPS-guided self-driving tractors of today. And he gets to try his hand at building one. Wild boar had been extinct in Britain for at least 300 years, but now they are back. In the Forest of Dean alone there are now thought to be more than 1000. But, as Tom Heap has been finding out, not everyone is pleased to see their return.
It's Christmas, and Matt and Ellie are in the tiny Cornish fishing village of Coverack, helping the locals get the place set for the festivities. Matt joins the members of the Coverack Christmas Tree Committee as they head off to the woods to choose this year's tree. And, as Matt discovers, big trees don't squeeze easily through narrow streets. Ellie is doing her bit for wildlife by making a Christmas wreath made entirely of bird food. Will the tame robin she meets eat out of her hand? Meanwhile, John is in Truro finding out how the Cornish love of carol-singing gave rise to the most famous carol service in the world. Tom's in Hampshire to meet the community who are getting behind their fishermen is the most festive way possible. Adam's on the Cornish farm where Christmas Day is one of the busiest of the whole year, and Sean Fletcher gets a Christmas cookery masterclass from Rick Stein. And we finish up back in Coverack where Ellie joins Matt and all the villagers in a last minute rush to get everything set for the big Christmas lights switch-on.
From ploughing frosted fields in deep midwinter to welcoming signs of new life in spring, and the golden fields of summer when we bring the harvest home, the farming year is always a busy one. Adam Henson prepares for the new year ahead on his farm. There's also a look back at the farming year, with some favourites from the Countryfile archives. Show less
Ellie Harrison is at the Cotswold Water Park looking back at some of Countryfile's encounters with winter wildlife, and spotting some wildlife of her own. At the Wiltshire end of the water park, Ellie helps with the winter maintenance and finds a wide selection of birds that have come here from colder climes, likes Russia, the Baltic and the Arctic. She then meets up with self-confessed 'fish twitcher' Jack Perks to try a rather unusual experiment. Using special cameras and some plastic ducks, Jack is hoping to capture the underwater habits of the birds at the park. But will he succeed? Ellie then heads to the Oak and Furrows Wildlife Rescue Centre to find out about the animals that they care for during the winter months, including an injured owl and a host of hedgehogs. Meanwhile, Matt Baker's in Northern Ireland to find out about the fluctuating fortunes of the Irish hare - including one place where the population really seems to be taking off. Julia Bradbury is counting seals in Norfolk, and Richard Taylor-Jones uses his expertise as a wildlife cameraman to capture three winter favourites on film. Adam Henson finds out more about one of his firm favourites when he helps to bring Exmoor ponies down off the moors. Ellie also gets a chance to relive one of her most memorable moments, when she meets the author of a very personal book about birds of prey.
Countryfile is in Hertfordshire, where Matt Baker meets a farming family who are turning oilseed rape into liquid gold - oil. Matt visits local celebrity chef Jean-Christophe Novelli, who has recognised the product for its health benefits and great taste. Matt helps him whip up a feast. Ellie Harrison is at Heartwood Forest to see how this new woodland is coming on. She discovers how, after only six years, the woodland is bursting with wildlife. She also visits one of Hertfordshire's seventy golf clubs, discovering how the club is working with the local wildlife trust to encourage heathland to return to the area. Tom Heap finds out about the claimed cost of cuts to rural transport and asks whether we can continue to support bus services in some of the most isolated parts of the countryside. We also find out what the great British countryside means to chef Tony Singh as he returns to Loch Awe in the Western Isles of Scotland. And Adam Henson revisits Joan Bomford, winner of last year's Countryfile Farming Hero award at the Food and Farming Awards, and calls out for this year's nominations.
Countryfile is in Gloucestershire, where Matt gives the trees at Batsford Arboretum a health check, looking to spot any signs of decay with a clever bit of x-ray kit. Meanwhile, Ellie heads to the International Centre for Birds of Prey - the oldest dedicated bird of prey centre in the world. She looks at the work the centre do to treat and rehabilitate injured birds, as well as their renowned captive breeding programme for birds such as the Californian Condor. Ellie also goes to Nature in Art, the world's first gallery dedicated exclusively to art inspired by nature. In My Countryside, comedian Josh Widdicombe takes viewers on a personal journey to the Welsh campsite and beach he loved as a child and explains why it's special to him and his family. As we ask viewers to nominate their farming heroes for the 2016 Food and Farming Awards, Adam Henson revisits one of 2015's finalists, 18-year-old Cameron Hendry, who tragically lost his father on Christmas Day 2014. A new law has been now introduced to tackle the crisis of thousands of neglected and abandoned horses. But will it solve the problem? Tom Heap investigates.
Ellie Harrison and Matt Baker are in north Devon, where Matt finds out what life is like for the residents once the tourists have gone. He discovers the difficulties of living in a place where everything from groceries to grand pianos has to be delivered by hand. He also meets the fisherman keeping old fishing traditions alive. Meanwhile, Ellie meets a photographer who is on a five-year mission to photograph every one of the RNLI lifeboat stations in the country. And she discovers he's using an old-fashioned technique to make this unique record. Ellie then meets the farmer who has a sock named after him and sees for herself how they are made. Dame Sarah Story talks about her favourite bit of the countryside, and Adam finds out how new technology is extending the growing season for food producers. Eating sea bass is rather fashionable these days, but that success has led to dire warnings about the health of wild bass stocks, and now a temporary ban on catching them. Tom Heap investigates whether that policy is, as some people claim, too little too late.
Pull on your thermals, grab your gloves and join us for a walk on the wild side of winter. Matt visits Tom and Kay Hutchinson, currently in the grip of winter on their hill farm in Teesdale. As Matt helps out with the day-to-day tasks, he hears about Tom's passion for farming and his never-ending ambition to breed the perfect sheep. They're a fascinating family whose lives caught the eye of a farmer's daughter turned film director - making the Hutchinsons unlikely film stars in her documentary Addicted to Sheep. Ellie is in Gloucestershire getting a bird's-eye view of one of wildlife's greatest wonders - winter migration. At Slimbridge Wetlands Centre she prepares dinner for more than one thousand over-wintering birds! She also gets cheek to beak with some greylag geese in flight. John's going for a wild woodland walk in Cumbria - with two hybrid wolves. John learns how they're perfectly adapted for winter with webbed feet and hollow fur fibres - like a polar bear. Far from the fairy-tale villains chasing anyone in a red hood, these are highly intelligent and social animals worthy of our respect. Sean tries his hand at winter cod fishing off the wild North Yorkshire coast - though its him that takes a battering more than the cod. And Adam's on North Ronaldsay in Orkney, where their rare seaweed-eating sheep are under threat. Years ago he visited with his dad to help save the North Ronaldsay breed from extinction - but wild winter storms mean they've suffered further setbacks.
Matt visits a country park just near Newcastle, built on the site of what was once one of the biggest coal mines in Britain. Matt joins warden Chris Tucker to see for himself the rich wildlife and wetland birds that have made this once-derelict site their home. He helps volunteers with habitat restoration and speaks to Matt Sharpe, a young farmer raising sheep and cattle on 140 acres at the edge of the reserve. Ellie is down the coast near Sunderland, where restoration of the beautiful Roker Lighthouse is nearly complete. She discovers the secret tunnels used by the lighthouse keepers to get to the light in rough weather and learns that, in its day, it was the most powerful lighthouse in Britain. Ellie then travels further down the coast to Seaham, where she goes in search of seaglass - glass smoothed by the tide and highly valued by collectors all over the world - a legacy of the town's Victorian glass industry. Comedian Ed Byrne talks about his favourite bit of the countryside, while Adam Henson looks at the county breeds of Suffolk, including the magnificent Suffolk punch working horse. Tom Heap looks at whether the dramatic floods seen across the UK in recent months and years are extraordinary events or a taste of things to come. Tom also investigates the flood defences that protect communities and asks whether they can be relied on in the future.
Matt Baker joins students training to be gamekeepers on a clay pigeon shoot - however, he discovers that conservation is also a big part their education. Matt sees how to butcher a haunch of venison and sits down with the students to enjoy some home-made venison stew. Ellie Harrison reveals how cranes have returned to Norfolk after an absence of four hundred years from the UK countryside. It is thanks to the efforts of naturalist John Buxton, who kept their presence secret, that the birds have made a comeback. On Hickling Broad, Ellie sees cranes beginning their courtship rituals, and she also visits Berney Marshes to find out how the RSPB has teamed up with local land owners and farmers to help manage water levels for wetland birds. Meanwhile, Adam Henson is in Scotland at the world-famous Stirling bull sales, and Olympic boxer Nicola Adams talks about her favourite part of the British countryside.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison are in Staffordshire. Matt visits a school where farming and agriculture has been at the heart of the curriculum for more than 100 years. He helps students vaccinate some sheep and get the lambing sheds ready for the pregnant ewes. Ellie meets the couple with their very own nature reserve that's a favourite with local barn owls. And Adam Henson is in Ayr to find out why it pays for farmers not to put all their eggs in one basket. Since 2012 an incurable disease called Ash Dieback has been killing trees right across Britain. But could an ancient soil treatment give us a chance to fight back? Tom Heap investigates.
Matt Baker and Shauna Lowry are near Colchester on the Essex coast. Matt ventures to Mersea Island to meet Richard Haward, a seventh-generation oyster fisherman. They head out to sea, where Matt learns about the decline of the native oyster and finds out how the local fishermen are joining forces with the Wildlife Trust to help save them. He also learns that native oysters are not just a key indicator of habitat quality, but that the habitat they help create is as valuable as coral reef. Shauna Lowry returns to the River Colne, where five years ago Countryfile saw the start of a big project to return water voles to the wild. She sees for herself the success of the project and the vigilance needed to keep predatory mink at bay. Shauna also meets Stig - the first dog in the world specially trained to help sniff out water voles. And then there is Lola, the puppy learning the ropes from Stig. It is also getting busy down on Adam's farm as he welcomes the latest arrival - a full-grown Berkshire pig. While dogs might well be loving companions to millions of people across UK, Tom Heap finds out the devastating impact on livestock they can have when they get loose on a farm. And actor Nina Wadia talks about her favourite bit of the countryside.
Countryfile explores the beauty of Northern Ireland. John Craven finds out about Rathlin Island's growing kelp industry and what it's like living in this rural landscape. Anita Rani meets a farmer who has diversified in an imaginative way - his farm animals are now TV stars. She walks part of The Ulster Way to find out about its passionate creator Wilfred Capper, and the conservation work happening along the route to keep the way open for all. Plus it's a busy time of year on Adam Henson's farm as spring arrives. He's got his hands full checking up on his pregnant goats and cows. Will there be any new arrivals? Handling unpredictable livestock can be dangerous, especially when you have to get as close as farm vets do. Tom Heap investigates whether risk is just an unavoidable part of a vet's job or if more could be done to make farms a safer place to work.
Adam Henson visits Aberystwyth to meet the youngster working towards a career in farming. He will also explore what life is like being a young farmer today.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison are in Sussex exploring Ashdown Forest, the inspiration for the Hundred Acre Wood in AA Milne's Winnie-the-Pooh stories. Matt also visits a farm belonging to the Countryside Restoration Trust, which promotes wildlife-friendly farming. Ellie is on the hunt for woodpeckers - easy to hear, but harder to spot! John Craven is at West Rise, the state junior school with a difference: it has a bronze-age settlement and buffalo roaming its marshlands. Tom Heap is in Scotland where there's fresh concern about the impact that wind farms could have on birdlife. But how much of a threat do turbines really pose? And Adam Henson meets the farmer opening his farm to help refugees.
This episode explores the three counties of Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire. Matt Baker meets some of the local crafts people keeping rural skills alive - heritage builders, a weathervane maker and a stained glass artist. Ellie Harrison is visiting a farm where the owners are potty about poultry, breeding turkeys for their eggs rather than meat. She's also exploring the ultimate wildlife garden. Sean Fletcher is discovering the area's links with the humble daffodil. And Adam Henson is meeting the three-year-old girl already getting to grips with lambing. Hundreds of years after becoming extinct, beavers are back on mainland Britain. Charlotte Smith investigates why some people are trying to save them, while others want them culled.
Matt Baker, Anita Rani and Helen Skelton tell the story of cattle in this themed programme. Matt spends the day with young farmer Jack Stilwel, who got into farming after a crowdfunding camping on social media. Matt finds out what made him take the plunge and what the reality is for beef farmers in the 21st century. Helen visits the last remaining traditional oak bark tannery in Britain, discovering the processes that go into producing high quality leather. Anita meets botanical artist Gael Sellwood who paints on vellum. Anita finds out what makes vellum so good to paint on and picks up a paintbrush herself. Anita also finds out what's behind the current craze for raw milk, meeting a young couple who can't sell it fast enough, and asks if it is just a food fad or if there are health benefits to drinking it. Many of Britain's dairy farmers are struggling to make ends meet at the moment because of falling milk prices. So what can be done to help them back into profit? Charlotte Smith asks if large indoor dairy herds are a more efficient way of making money from milk and whether the British public would support them.
John Craven takes to Northumberland's roads in a vintage Volvo, much like the car used to ferry the artist LS Lowry around on his visits to the area. To mark the 40th anniversary of Lowry's death, John follows in the artist's footsteps, accompanied by Simon Marshall, who used to drive Lowry to scenic spots for him to paint. Together, they meet the last of Berwick's traditional fishermen, a subject often painted by Lowry. Simon reveals, for the first time since the artist's death, two delicate line drawings that the artist gave him the last time they met. Ellie Harrison is on the moors learning that the best ways to conserve vital moorland is to burn it. She joins the team behind an innovative scheme to train people how to cope with wildfires and how controlled burning can benefit wildlife. She also meets the breeder keeping one of the UK's most endangered heavy horses, the Clydesdale, going. Ellie tries her hand at working the horses on long reins and has a go at dressing their tails for showing. Domestic violence can be a problem anywhere, but as Charlotte Smith discovers, when you live in an isolated rural area, finding the support you need to escape an abusive situation can be tough. Plus the second of the Farming Hero nominees, Julia Evans, who opened a care farm in Worcestershire.
Joe Crowley and Anita Rani are in Dumfries and Galloway. Joe meets Helen Ryman, who looks after the famous Mochrun herd of Belted Galloway cattle. He learns that the herd was established by legendary Galloway breeder Flora Stuart back in the 1920s. Helen plans to put this famous herd back on the map, which means showing them at agricultural shows all over the land. Joe sees what it takes to get a full-grown Belted Galloway bull spick and span for the show ring. Anita is on a safari with a difference. She joins photographer Keith Kirk after dark, looking for wildlife. Keith reckons that nighttime is the best time to see foxes, badgers, bats and maybe even pine martens. And thanks to the latest night vision technology they could be in luck. Anita also joins the community volunteers looking to return trees to Dumfries and Galloway's highest places. So she puts on her hiking boots, grabs some willow saplings and sets off for the nearest mountain. Sean Fletcher is at Haddon Hall, one of the finest medieval buildings in the Peak District, where he helps out with some delicate restoration work. Adam Henson is here with the last of 2016's nominees for Countryfile's Farming Hero. As more people leave the farming industry, Tom Heap investigates whether 2016 is the toughest year yet for farmers.
To mark 400 years since Shakespeare's death, Countryfile travel the length and breadth of the country in search of the landscapes that inspired him. Ellie Harrison is in Warwickshire, rediscovering the ancient Forest of Arden and looking at Shakespeare's intimate knowledge of plants. Matt Baker visits the Clydach Gorge, a magical hidden valley on the edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park, where local legend says Shakespeare wrote A Midsummer Night's Dream. Meanwhile, John Craven is joined by Dame Judi Dench, one of Britain's best-loved Shakespearian actors. Together, they follow in the footsteps of Shakespeare and his players to Fordwich in Kent, where they performed for the town in 1605. Joe Crowley visits the Minack Theatre in Cornwall to see how Shakespeare has had a dramatic effect on our landscape. And Adam looks at Shakespeare's relationship with the lucrative wool trade and takes sheep back to the centre of Stratford-upon-Avon for the first time in over a century.
Ellie Harrison visits the South Haven Peninsula in Dorset to tell the story of conservation's unsung hero Captain Cyril Diver. Diver was a champion of conservation and broke new ground in the 1930s, surveying the whole ecosystem of the peninsula. Ellie spends the day with the National Trust's ecologist Michelle Brown to find out what the Trust have been doing 80 years on from Diver's survey and what the future holds for this diverse landscape. Ellie also talks about her passion and love for nature and conservation, and she takes a look back through the Countryfile archives to see how conservation projects are making a difference across the country.
Matt Baker explores the Dartington estate in south Devon to discover the innovative history of the place, meet the farmers who are turning their goat's milk into ice cream and find out about the vertical farming taking root in the grounds. Anita Rani sees how to make the softest of sheepskin and meets the woman who has turned her cottage industry into a thriving business selling natural, handmade soap, and Adam Henson looks at the livestock being bred specifically for conservation. The programme also visits the Food and Farming Awards to reveal this year's Countryfile Farming Hero. Plus there is a look at European turtle doves - they are in decline, but in one country it is legal to hunt them as they migrate back to their European breeding grounds. Tom Heap travels to Malta to investigate a tradition causing controversy across the continent.
This special programme travels the length and breadth of the country to provide a snapshot of spring, from shoreline and shingle to farmland and fell, we discover signs of new life as the season unfurls. Including dolphins in Cardigan Bay, one of the UK's last remaining hay meadows, a Roman fort in Alderney, the largest vegetated shingle spit in Europe and a look at the start of the shellfish season.
From carrots to cauliflower, peas to parsnips we are a nation of vegetable lovers. To mark National Vegetarian Week, Countryfile is taking a look at all things veggie. Matt Baker is at the heart of the Jersey Royal Potato Harvest. Ellie Harrison gets artistic with her vegetables to create a landscape photograph with a difference. Naomi Wilkinson tastes the delights of Indian vegetarian cooking. Champion free runner and vegan Tim Shieff goes head to head with sheep farmer Gareth Wyn Jones to debate the pros and cons of veganism. Adam Henson looks into the future of farming when he visits an urban farm built in tunnels 33 metres below the streets of London. And Tom Heap investigates the threats facing our vegetable producers and finds out why many feel that the days of British veg are numbered.
Countryfile is in Snowdonia. John Craven races a hill runner to the summit of Snowdon and meets the volunteers protecting the area's ospreys. Anita Rani dons her wetsuit to discover that you don't need to be near the sea to go surfing. Joe Crowley meets the artist whose work is taking centre stage in this landscape. And it's all going down on Adam Henson's farm as spring takes hold. The EU referendum is arguably the biggest decision facing our countryside for decades; Tom Heap meets up with the leading figures from both sides of the argument and asks the prime minister and Boris Johnson why rural Britain should vote with them.
Matt Baker and Anita Rani are at the stunning Montrose Basin in Angus in Scotland. The basin is a natural, almost circular, inland sea that is an internationally important site for wild fowl. Anita helps warden Anna Cheshire conduct one of the regular bird counts and gets stuck in helping make special nesting tubes for the basin's ducks. She also discovers how treacherous the mud flats can be as she ventures out with one of only three specialist mud rescue teams in the whole of Scotland. Matt, meanwhile, finds out that the soft sands made the basin the perfect place for the UK's first airbase. Matt sees remnants of the runway next to the dunes and meets the enthusiasts building a replica of a one of the First World War's most famous planes, the Sopwith camel. He also meets a farmer-turned-rugby coach to play rugby with a difference: no running! Walking rugby is one of the fastest growing sports in the country, great for people of all ages and especially for those recovering from injuries. Just a few miles from the basin, Naomi Wilkinson is taking a trip up the stunning Glenesk, looking for wildlife with gamekeeper Andy Malcolm. And as spring returns to the slopes of this beautiful glen, there's all manner of wildlife awakening after the winter slumber. If she's in luck that could mean golden eagles! Also in this programme, Adam calls in a dog psychologist to find out which of his working dogs, Boo or Peg, is the smartest. Tom Heap investigates what the EU referendum could mean for our countryside. This week he grills the prime minister and Boris Johnson on how they think it will affect the environment and our fisheries.
To celebrate British Flowers Week, Charlotte Smith and Anita Rani are looking at the resurgence of British flowers. Charlotte meets Rosebie Morton, a Hampshire farmer who has diversified into British blooms in a big way. On her farm there are as many acres given over to flowers as there is food. For Rosebie it is all about the scent. Charlotte is intoxicated by their fragrance and finds out from scientist Dr Lorenzo Stafford what it is about the smell of flowers we find so bewitching. Anita is up bright and early at Covent Garden Flower Market, where she meets the traders doing a roaring trade in homegrown roses, including Rosebie's. She also meets up with two floral artists who have turned their hands to creating fantastic floral headdresses. Matt Baker takes to the old pack horse trails through the New Forest with Gale Gould and her trusty pack horse Josh. Josh is all done up in period livery, and Matt hears how these ponies were used by smugglers to ply their illicit trade. He also hears that the forest was used for bombing practice by the RAF. Where the bombs fell, the craters filled with water to become ponds rich in wildlife. Matt also visits a farm where water buffalo are the main livestock. He helps farmer Dagan James round them up and learns that their meat is reckoned to be better for us. To put this to the test, he tries buffalo carpaccio at a riverside restaurant. Adam Henson gets stuck in with the sheep shearing and hears from different farmers about the prices they are getting for their wool. Tom Heap investigates why areas set up by the government to protect our seas are being branded by some scientists as worse than useless.
Countryfile is in the East Midlands to find out about the region's rural past and the revival of the River Trent. Matt Baker takes to the Trent in a kayak and meets Alan Henshaw from the environment agency who tells him about the effort to clean up the river. Matt sees for himself the improvements in water quality and habitat, before taking a trip to Calverton Fish Farm in Nottinghamshire. Here, Alan and his team teach stocked fish how to be 'wild' in special tanks that force the fish to swim against an artificial current for food. Helen Skelton is in Rutland to meet master miller Nigel Moon. Nigel takes her on as apprentice for the day in his traditional windmill, one of the last in the region. Helen then heads over the border to Leicestershire where farmer Alan Hewson is reviving a much loved, but long gone, local cheese, Colwick - a favourite of agricultural workers in the past. Alan puts its prize-winning taste down to the rare breed red poll cattle, a once common breed in the region. Adam Henson is at the biggest agricultural show in the South West, The Royal Bath and West. And John Craven launches 2016's photographic competition, with its theme From Dawn till Dusk. Joining John on the judging team are Dragons' Den's Deborah Meaden, comedian Rhona Cameron and wildlife cameraman Simon King. Matt Baker also reveals the total raised by sales of 2015's calendar. Tom Heap discovers how a global health crisis is impacting the battle against Bovine TB.
It is 40 years since the long hot summer of 1976 and to mark the anniversary, we take a look back with TV weatherman John Hammond.
This episode comes from Pembrokeshire. John Craven takes to the water to find out about the area's boating heritage, painting boats and learning sea shanties along the way. Helen Skelton is foraging on Freshwater West beach and cooking up a seaweed feast. She also meets the team building the ultimate ecohouse using locally sourced materials. Sanjida O'Connell is on Skomer helping to count the Manx shearwaters who call this island home. And Adam Henson is in Cornwall making a special delivery of rare-breed cattle to the Heligan estate, while Tom Heap is looking at what is being done to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on farms after claims that agriculture produces larger quantities of gases than traffic.
It's tennis season and Countryfile is visiting Kent, where Matt Baker will be finding out about Wimbledon strawberries and getting to grips with the harvest. Naomi Wilkinson is meeting the couple who turned their love of wildlife into an animal rescue centre, looking after everything from hedgehogs to flocks of buzzards. In the shadow of the white cliffs of Dover she'll also be finding out about the long history of channel swimming and donning her wetsuit to try out the ultimate wild swim. John Craven meets a farmer who is growing Chinese vegetables and produce, from pak choi to chrysanthemums, and Adam Henson is at the Royal Three Counties show, meeting youngsters with the farming bug. Plus Tom Heap investigates calls to ban live plant imports and asks what dangers could be hiding in the soil that comes into the country with them.
Countryfile is on the tiny Scottish island of Kerrera. Sitting just half a kilometre from the mainland but a world away from the hustle and bustle, Kerrera is the archetypal Scottish Island. There are rugged cliffs, wide-open beaches and remote farmsteads. Anita spends a day getting to know the locals and getting under the skin of island life. She joins postmaster Gill Vollum as she goes about her daily round - not easy when there's only one half-finished road on the island. She helps shepherd Sheila McGregor round up her sheep and hears that all the farms on Kerrera are run by women. And she stops for a welcome cup of tea at the tea room that serves as the community hub. Anita meets owners Aideen Gallagher and Martin Shields who quit busy jobs on the mainland and finds out what living the island dream is like for them.
2016 is the 60th anniversary of the Duke of Edinburgh Awards scheme, and to mark the occasion Countryfile heads to the wilds of the west Highlands of Scotland. Matt joins the intrepid team mid-way through their five-day Diamond Challenge. They have already scaled Ben Nevis, and when Matt meets them they are canoeing the Great Glen all the way to Inverness. Matt also meets the scientist who has made it her mission to fight the menace of Scotland's infamous midges. Sean meets mountaineer Hamish Macinnes, whose inventions, including his famous stretcher, have saved hundreds of lives. Naomi explores Glencoe's 'Atlantic woodland' - a rich and rare habitat, where she gets a close look at the amazingly intricate lichens and mosses that carpet the woodland. Helen is in the Peak District with a party of schoolchildren undertaking their bronze Duke of Edinburgh, and she walks a stretch of Kinder Scout with HRH Prince Edward, himself a Gold Award holder and trustee of the scheme. And as the red grouse shooting season gets underway, Charlotte Smith meets the supporters and critics of one of Britain's most controversial country pursuits.
The first ever Countryfile Live took place in the magnificent grounds of Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire - four days in the sunshine celebrating the best of the British Countryside. Matt kicks the programme off with a whistlestop tour of the show, mixing and mingling with exhibitors and visitors, and he calls in at the Craven Arms, Countryfile Live's very own pub. Ellie goes behind the scenes to see what goes into setting up a show on this scale, and she also chats with the Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim's owner, to find out what it is like having such a big show in your garden. Anita steps away from the showground to get up close to some truly magnificent oak trees, many of them more than a thousand years old. John takes to the water to see how ducks are helping restore Blenheim's beautiful ornamental lakes, while Tom and Adam go head to head at the timbersports arena in a test of strength and speed. And Charlotte Smith looks at what might happen to British foods protected under EU law and catches up with some producers who are worried they will lose a vital protection and others who see a real opportunity.
Countryfile has been given privileged access to an excavation at the Stonehenge World Heritage site. Joe Crowley meets the team who have discovered strange oblong items buried in the soil at Durrington Walls, not far from the famous stones of Stonehenge. The team used the latest ground-penetrating radar techniques to reveal the hitherto unknown features. But what are they? Joe finds out. He also meets archaeologist Julian Richards, a world authority on the stones and an obsessive collector of Stonehenge memorabilia. Joe then meets Hugh Morrison, a tenant farmer at Stonehenge, to see just what sort of problem he faces farming on a World Heritage Site. Anita finds out how Neolithic farmers lived by visiting reconstructions of the types of houses they lived in, and she learns to bake bread the Neolithic way - on an open fire in the centre of a Neolithic dwelling. She also meets the modern-day farmer who has built a Stone Age long barrow on his land where people can inter the ashes of their loved ones, just as Neolithic man would have. Also in this programme, John is joined by fellow judges Deborah Meaden and Simon King to select the final 12 pictures in the Countryfile Photographic Competition, and in a nod to the competition's theme, we spend a day with Adam seeing what happens on his farm 'From Dawn till Dusk'.
It is harvest time, and the countryside is buzzing with activity. The Countryfile team are getting stuck in as crops are brought in across the country. Matt Baker visits the Gaddesden Estate to discover how the harvest here has changed over the years. Anita Rani picks peppermint and concocts cocktails. John Craven is meeting a group of 'nutters' to gather in the cobnut harvest ready for a nutty feast. Joe Crowley investigates the farm brands on sale in supermarkets and asks when is a farm not a farm. Countryfile also plays host to the fortieth anniversary of One Man and His Dog, as England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland send their best shepherds and their dogs to compete for the trophy, and Adam has been meeting the teams to see how they are preparing. This week he is travelling to Wales and Ireland to meet the competitors and their dogs hoping to be crowned champions.
Anita Rani explores Anglesey. She navigates the notorious Menai Strait and meets the fisherman who bought an island. She also gets up close with a wild, bloodsucking creature. Adam Henson has been meeting the teams preparing for the 40th-anniversary edition of One Man and His Dog. The best shepherds and their canine companions from England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland will be competing, all hoping to be crowned champions. This week he catches up with the English and Scottish contenders. Matt Baker launches this year's Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need. Taking place over one weekend in October, the event aims to cover the countryside in Countryfile viewers, all rambling across rural Britain to raise vital funds for the charity. Matt and his fellow presenters John Craven, Anita Rani, Ellie Harrison and Adam Henson will be leading the way on rambles of their own, where they will be joined by youngsters who have benefited from Children in Need funding.
Countryfile marks the 100th anniversary of Roald Dahl's birth by discovering his passion for the great outdoors and how it inspired his writing. John Craven explores Great Missenden, the village where Dahl lived for much of his life. He meets children's author Piers Torday, who is inspired by both the countryside and by Dahl himself. There is also a look back through the Countryfile archive to the times we have met others inspired by our beautiful countryside, from underwater painters to graffiti artists. Matt Baker has more news on how viewers can take part in this year's Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need by putting on their own sponsored rambles. This year's ramble weekend is Saturday 8and Sunday 9 October. Last year, thousands of Countryfile viewers took part, helping us raise over £850,000 and transforming the lives of some of Britain's most disadvantaged youngsters. With a fortnight to go until Countryfile plays host to the 40th-anniversary edition of the legendary One Man and His Dog sheepdog trialling competition, Adam Henson meets the English and Scottish teams hoping to bring home this year's trophy.
Matt Baker and Anita Rani preside over proceedings as the best shepherds and their dogs from England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland battle it out for the trophy. While Matt takes to the commentary box, Anita explores the history of the estate and catches up with the friends and family of the competitors.
Anita Rani travels to Surrey to explore the revival of interest in growing hops there. She meets the brewers bringing back the county's fabled white bine hop, helps to get the hop harvest in and gets to sample an unusual brew made with fresh undried hops. She also joins Surrey Wildlife Trust, who are carrying out a survey of small mammals to see how effective wildlife corridors are. Adam Henson is hoping for the right conditions to get the last of his wheat harvest in, and John announces which photograph the public voted winner in the Countryfile Photographic Competition. Tom Heap is on the trail of one of the UK's most loved animals, the red squirrel, and finds out what can be done to halt its decline.
The team look at how rivers and waterways have shaped our landscape. Matt Baker is on the Thames Estuary to meet a writer who draws inspiration from the estuary and its people. He also meets the Port Authority staff who oversee some 30,000 annual ship movements, jumps on the foot ferry that once would have brought livestock into the city and meets an artist making beautiful things from the flotsam brought in on the tide. Sean Fletcher is just a few miles from Matt, finding out what it takes to turn a landfill site into a thriving nature reserve. And Naomi Wilkinson is in Devon at the beautiful Lydford Gorge, meeting a photographer captivated by its waterfall and whose pictures have become an internet sensation. Naomi then takes to the oldest shipping canal in Britain on a paddleboard! Meanwhile, Adam visits Widecombe Fair in Devon - one of the country's last traditional country fairs. And with the badger cull once again well underway, Tom Heap explores the science around bovine TB.
Matt and Anita explore the Isle of Wight. Matt dons a harness and abseils down the walls of Carisbrooke Castle to help root out the overgrown ivy. He then heads to the castle's well, the deepest on the island, to meet Jack and Jill - the Carisbrooke donkeys. Donkeys have been used to draw water from the well for centuries, but when Jack refuses to budge, Matt has no option but to do it himself. Anita has her hands full on Ventnor Downs. It's the day of the annual feral goat round-up, and Anita is joining the human chain of volunteers trying to catch the animals. She also visits the vineyard where the owner is growing red grapes - only possible because of the island's mild climate. That mild climate has also made the Isle of Wight a great place for exotic plants. Naomi is at Ventor Botanic Gardens, where the backdrop is more like southern Europe than southern England. Adam meets the commercial deer owner looking to genetics to breed the best deer he can and, as supermarkets and catering companies pledge to put an end to eggs from caged chickens, Tom Heap asks if this victory for animal welfare is all it's cracked up to be.
To celebrate nature's final flourish before the slow descent into winter, the team pulls on its wellies, kicks through the crisp leaves and explores the fruits of our forests. Anita heads to Somerset for a rare autumnal sight - walnut woodland with laden branches. We meet walnut farmer Roger Saul as he reaps one of Somerset's newest crops, borrowing technology from one of its oldest. Matt is in the wilds of East Sussex to meet Nick Weston, a writer, woodsman and chef who spent six months living off-grid in a tree house built from wood and recycled materials. Tim Shepherd is a botanist who specialises in timelapse filming. We gather young fungi on deadwood from Tim's local woodland to take back to his studio to film them growing. We join Adam as he delivers some of his pigs to a Gloucestershire farmer using this traditional way of animal and woodland management. John investigates the hibernation of dormice on the Isle of Wight.
Matt and Anita are in Herefordshire. Matt looks at the county's historic perry-making industry and helps out with the pear harvest. He starts out at Weston's, the cider makers, who are the world's biggest producers of perry. Then he travels to the 12th-century Hellen's Manor, where some of the rarest and oldest pear trees in the world are to be found. He gathers a sackful and heads to meet self-styled 'ciderologist' Gabe Wood, a man who likes cider but loves perry even more. Together they make perry the old-fashioned way - on a stone grinding wheel with lots of elbow grease. Anita is at a farm where time has stood still. She recounts the story of Birches Farm and farmer Alfred Price through the diaries he kept. She also visits the last traditional clog maker in Herefordshire to see clogs being made the time-honoured way. Joe Crowley is with PhD student Charlotte Selvey, who is using worms made of modelling clay to find out what birds are present in the county's ancient orchards. The birds leave beak impressions in the fake worms, which identifies them. Tom's looking at the appalling conditions endured by some workers on the high seas, conditions which many have described as slavery. And Adam is on the farm where they're harvesting bracken for fuel.
In this extended edition of Countryfile the team head out into some of the nation's most beautiful landscapes for the Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need. The team are joined by viewers of the show, as well as some inspirational youngsters supported by BBC Children in Need, and they celebrate the thousands of sponsored rambles viewers organised themselves in aid of the cause. Visiting the Lake District, Matt Baker takes on the most challenging of routes in the Eskdale Valley. In Matt's group is Levana, a 15-year-old double amputee who has been supported by the BBC Children in Need-funded project Meningitis Now. Heading to Northern Ireland's coastline, John Craven takes on Giant's Causeway with a group of Countryfile viewers and 16-year-old Zahra from Belfast. Zahra has arthritis and has been supported by the BBC Children in Need-funded project Arthritis Care NI. Anita Rani visits the Brecon Beacons and heads up Sugar Loaf Mountain, joined by a group of Countryfile viewers as well as Olivia, a 15-year-old who has Down's Syndrome and who has been supported by the BBC Children in Need-funded Cathays & Central Youth & Community Project in Cardiff. In Scotland, Ellie Harrison leads the largest group of ramblers around Edinburgh's Holyrood Park. Ellie is also joined by a group of young people from the Jeely Piece Club in Glasgow, a local play project which is funded by BBC Children in Need. Completing the rambles, Adam Henson heads to Alice Holts Forest in Surrey, joined by Countryfile viewers and the Shilston family from Surrey, who have been supported by the BBC Children in Need-funded project the Princess Alice Hospice. The programme also looks at the thousands of rambles which members of the public took on themselves in aid of the cause.
Helen Skelton is on a special cycle ride across northern France to commemorate 100 years since the Battle of the Somme. She finds out about the brave cycling battalions that travelled from many parts of rural Britain, to fight there. Helen also meets fellow riders to hear their personal reasons for taking on the cycling challenge. Plus a look back through the Countryfile archives to the times Britain's countryside connections to war and the role of nature in remembrance and rehabilitation were explored. John Craven reveals the role of the humble tractor in the development of the tank, Ellie Harrison experiences the tranquillity of the National Memorial Arboretum and Jules Hudson witnesses the impact of the outdoors on one soldier's recovery from war.
Countryfile visits West Yorkshire, where Matt Baker meets the youngsters who have become RSPB rangers. Anita Rani explores Bronte country and meets an author who literally immerses himself in the landscape. Anita also finds out about an award-winning halloumi cheese producer from Syria. Naomi Wilkinson discovers the challenges facing the fire brigade at Ogden Water, and Adam raises a glass to English wine. Tom Heap investigates claims that sheep farming could become impossible in some parts of Britain within just a few years.
The Countryfile team explores the Brecon Beacons. Matt Baker discovers geocaching, a treasure hunt with a modern twist, and meets an artist whose canvas is the night sky. Helen Skelton is sheep trekking across the landscape and taking part in a rather muddy fish rescue. Sean Fletcher jumps on his bike to meet the farmers who have taken diversification to the extreme, and Adam Henson finds out about a cancer cure for man's best friend. Tom Heap asks how safe horses and riders really are on country roads and if more should be done to protect them.
John, Anita and Ellie are in Lincolnshire, where it's all go in the vast fields of winter veg. John visits a farm where they are harvesting tonnes of caulis and sprouts in readiness for Christmas, and he visits the trial plots where new types of vegetable are being developed, including the kalette, a cross between kale and a brussels sprout. Anita sees how robot technology designed to pull up weeds could cut down on herbicides and even cut down on human labour. Ellie visits the ancient woodland at the edge of an old RAF base where bats have set up home in old wartime buildings, and she discovers that it's not just bats hibernating there - butterflies do it too. Adam talks about his lifelong passion for ducks - one of his favourite farmyard animals, and Tom Heap finds out why many of our rivers and waterways are suffering and what farmers can do to help bring them back to life.
Helen, Joe and Sean explore the varied landscapes of Aberdeenshire. From the solitude of the rugged north coast to the deep dark forests where wildcats dwell, it's a surprising county. Helen discovers the only village on mainland Britain where cars can't go. She also visits an open-air aquarium where they hand feed the fish, and she makes lino prints with an artist who takes inspiration from this remote coastline. Joe looks at a project mapping the diminishing wildcat population and sees the extraordinary lengths volunteers go to, to help preserve them. Sean visits a turkey farm where the guard dogs are alpacas, and Adam catches up with One Man and His Dog winner Dick Roper to pick up some expert tips on sheepdog handling. Council farms have long been seen as a way for people to get their foot on the farming ladder, but across much of the country they are now being sold off to raise money for cash-strapped councils. Tom Heap investigates why so many of these farms are disappearing from the landscape and how some councils have taken a very different stance.
Countryfile celebrates Christmas in style at Bamburgh Castle on the wild and beautiful Northumbrian coast. Anita goes on a festive forage with the jewellery maker who turns natural materials into stunning decorations. Anita also sees what it takes to make an award-winning Christmas pudding. John is on Lindisfarne discovering what the first Christmases in these islands would have been like, before meeting the makers of mead. Ellie gives some hints and tips on how to look after wildlife when the temperature drops. Adam is with the hill shepherd watching her flocks, and Tom wonders if a lack of bell ringers could cause some churches to fall silent this Christmas.
Ellie Harrison visits Thirsk in Yorkshire to celebrate the centenary of vet Alf White, known to the world as James Herriot. Ellie meets his daughter and his son, as well as the vets running his practice today. She learns of the landscapes and people that inspired James Herriot's books and finds out what life was really like for a rural vet. She also meets up with actor Christopher Timothy, who portrayed James Herriot in the television series All Creatures Great and Small. Plus a look back through the Countryfile archive to rediscover the people who dedicate their time and efforts to helping animals, including the time when John met the team giving hedgehogs a helping hand through Christmas and the winter months, the dramatic moment when Joe assisted a stag caught up in fencing, and when Ellie met the woman who paints horses to help others understand them.
Anita Rani travels to one of her favourite places in the British countryside, Malham Cove in the Yorkshire Dales. It's a precious landscape that she's visited since growing up as a child in nearby Bradford. She learns more about this unique landscape and how it was formed thousands of years ago. She meets an artist, Katharine Holmes, whose passion, like her mother's and grandmother's before, is painting nearby Gordale Scar. She meets Anita in the pouring rain to show her her latest work. In the village of Malham, Anita catches up with the latest incumbent of the local smithy. Annabelle Bradley used to be a tax accountant, but when the smithy came up for sale she changed career and her life took a completely different direction. Anita has been to Malham Cove many times, but she's never climbed the walls of this famous limestone amphitheatre - until now. After a quick lesson she tackles one of the biggest challenges she's ever faced on the programme. Anita also looks back through the Countryfile archives as we revisit some famous faces who shared with us places in the British countryside that were particularly special to them. Like the time comedian Ed Byrne tried to bag a munro on there Isle of Skye, when England test cricket captain Alistair Cook invited us to the family sheep farm, when Olympic gold-winning boxer Nicola Adams took Adam Henson through his paces in her training ground in Leeds, and when Josh Widdecombe took us to the beach in Pembrokeshire where he spent many a happy childhood holiday.
Countryfile is in Shropshire, where Matt Baker is exploring the highs and lows of a landscape shaped by the miners who once called this place home. Anita Rani is discovering the most unlikely site for a nature reserve - a scrapyard. Chef Michael Caines heads out into the wilds of Dartmoor on a camping trip, and in the first part of a special series, Adam Henson is in New Zealand to find out how they farm on the other side of the world. Charlotte Smith investigates the growing problem of dementia in the countryside as a new report highlights the dangers, isolation and lack of services facing farmers living with the condition.
Countryfile is in Carmarthenshire, where Matt Baker explores the explosive history of the sand dunes. Helen Skelton visits the National Botanic Garden of Wales, discovering how they're mapping the DNA of every flower in the country and how they're preparing their bees for winter. Falklands veteran Simon Weston shows Countryfile around his beloved south Wales and, in the second part of a special series, Adam Henson is in New Zealand to find out how they farm on the other side of the world. What happens when a protected species recovers to the point it impacts rural businesses and other wildlife? Tom Heap reports on a new initiative aimed at saving fisheries from otters.
Countryfile is on the Jurassic Coast, where Matt Baker meets the man who's been digging for fossils for more than thirty years, with extraordinary results. Ellie Harrison visits the family who've been photographing their farming life for generations, with the captivating images making up an important part of promoting their business. In the third part of a series of special films from New Zealand, Adam Henson helps with a sheep muster on an impressive scale. Plus comedian Susan Calman voyages across the Firth of Clyde to the beautiful Isle of Arran, in search of an elusive creature.
Countryfile explores the Peak District. Matt Baker joins the team on a mission to restore the scarred moorland. Ellie Harrison meets the climber and photographer who are coming together in an unusual collaboration. And Adam Henson is in New Zealand for the final part of his journey, discovering how they farm on the other side of the world. DJ Edith Bowman returns home to the rugged coastline of the East Neuk of Fife where she shares her passion for photography. As more of our lives move online, Tom Heap looks at broadband in rural areas and meets those who feel they're being left behind - but could there be hope on the horizon?
In this programme the focus is on our feathered friends. Matt is up at the crack of dawn at the RSPB reserve at Snettisham on the north Norfolk coast. There he witnesses thousands of pink-footed geese taking flight and joins warden Jim Scott and scientist Dr Mark Eaton in a bird count. He also visits a school where the pupils are taking part in their own bird count. Helen is at the other end of the country in Cumbria, where she catches sight of perhaps the most stunning sight in the bird world, as tens of thousands starlings perform dizzying aerial acrobatics. Helen also meets artist Clare Brownlow, who paints stunning lifelike pictures of birds using feather quills. Tom Heap looks at the latest outbreak of bird flu to hit Britain, finds out what can be done to minimise the impact and asks how long this crisis might last. Adam is back on his farm taking stock of his animals and showing us what measures he is taking to combat the threat from avian flu.
Ellie is in Scotland on a winter wildlife safari. The Cairngorms National Park is home to 25 per cent of Britain's threatened wildlife species, and Ellie hopes to spot some of them. Matt is on the Cumbrian fells, where a winter's day barely starts before it is over. He meets Peter Bland, who farms herdwick sheep. These are the hardiest of herds, and their blizzard-proof fleeces can embrace everything that winter throws at them. Matt hears how their access to amazing grazing on the fells all year round creates a real depth of flavour to their meat. John Craven is in Filey on the east coast of Yorkshire, where he hears the history behind the fisherman's gansey, a winter woolly with a distinctive pattern. Richard Taylor-Jones is on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent. This one of the best places in the UK to watch birds of prey in winter because of the amount of food on offer for them. To avoid being eaten many of the birds stick together in huge flocks, hoping to confuse the attackers, and this is a spectacle only seen at this time of year. Richard sees just how many birds of prey he can track down in one day. In Carmarthenshire, Adam is meeting the farmers pulling out all the stops to preserve the future of some of our oldest and rarest cattle breeds. We also spend a day with one of Britain's most renowned landscape artists, Norman Ackroyd CBE. Inspired by extremes of weather, Norman embraces winter and creates shadowy studies of some of the harshest landscapes of the British Isles. We see him on home turf - at Sutton Bank, North Yorkshire. We also meet budding designer Jamie Kunka in Perthsire. He transforms the surrounding trees into handcrafted, and now award-winning, skis. We see him at work and hear about his ambition to make skis that will last a lifetime and be beautiful enough to hang on the wall between the seasons. Then we put them to the test on the snowy slopes.
Ellie is helping to give Cheddar Gorge its annual clean-up.
Matt takes a trip back in time on the last horse-drawn tram in the world. He also gets to visit the farm where the magnificent Clydesdale and shire horses get to live out their dotage once their tram-pulling days are done. Ellie dwells among the haunting ruins of the Isle of Man's tholtans, the abandoned homes and farmsteads that tell the story of the island's agricultural past. She also gets to make and bake a loaf of traditional Manx bonnag bread under the expert eye of 11-year-old Tom Keig, the bonnag-baking world champion. Adam is putting his new working dog, Olive, through her paces. Tom Heap is in St Ives in Cornwall looking at a new ban on the building of second homes. But is it really the answer that many rural communities are looking for?
The team explore the magnificent South Downs. Matt Baker meets the pony who's blazing a trail across this landscape. Helen Skelton discovers why dark skies are so important for our wildlife. John Craven visits Charleston House, the rural retreat of the Bloomsbury Group. And Adam Henson looks at a new and novel way to stop cattle from roaming. A courgette crisis, a lack of lettuce and rationing on our supermarket shelves, just what is going on behind the scenes of Britain's veg crisis? Tom Heap heads to Spain to find out what's gone wrong and to discover what we can do keep our food supply secure.
Countryfile is in Snowdonia where, with the help of some recently unearthed BBC archive, Adam Henson is discovering how farming has changed in the past 60 years. He also looks back through Countryfile's own archive to the times the programme has explored farming then and now. From when Matt Baker put a Little Grey Fergie tractor to the test to when Adam discovered a space-age underground farm in the heart of London.
Matt Baker and Anita Rani are on the Hoo Peninsula. Matt hears how it's a landscape that's been shaped over the years by 'saltshepherds' and 'muddies', whilst Anita sees how fleece and feather work together to protect the huge numbers of birds that flock to the area. And there's a sense of spring in the air with lots of new arrivals down on Adam's Farm. Tom Heap looks at what leaving the EU could mean for the UK's agricultural migrant labour force and the farms that employ them.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison visit Denbighshire in north east Wales. Matt spends a day with Daphne Tilley, who was recently awarded an MBE for services to agriculture. Jamie Oliver, the Ritz and the Queen's caterers all buy Welsh lamb from Daphne. With woodland, wetland and moorland to explore, Denbighshire provides Ellie with some great opportunities for wildlife spotting. She is up at the crack of dawn to witness the spring mating rituals of grouse, before she heads out on to the moorland to monitor adders. Sean Fletcher meets Sarah Hughes, a farmer whose business blossoms in spring as she has diversified into selling edible flowers. Adam Henson is in Cumbria at the first college in the country to offer a dedicated sheepdog-handling course. Tom Heap talks about the future of farming - from a fantastical land of butter mountains and wine lakes, he asks what UK agriculture will look like from outside the European Union.
In this programme the focus is on our forests. Matt is in the New Forest taking part in the biggest inventory of our trees ever undertaken. He also takes to the heights with climbers from the Forestry Commission as they undertake a wildlife survey high in the treetops. Ellie is up in Inverness-shire seeing what industrial-scale timber production looks like. She also looks at new scientific research that shows the impact of forestry activities on native red squirrels. Sean is in Stirlingshire exploring the Scottish tradition of hutting, and he hears about the part these houses in the woods played during the Clydebank Blitz during World War II. John is in Kent looking at the revival of working with horses in forests and learns that it is because they are less damaging to the environment than machines. He also meets the top-rated artist whose magnificent woodcuts of forests capture perfectly the spirit of these magic places. In a step away from the woodlands, Adam meets the farmer who has found a new market for his male goats due to the rising demand for goat meat. Charlotte Smith is looking at claims that across the country we are not planting enough trees and what that might mean for the UK's timber industry.
Matt, Anita and John are in Holderness in the East Riding of Yorkshire. Matt is on Spurn Point, or rather Spurn Island - the country's newest, formed by the big storm surge of 2013. He meets the RNLI crew who had to relocate further up the coast as a result and then goes on manoeuvres with them 'sniffing the channels' as they look for safe passages around the point. Anita finds out how Spurn's wildlife has responded in the wake of the surge, and she meets the next generation of birdwatchers helping to spot the rare species on display. John is on Sunk Island, an area of rich farmland attached to the mainland but which once stood cut off in the Humber. He is there with photographer Fiona Caley, who is recording this mysterious landscape and the farming communities who live there. Adam helps a friend choose some rare breed white park cattle. And when milk quotas ended two years ago, some dairy farmers here and across Europe thought the sky was the limit. But in the Netherlands that has suddenly changed, and it could be a cautionary tale for us in the UK as Tom Heap finds out.
Countryfile is in Lancashire, where Matt Baker learns all about the ages-old Easter tradition of pace egg rolling. He meets the artist who decorates eggs for a living, joins some schoolchildren decorating theirs, then takes part in a pace egg rolling challenge. He also does the rounds with a young entrepreneur who has found a niche delivering fresh eggs to people in his local area. Anita Rani takes to the hills as she follows the 'Lancashire Witches Walk', set up to commemorate the famous witch trials which took place 400 years ago. She takes in the stunning Forest of Bowland and Pendle Hill. She also joins some volunteers for a bit of coppicing and gets to make a witches besom broom. Steve Brown is at Brockholes nature reserve where he hopes to catch a glimpse of one of the real spectacles of spring - boxing hares. And Adam Henson is looking to buy some rare large black pigs. Tom Heap travels to Denmark, where an MRSA bug has infected almost all of the country's pigs. Is it something pig farmers need to worry about back home in the UK?
Countryfile is in County Durham, and Matt is on his old home turf, showing us how to make panackelty, a traditional north eastern dish. He gets veg from prize-winning allotments and meat from a local farm and cooks it all up with the locals. Ellie is a few miles away in the heart of Weardale meeting the designer whose passion for rescuing sheep has spun out into a sideline making high-end felt goods. She also takes a trip along one of the most beautiful stretches of the River Tees, taking in the stunning High Force and Low Force waterfalls, discovering its wildlife and getting a drenching as she throws herself headlong into it. Sean is in Stockton, where he meets a Scout troop involved in all sorts of projects to encourage wildlife. And he witnesses them renewing their Scout's Promise - something traditionally done on St George's day. Tom asks if we are in the midst of a fly-tipping epidemic and what can be done to stamp it out. And at the start of British Beef Week, Adam is meeting the farmers raising their cattle on nothing but fresh grass all year round.
It is Hedgehog Awareness Week. Populations of wild British hedgehogs have declined rapidly since the turn of the century, and Ellie Harrison meets three schoolgirls who on a mission to keep the hedgehogs of Warwickshire safe from harm. She pays them a visit in their back garden hedgehog rehab centre! Ellie also visits the Heart of England Forest, which is planting a great native woodland. It is largely thanks to one man, Felix Dennis, who bequeathed millions to the project after recognising a need for more woodland. Steve Brown meets the volunteers 'Taming the River Tame' to bring the wildlife back. The river, canal and floodplain that make up the wetlands are remnants of Warwickshire's industrial past, but they're now joining up the waterways for nature. John Craven is at a nature reserve with a difference - it's not just a home for wildflowers and wildlife, it's a permanent resting place for people too. The Sunrising Nature Reserve is a burial ground for people who want a very natural resting place after they die. John also visits a farming family who have swapped pints of milk for pints of beer by turning their dairy into a microbrewery. Adam Henson is in Kendal, Cumbria, with a farming family who love their traditional breeds nearly as much as Adam does! It is the Robinson family's 100th year of registering shorthorns on the farm. With dad, lad and grandson in tow, we hear from three generations of Robinson about their passion for the cows. Tom Heap travels to Scotland to find out why Britain's favourite fish is causing such a big row and asks what the salmon industry is doing to try and solve the problem.
Ellie Harrison reveals how the landscape has been shaped by rivers, meeting those who live, work and play on the banks of the Severn.
Matt Baker hears about plans the Suffolk Wildlife Trust are making for their biggest ever land purchase in the charity's 55 years. He'll also meet the dog ambassadors teaching good practice for owners and their four-legged friends when out in the countryside around wildlife and cattle. Ellie's on a farm run by the community and fuelled by waste! Dredgings from the bottom of a property developer's pond help fertilise the fields; hazel poles for the runner beans are scraps from a woodland project and the pigs get fed on left over barley from the local brewery. She'll also meet a craftsman making bread saws out of locally 'spalted' wood. To celebrate National Mills Weekend John Craven visits Bardwell, a fine example of the 500 or so windmills that once dotted throughout the county and meets the Wooster family and explores their love affair with their 'Forth Bridge' of windmills and see what work has gone into getting it - almost - up and running again.
The Clyde valley in Lanarkshire was once known as the 'fruit basket of Scotland'. Matt Baker explores the rise and fall of what was once a major force in Scotland's food industry. The orchards are in danger of being lost from the countryside, so locals throughout the valley are bringing them back to life. Ellie Harrison meets Warren Bader, an urban beekeeper who fills Lanarkshire's scraps of green with beehives, renting them out to local companies and training their staff in beekeeping skills. His pollination plan aims to improve the wellbeing of people as well as bees and is a hit with local businesses from hotels to construction. Ellie also takes a wild walk along the Falls of Clyde, which has some of the oldest ancient woodland in Scotland. At this time of year the forest floor is a carpet of wildflowers, each one telling a story about the ecology of the landscape. But it is birds she is here to see. The fast-flowing water here is perfect for dippers who, because they depend on water invertebrates like caddis fly and mayfly larvae, are an indicator of clean rivers. Sean Fletcher is just downstream from Ellie on the River Clyde at New Lanark Mill. The area wasn't just famed for fruit but also for textile production. Sean reveals how the landscape shaped the vision and powered the mills that still stand here centuries later - still creating yarn on the original machinery. We hear how the river powered the people and textile production. Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith visit a housing estate in Newport Pagnell to meet a young townie who is carving out a successful career in agriculture. They are searching for Countryfile's Young Farmer of the Year - part of the BBC's Food and Farming Awards. Tom Heap is looking at the growing problem of microplastics in the oceans, but is there an even bigger problem much closer to home?
In a spring special edition of the programme Countryfile goes in search of the secret and often overlooked wonders of the season. Matt Baker discovers how cutting-edge technology is helping the return of tulips to Lincolnshire's farmland on an epic scale. Ellie Harrison heads to Cornwall's south west coast to get up close with returning migrants heading to our shores in their thousands - jellyfish, before Michelin-starred chef Paul Ainsworth treats her to a taste of the season. Adam Henson tries his hand at a long-held ambition as he turns auctioneer at the Exeter's spring livestock market. Steve Brown discovers how darkness is the best time to enjoy one of the true wonders of the season and John Craven finds out how one company is trying to put the taste of spring in a bottle.
Matt and Ellie are in Essex where Matt jumps aboard the Pioneer, a fully restored Essex oyster boat. He learns about its maritime past whilst some rarely seen archive gives us a flavour of the county's oyster fishing heyday. Matt then meets a group of young people learning the skills to build racing gigs - small fast rowing boats built for competition - and Matt is put through his paces in one of these gigs out on the open sea. Ellie is at the country's only nature reserve managed specifically for dragonflies, where she gets up close to these highly coloured and fascinating insects. She then travels to Hamford Water, where the creeks and inlets are home to an unusual colony of common seals - they're bright red! Steve Brown journeys back in time to medieval England to find out what it's like to fire an English longbow. For years they drove British industry, but now many of our mines lie silent and abandoned, posing a real threat to the surrounding environment. Spoil heaps and mines can leach heavy metals and other poisons into streams and rivers causing untold damage. Tom Heap investigates a new answer to this problem and it's one that could make a bit of cash for the farmer too. And Adam and Charlotte reveal the last of our contenders for Countryfile's Young Farmer Award.
Ellie Harrison and Joe Crowley are in Northern Ireland, where Joe is up at the crack of dawn in woods just south of Belfast. He joins an RSPB team who are tagging swifts to find out where they are feeding, and he heads to the arts centre where the biggest swift colony in the city can be found to see how sensitive building benefits the birds. He also meets the locals doing their bit to help Belfast become 'swift city'. Joe then heads to the farm where you're as likely to find physalis, mustard flowers and Asian radish as you are spuds, carrots and caulis. Meanwhile, Ellie takes a canoe trip down the beautiful River Bann. It is a great place for wading birds, is steeped in history and is said to be the river St Patrick took before arriving at the island where he built a monastery. Ellie visits Church Island and sees the sites associated with St Patrick, and she also hears that it was also the poet Seamus Heaney's favourite place in the world. Adam Henson is on a farm on the Great Orme in north Wales, where herdwick sheep are being used to graze on ground where some of the UK's rarest plants can be found. Tom Heap looks at ghost gear - fishing equipment accidentally cut adrift from trawlers and anglers that rides the ocean currents relentlessly catching and killing marine life for years on end. But what can be done to stop these ghostly killers?
Ellie Harrison and Sean Fletcher are at the Hay Festival, one of the UK's biggest literature and arts festivals. Ellie goes behind the scenes to meet some of the writers and artists, the organisers and many of the thousands of visitors who flock here each year. She then heads out to the country for a special wildlife safari inspired by one of the books on show. She also joins the team spotting and tagging adders using radio tracking devices. Sean is on a literary adventure of his own with a group drawing inspiration from the beautiful Wye Valley countryside. He also meets some local food producers at the festival, including one who's putting a whole new spin on ice cream. Adam Henson looks at how new technology can help in the fight against drought, and John Craven is here with new news of this year's Countryfile Photographic Competition. Organic food has never been more popular. The market for it continues to grow as across Britain more and more people are forking out to make sure what they eat is organic. So why is it that the amount of land in the UK farmed organically is falling? Tom Heap finds out.
Sean Fletcher is in Carmarthenshire in west Wales taking a look at working animals. He meets Dr Nick Fox, OBE, who is one of the world's leading experts on birds of prey. Nick breeds falcons and has a very special way of training them - using robots. Sean is shown round the workshop where these 'robofalcons' are made. These are precision engineered drones built to look like falcons which are used to train real live birds to hunt. Sean takes the remote controls and sees for himself just how realistic these decoy birds are. He also visits the breeding units and gets to handle fluffy little peregrine chicks. Elsewhere on the site Sean discovers that Nick has drafted in beavers to help manage his woodland. And there's a good chance Sean will be treated to the sight of some beaver kits. Also in this programme we'll be going back through the Countryfile archives to look again at times when we've featured working animals.
Elderflowers are one of nature's sweetest treasures and the hedgerows are currently heaving with them. Ellie joins the Rollett family who have set up a traditional cottage industry producing natural cordials and presses, using the elderflowers on their doorstep. When his dad decided to retire from farming, Paul Hopkins took over his farm. An electrician by trade, Paul wasn't entirely sure what to do with it. But, over a game of skittles, a farming friend convinced him to buy some pigs! And the Little Beckford Pig Association was born. It's a community farming project where members 'buy' a pig and help rear it, until it's ready to be slaughtered. Worcester Cathedral is home to a very rare population of lesser horseshoe bats, thought to be the only urban population in the country. At this time of year, the summer roost is full of females gathered together to give birth and raise their young. Along with an army of volunteers, Ellie ventures out after sunset. Positioning themselves around the roost, along the River Avon and into the suburbs beyond, they use bat detectors to discover where the bats are going. Adam's in the Peak District to meet a vegetarian farmer who has decided to send his beef cattle off to an animal sanctuary in Norfolk rather than the slaughterhouse.
Anita Rani's in the Nene Valley, where a pioneering project is just about to launch. Retail giants have been working with the Wildlife Trust to create a shopping destination where wildlife and retail come face to face. For centuries Northampton has had a thriving leather industry, John Craven meets two local lads who have set up a micro-tannery to tan goat hides. John then goes on a butterfly hunt to try to catch the purple emperor. Considered the 'holy grail of lepidoptery', the beauty of this elusive creature belies its truly filthy nature 'his imperial majesty' doesn't feed on flowers, but rotten fruit, mouldy cheese, dog poo and anything that smells foul. John meets enthusiasts Matthew and Neil as they create a truly disgusting butterfly banquet to try and catch a glimpse. Adam's in Cumbria on a farm that could spawn a food revolution - an insect farm. Tom Heap gets a look at the first report into the problem of homelessness in our countryside. What many think of as an urban problem has been quietly growing in our rural areas, but what's being done to help?
Our Scottish journey starts just off the mainland - on the Isle of May. It's home to the largest puffin colony on the east coast of Britain at this time of year. Ellie Harrison crosses the Firth of Forth to see the seasonal spectacle. With guillemots, kittiwakes and puffins all jostling for position on the islands ledges and perches, Ellie finds out from David the island manager about the work they do to make it a five-star stay for seabirds. Sean Fletcher discovers Fife's importance as a (soft) centre of excellence when it comes to fruit growing. He looks at the history of the connection between fruit and the east coast of Scotland. Sean then plays 'scientist' at the James Hutton Institute, a lab that has been creating a raspberry-breeding programme to produce new breeds for local growers. He visits the 'crumbly fruit house', checking that new breeds hold up to picking without crumbling, and then asks fruit breeder Nikki Jennings just how Fife can create raspberries with a fuller flavour and less sugar than its southern counterparts. Adam takes to the skies with Roger Nock from Ordnance Survey to map his field margins, and Tom Heap looks at the unseen side of TB - its effect on goats, asking why the disease isn't being dealt with the same rigour as it is in our cattle herds.
Wiltshire's Salisbury Plain is home to one of England's most successful conservation projects, the first new population of great bustards to be established anywhere in the world. John visits the project's HQ and wears a dehumanisation suit to help keep the birds' behaviour as wild as possible as he helps feed the latest batch of chicks as they prepare to fly the nest. Anita meets the contestants of the International Young Beekeepers competition at Marlborough College and visits the River Kennet, one of England's most important chalk streams and helps out the volunteers working hard to keep this valuable chalk stream flowing. Adam meets Simon Stott who runs a co-operative of farmers producing sheep's milk, which they turn into yoghurt and cheese. At the foot of Wiltshire's Marlborough Downs, artisanal flower grower Polly Nicholson is using the rich, fertile soils of the Calne valley to grow seasonal and old varieties of English flowers. This is farmland turned flower fields, and is part of a growing trend for traditional British blooms. Imported flowers are often grown intensively, non-organically and then flown half way around the world to British buyers, with most varieties available year-round. Polly has established a flower farm with environmental welfare at its heart providing species not usually seen in conventional bunches of flowers.
Countryfile takes a look at our cities and the green spaces and wildlife that can be found there. Anita Rani is in London at the remarkable Woodberry Wetlands, a haven for all sorts of wildlife just a stone's throw from the tower blocks of Stoke Newington. She spends time with the locals keeping this patch of London green and meets 'guerrilla explorer' Daniel Ellison, a man on a mission to make London the UK's first National Park city. Anita also meets up with urban wildlife photographer Sam Hobson to see if they can photograph a pair of nesting common terns and the very rare hornet moth. Sean Fletcher is at Manchester Airport with the environment team. It's their job to make sure that the impact on the wildlife and the environment around the runways is kept to a minimum. He also spends time with the crack squad of bird scarers who use some clever tricks to keep wild birds off the runways. James Wong is in Liverpool seeing how rooftops and disused spaces are being used to grow fresh vegetables. Tom Heap looks at air pollution and finds it's as much a problem in our countryside as our cities, and Adam Henson meets the ex-serviceman helping other ex-forces personnel rebuild their lives through farming.
Ellie Harrison takes a look at the part flowers and plants play in people's everyday lives. She visits a herb garden in Bristol to find out about a commonplace plant that's on the front line in the fight against cancer. She heads to a high-end restaurant to hear about the latest foodie trend, fermentation, a kind of turbo-charged pickling. She meets a dye maker who's turned her back on synthetic dyes and uses only natural plants and flower dyes to create her colours. And Ellie also visits the school where pupils cultivate some of the rarest orchids in the world.
Anita and Sean are in the rugged wilds of Dartmoor. Anita explores the Artisan Trail, a newly created route that links some of the area's best artists and craftspeople. She meets the blacksmith working out of a traditional forge, visits a community-supported farm providing locals with hearty seasonal veg and tries her hand spinning wool on an old-fashioned spinning jenny. We also meet the printmaker who works out in the wild in all weathers. Sean looks at native Dartmoor ponies and asks if there is a better alternative to culling unwanted foals at birth. He looks at two different options. One involves finding use for unwanted animals as therapy for people with learning difficulties, and the other, more controversially, suggests rearing the animals for meat. Tom finds out what happens to the male calves born into dairy herds and looks at what can be done to ensure they have a useful and decent life. And with harvest just around the corner, Adam is taking stock down on his farm.
In the Countryfile Summer Special the whole team head to the Blenheim estate in glorious Oxfordshire countryside for a celebration of the best of rural Britain at Countryfile Live. Matt Baker explores the best food, drink and farming on offer, Ellie Harrison meets an aspiring actress turned accidental cow artist, Adam Henson brings the farmyard to the showground, Tom Heap finds out how the forests of the Blenheim estate help the local community, and John Craven gets a unique glimpse into one of Blenheim Palace's greatest secrets.
Ellie and Steve are on the beautiful Llyn Peninsula in north west Wales. Ellie goes snorkelling to explore the incredibly rich seagrass habitat beneath the waves. She then joins the conservationists netting fish as part of a marine survey. She also meets 19-year-old Urien Davies-Hughes, a third-generation boat builder who uses his grandfather's tools to build traditional Aberdaron beach boats. Steve meets the dairy farmers who not only produce their own milk, they deliver it too. So Steve's up with the young farmers delivering milk door to door. He also visits the farmers who've turned their hand to bespoke ice cream, and comes up with a brand new flavour of his own. Adam takes part in the harvest of an unusual fruit - the mulberry. And John is joined by fellow judges Simon King and Deborah Meaden to reveal the final 12 photographs in this year's Countryfile photographic competition.
Across the country the race is on to bring home the harvest. It is one of the busiest times of the farming year, when farmers hope to reap the rewards of all their hard work. Countryfile looks at how food is harvested, from large-scale crops for supermarket shelves to smaller hand-picked harvests for local markets. John Craven is in Oxfordshire meeting the only distillers in the country to use an ancient strain of rye to create a new type of gin. Margherita Taylor is in Norfolk with a farmer keen to prove that the British radish is more than just a bit on the side. Margherita also visits Bardsley Farm. The family have been growing apples and pears here since 1892 - their archive photos provide a window into traditional harvests of old - but just recently they have branched out and are now growing apricots. Adam Henson meets the first of the two nations competing to win the coveted title of One Man and His Dog 2017. Tom Heap discovers how little we know about wasps and asks for your help to find out more.
Ellie Harrisonis on Cornwall's Rame Peninsula to visit Mount Edgcumbe, where the UK's first ever native dark honeybee reserve has just opened. Previously thought to be all but extinct in the UK, an almost pure and distinctive population has been identified here, and although they make up only 1% of the bee population, it is claimed they could hold the key to reversing colony collapse - Ellie finds out how. The programme also catches up with Malcolm Baker, the last traditional fisherman in the Rame Peninsula, who features in a film that captures the old traditions of fishing in the region with the idea of passing on dying skills to the next generation. And Tom Heap is on the hunt for traditional British craftsmen and women. With many heritage crafts dying out, Tom is keen to find out what can be done to save them.
Ellie visits the Lake District, the UK's first national park to become a Unesco World Heritage Site. This protected status means it joins the likes of the Jurassic Coast, the Forth Bridge and Stonehenge. Ellie explores the three factors that made it an area of international cultural significance - identity, inspiration and conservation. The programme sees how the landscape has been - and is still being - shaped by those who live, work and play there, and there is also a look back at some of Countryfile's own experiences in the fells and valleys - meeting the people who all play a part in protecting the countryside. Additionally, in the lead-up to the Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need, the programme visits the Highlands of Scotland to meet Logan and his dad Scott, who will be taking part. Logan lost his mum to cancer last year and is supported by Children in Need-funded charity Maggie's, who offer invaluable support to children like Logan. There is also news on how people can join in Ramble weekend by putting on their own sponsored rambles, walking through the beautiful British countryside and raising money to help some of the country's most vulnerable youngsters.
Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith present Countryfile's One Man and His Dog for 2017. The best shepherds and their dogs from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales go head to head for the coveted trophy. Each team is made up of two competitors - the 'singles' who compete with one dog and, the ultimate in sheepdog trialling, the 'brace', working two dogs at the same time. This year, Countryfile brings the country to the city, setting this rural spectacle in the heart of London on Hampstead Heath. It's the first time sheep have been on the Heath for 60 years. So who will be crowned Countryfile One Man and His Dog champions?
Ellie is in South Yorkshire, right on the border of the Peak District, following in the footsteps of the Clarion Ramblers. They were England's first working men's walking society and were founded by the legendary GHB Ward. Ellie joins historians Roly Smith and Terry Howard to find out more about the Ramblers and their visionary founder. She also meets poet and songwriter Sally Goldsmith, who draws inspiration from the Clarion guidebooks and writes songs about the South Yorkshire landscape she loves. Finally, Ellie visits the Peak District, where she meets former Clarion Ramblers Les Johnson and Graham Baxby, who actually walked with Ward. And to help prompt their memories Ellie has brought with her Ward's actual rucksack and walking jacket. The winner of this year's Countryfile Photographic Competition is revealed. Tom gives up the countryside for the streets of Sheffield, where an argument is raging over the future of the city's trees.
Anita Rani and Matt Baker are at Dumfries House in East Ayrshire, one of Scotland's grandest country houses and now an important centre for training and education. Matt is given a tour of its fine rooms and Chippendale furniture and hears how it was His Royal Highness Prince Charles's intervention that saved it for the nation. Matt meets house butler Lauren Dalziel, just one of many local people who've found employment at Dumfries House. He also spends time on the estate's farms, seeing how rare breed cattle are giving local schoolchildren a taste of the farming life. Anita meets the apprentices learning traditional craft skills that they are putting to the test on restoration projects on the estate, and she gets her hands dirty with the schoolchildren pulling up vegetables in the walled gardens before joining them in a seasonal feast. And we hear from Prince Charles himself, who talks to Adam about why he stepped in to save Dumfries House, and of his vision of how it can be used to help the local community. Charlotte Smith's looking at where all the extra electricity will come from to power the millions of electric cars that could take to our roads over the next 20 years and finding out the impact it could have on our countryside. And, down on his farm, Adam Henson's checking all is well with his pregnant sheep and cows.
On 15 October 1987 a storm hit the UK with such force that it brought down millions of trees, created devastation and chaos and tragically killed 18 people. Thirty years on, Ellie visits Wakehurst Place in West Sussex, a 500-acre estate which lost 20,000 trees that night and faced some hard decisions as dawn broke the next day. Ellie meets up with the team that rebuilt and replanted Wakehurst's collection and helped turn it into the showcase for global conservation that it is today. Ellie also looks back through the Countryfile archive, remembering the stories and places that have also suffered and rebuilt in face some of Britain's wildest weather.
John and Margherita are in Cornwall, where John attends a food festival with a difference. Over four nights local chefs will cook up 12 farm feasts for 1000 guests, all from one red devon animal. John meets the 1000 Mouths festival organiser Steve Chamberlain, to hear that every single bit of the animal will be used with nothing going to waste. Margehrita meets author Chrissie Gittins who's on a mission to stop wild words disappearing from children's vocabularies. She also visits a vineyard that came about by accident, when the owners discovered the ground was better for vines than for farming. We profile Cornish artist David Hosking who returns to the farm of his birth for the first time since leaving 45 years ago. Adam finds out if soya could be the crop of the future for British arable farmers while Tom's looking at calls to suspend public rights of way, because of the rising number of dog attacks on livestock, but how will it affect our right to roam?
A special programme celebrating the the Countryfile Ramble for Children in Need 2017. The presenters lead the way on rambles of their own through some of Britain's best landscapes, joined by viewers and some inspirational youngsters who have been helped by the charity. Matt Baker takes on an epic challenge on the hills of Dartmoor joined by 19-year-old Georgia, who has fought back from a life-changing operation to remove a brain tumour. Ellie Harrison heads to Wales's waterfall country with 17-year-old Amy, who was born deaf and is helped by a local charity thanks to Children in Need funding. Adam Henson leads a mass ramble of thousands through Bristol, joined by the Penn family. Anita Rani rambles along the white sands of Scotland's west coast with 11-year-old Logan, who lost his mum to cancer and is supported by the local Maggie's Centre. John Craven heads to Northern Ireland and the picturesque Castlewellan Forest Park, where he is joined by hundreds on his accessible-to-all ramble. Tom Heap heads to Lancashire to drop in on a few of the many thousands of sponsored rambles being put on by members of the public up and down the country.
The team gets out to explore all that Autumn has to offer. Matt Baker crunches through the leaves to find out about a new charter to protect woodlands. Ellie Harrison meets Skomer's new arrivals - seal pups! John Craven cooks Autumn treats over an outdoor fire, and Adam Henson discovers a harvest worth its weight in gold.
Countryfile marks Remembrance Sunday. Ellie Harrison finds out about the so-called 'Idle' women of the canals, who played a vital role in the Second World War. She also discovers how the great outdoors helps to heal servicemen and women. John Craven explores how wild plants became medicine during the Second World War. Plus Adam Henson visits a school where farming is helping to shape lives.
Countryfile is in Hertfordshire, where Charlotte Smith meets the man who's made it his sole mission to save the barbel in the Old River Lea. Sean Fletcher builds a home fit for a Kingfisher and forages for a wild dinner. John Craven returns to his days as a scout and cooks up a storm on a woodland fire. And Adam Henson discovers the estate where rewilding and farming sit side-by-side. Now in its fifth year, what effect is culling badgers actually having on rates of TB in our cattle? Tom Heap's looking at the science behind this controversial practice.
The programme heads to the Cairngorms, where Joe Crowley is at Britain's largest national nature reserve, Mar Lodge. He is on the search for ptarmigan at the top of one of the tallest mountains in Britain. Helen Skelton meets one of Scotland's most extraordinary creatures - the golden eagle. And Adam Henson is already preparing for next year's new arrivals on his farm. Tom Heap is looking at Britain's favourite meat, chicken, and finding out what goes into supplying almost one billion chickens a year.
Helen and Sean are on the Cleveland Way in North Yorkshire. Helen meets the team of Scouts who have 'adopted' their own stretch of the 109-mile trail and are busy clearing gorse and doing some vital maintenance. She then joins the Hardmoors, a group of ultra marathon runners who have also adopted their own stretch, on a run through some spectacular countryside. Sean explores Yorkshire childhoods through an incredible oral history project, before joining wildlife photographer Glenn Kilpatrick as he attempts to photograph leaping salmon on the beautiful River Esk. Blacksmith and artist Katie Ventress takes Countryfile to her favourite stretch of coast. Tom has an exclusive look at a major new report into the effects of climate change on our bird populations, and Adam meets the young couple getting into farming despite not having a farm.
Ellie and Matt are in the Brecklands on the Norfolk-Suffolk border. Ellie finds out all about a major conservation effort to save two Brecks species at threat of extinction. She also hears how the Brecks rabbit is playing a key role in this effort. Later, Ellie meets the mum-and-daughter team helping to make Ipswich the most hedgehog-friendly city in the UK. Matt joins an arable farmer who is able to harvest veg all year round thanks to the Brecks' sandy soils and temperate climate. He also meets the pig farmer who swears by the soil for rearing his livestock. Margherita joins a shepherd turned artist for a lesson in watercolours out in the Brecks, and Adam has got his hands full with two alpacas who have an unusual job to do. Tom Heap looks at the animal diseases worrying farmers at this time of year and asks if there is a chink in our armour.
Ellie Harrison sees her home county of Gloucestershire as she has never seen it before. She also looks back through the archives to the time when some well-known faces were asked which part of the county's countryside is special to them. DJ Edith Bowman visits Fife, comedian Susan Calman takes a trip to the Isle of Arran and chef Michael Caines wonders at the wilds of Dartmoor. Plus singer David Essex returns to his beloved Kent, Falklands veteran Simon Weston spends time in south Wales and actress Nina Wadia explores the Highlands.
In this special Christmas programme, Matt, John and Anita are in Castleton in the Peak District, where the celebrated Christmas tree festival is in full swing. Matt helps get things ready for a big carol concert in the world-famous Peak Cavern. At the nearby Longshaw Estate, John looks for a Christmas tree at one of the biggest Christmas tree sales in the country. And Anita visits a farm that puts on its very own Nativity play, complete with newborn Christmas lambs. Meanwhile in Norfolk, Adam challenges Ellie to a race with a difference, her flock of geese racing against his flock of turkeys. And in Staffordshire, Tom meets the farmer who hands out food parcels containing his own produce to help those in need this Christmas.
This week on Countryfile, Adam Henson is in New Zealand to find out what makes it one of the most exciting places to farm. Along the way, he meets some old friends, helps with a cattle muster like no other, witnesses sheep farming on a breathtaking scale and goes on the hunt for a rare goat breed with an unbelievable story.
Countryfile explores the Ribble Valley. Matt Baker is in the stunning Gisburn Forest where he discovers these wild woods at dawn. He also meets those, on two wheels and four, that make the most of nature's playground here. Anita Rani is on a farm with its roots in the past, but which is looking to the future. She meets the refugees who are discovering farming in the snow. And Adam Henson meets the stallions playing a special part in securing the future of rare breeds. Tom Heap looks into an argument between gun owners and doctors over new Home Office rules on gun licensing that have left many people confused and angry.
Countryfile visits the Somerset Levels, where Matt Baker is on the hunt for the common crane, a bird that has been brought back from the brink. It now thrives in this area, thanks to an unlikely union. Anita Rani meets the farmer who is turning apples into a tempting tipple. Adam Henson takes stock on his farm as winter arrives. And in the first part of a new feature, the programme discovers the highs and lows of life as a rural vet. Charlotte Smith finds out why people who swim in the sea are unwittingly exposing themselves to dangerous bacteria and discovers where they come from.
Anita Rani joins some budding 'citizen scientists' taking in the New Year Plant Hunt. Leicestershire has more than 300 rare species of plant, but they're being lost at a rapid rate. Anita visits Leicester University's herbarium to investigate the city's plants past, present and future. John Craven is at Rutland Water which is a hotspot for birding, with more hides than any other reserve in the country, where every year at least one hide is rebuilt. John joins in with 'raising' the new building which forms part of the trainee reserve officers training for the year. Steve Brown gets to know some of Rutland Water's winter visitors better and looks forward to the Big Garden Birdwatch, as well as meeting the young birdwatchers taking part and revealing how to take part in this years' event. Tom Heap looks at the problems faced by rural fire services.
There can't be many farms in Britain run by a family of sporting legends, but Matt Baker's on a sheep farm in Crieff to meet two brothers who were pretty much born to curl! The Muirhead family name is one of the most famous in the global game of curling. Their dad Gordon was a world champion and, with a string of Olympic accolades, their sister Eve is perhaps Scotland's most prestigious curler. Matt meets brothers Thomas and Glen Muirhead as they get ready for lambing on the family farm. But their minds are fixed on getting a very different type of delivery right... as part of Britain's curling team in 2018's Winter Olympics. We hear about the sporting dynasty and how Olympic training fits around farming, and we learn about the family dynamic between the brothers both on the rink and in the fields. In another nod to traditional Scottish sports, Charlotte Smith heads into the forest of the Drummond Estate on a hunt for the perfect tree for caber tossing in the upcoming Highland Games. The programme uses some great archive from the 1930s and 40s to illustrate how so many traditional Scottish games use items from the land, such as stone, rope and wood. The caber is usually a Scottish larch, and it has to be bigger and better than the previous year's. We follow the tree's journey as it gets felled, carved and polished ready for this year's game. Finally, in the grounds of the Drummond Estate, Charlotte gets a one-on-one coaching session - albeit with a much smaller practice caber! Adam Henson is on a farm in Trewithick, Cornwall, where the mild climate has given one farm a huge helping hand. Steve and Ryan Johnson only started sheep farming a few years ago, but now they're rearing hundreds and lambing all year round. The milder climate means a longer growing season for grass, meaning a longer growing season for lambs. They've already lambed their Dorsets and their Lleyns. Adam helps out as they scan and get the maternity shed ready for their final lambers - their High
Today, Countryfile embraces the wonders of winter. Matt Baker is on the Dorset coastline to meet a man who's championing local winter produce. Anita Rani finds out how making jewellery inspired by nature can improve the winter blues. In the Highlands, Steve Brown mushes with a pack of huskies, and we catch up with Eddie the Eagle, 30 years after his appearance at the Winter Olympics. We also take to the wilds with the artist who loves painting mountains. Joe Crowley meets the man with a lifelong passion for deer, while Ellie Harrison finds out about our long fascination with foxes. And Adam Henson is on a farm where gathering in the sheep is a risky business.
Ellie Harrison and Matt Baker are in Cambridgeshire, where Matt looks at a huge project to turn a quarry into the UK's biggest reed bed. Thousands of tons of sand and gravel are being shifted at Ouse Fen to create the perfect habitat for wildlife, including one of the UK's rarest birds, the bittern. Matt is also on hand to help release some fish into specially-created pools. Ellie is with a team from Cambridge University whose work is throwing new light on the secret life of truffles. She also takes a walk in the woods with botanical artist Caroline Henricksen, who reveals a world of wonder beneath Ellie's feet. Wildlife cameraman Richard Taylor Jones witnesses a wildlife spectacle of a lifetime, Adam Henson meets a young farmer making a go of it in the New Forest, plus the latest instalment from the young vets. Tom Heap has an exclusive interview with Bill Gates about why he's making the most of British agricultural expertise.
Matt Baker and Anita Rani are in Anglesey, where Matt is on the lookout for harbour porpoises. He meets scientist Peter Evans to find out why the waters round Anglesey are so good for a whole variety of marine mammals. He also meets the schoolchildren who've made it their mission to keep the islands beaches clear of plastic. Anita meets 'squirrel whisperer' David Lacey, a man who has red squirrels literally eating out of his hands. Anita then heads out with fisherman John Jones to find out what's behind the boom in Menai mussels. Tom Heap is looking at faux fur and asks how do we know it isn't real. And Adam Henson finds out how the latest facial recognition technology is helping farmers spot problems early with their livestock. When is faux fur not fake? Well, more often than you'd think. Helen Skelton is investigating how real fur is making it into our shops and our wardrobes without us realising.
Matt Baker and Helen Skelton are in Derbyshire, where Matt is exploring the boom in farming alpacas. He meets Ingrid Rushton, one of the first people in the UK to own them, and visits a blood transfusion drop-in for alpacas where owners have come from all over the region bringing their animals to donate blood which could save baby alpaca's lives. Helen tries her hand at 'weaselling', the latest craze to sweep the Peaks. It is a kind of potholing that happens above ground and joins a party of schoolchildren who squeeze in and out of the rocky tors that dot the landscape. She also meets countryside champion Yvonne Witter, who has made it her mission to get more people from ethnic backgrounds into our countryside. Tom Heap looks at illegal abattoirs and asks if the meat on our plates is what we think it is, and Adam is in north Wales meeting the farmer using a special type of working dog to manage his livestock.
Water is our most precious natural resource. There is not a plant or animal on earth that can do without it. Our landscape is shaped by it; livelihoods depend on it. Water provides homes for wildlife and is a source of inspiration and a place for recreation. In this programme, Helen is at Kielder Water in Northumberland, exploring the ways in which the wet stuff shapes our lives. There is also a meander through the archives, dipping a toe into previous watery worlds to which Countryfile has been.
Steve Brown is on the trail of an elusive and endangered Scottish creature - the mud snail. They may not be one of nature's glamour species, but these tiny molluscs play an important role in the ecosystem. Anita Rani cycles along the sands of the East Lothian coast on a 'fat bike'. With larger than normal tyres they leave virtually no trace in the sand, having as little impact on the natural habitat as possible. Matt Baker visits St Abbs - a community who refused to let their lifeboat service go under. When threatened with closure they independently took on the community lifeboat, saving 104 years of history. There are ten million cattle farmed in the UK, and it is a well-known fact that livestock like cows produce a lot of methane, which contributes to global warming. Adam Henson is in Edinburgh at an agricultural college where they are working on a solution. Tom Heap looks at companies buying up swathes of countryside and selling it on with planning permission for houses.
Ellie Harrison is in Pembrokeshire looking at the effect of recent storms on the coastline. Adam Henson visits Scotland's Rural College, where they are researching ways to reduce farming's impact on global warming. Tom Heap looks at the problems faced by the UK's sheep farmers and asks why people have fallen out of love with lamb.
As the birthplace of the industrial revolution, this is a landscape rich in coal and iron. But the legacy of one of the ancient coal shafts is a river that is colourful for all the wrong reasons - it runs bright orange with iron-rich ochre from the rocks below. Matt Baker immerses himself in Shropshire Wildlife Trust's Love Your Rivers project. It's a huge conservation operation, involving 12 organisations and an army of volunteers inspired to give their landscape some TLC. Ellie Harrison accompanies sniffer-dog Lunar in a search for pine martens. She also meets James Sherwin - a man who set himself a 12-month mission - to cook for a whole year only using ingredients farmed and grown in Shropshire. What started as a small idea, in a pop-up restaurant, has now grown into a countywide venture. Steve Brown spends the day with Becky Haywood, an artist who combines her love of nature with molten glass. Adam Henson has a round-up of life on the farm as spring sets in. As the numbers of one the UK's favourite mammals plummets, Tom Heap asks where have all our hedgehogs gone?
Matt Baker, Anita Rani and Joe Crowley are in West Yorkshire where Matt meets Dr Ryad Alsous, a refugee from Syria whose love of bees has helped him forge a new life here. Matt also meets some of the refugees and locals Ryad is inspiring with his love of bees. Matt gets to try his hand at making a beehive and samples a delicious Syrian dessert made with the honey he helps Ryad harvest. Anita is on the moors looking for the Easter bunny - or should that be Easter hare? She's on the hunt for the elusive mountain hare in its most northerly English habitat. Anita also meets Susan Sroka, a one woman hare rescue service who's been nursing a baby leveret back to health. Joe explores Emily Bronte's passion for wildlife and finds out that she had her very own bird of prey. Tom Heap looks at the reasons for the decline in our hedgehogs and Adam Henson buys some of the rarest native breed cattle there are, blue albions.
Sean Fletcher and Naomi Wilkinson are in the wilds around Loch Ness. Sean is on the Erchless Estate, where they are busy tapping birch trees for the next big culinary thing - birch sap. He also meets the sporran maker putting a twist on this traditional item of Scottish clothing. Naomi spends the day with seventh-generation crofter Iain McLeod and his daughter Chloe to get a taste of crofting life. It is lambing time so there is plenty to keep Naomi busy. She then meets Michelle Anderson Carrol, a vegetarian who rears rare breed pigs for meat. Then it is off to Glenurquhart, the home of shinty, where Naomi and Sean take sides and go head to head in this ancient Scottish game. Tom Heap takes a look at the rise in popularity of a vegan diet, and Adam Henson is on the Welsh estate where they keep bison.
Matt Baker and Anita Rani are in West Cumbria where Matt takes a wild and bracing walk along a brand new section of the England Coast Path on Walney Island near Barrow. He meets the people who are creating the path, sees some incredible wildlife on route and discovers a local film-maker who's using materials foraged from the sea shore, to craft new and unexpected films. Meanwhile Anita heads to the north near Whitehaven taking a trail that explores the life of forgotten Cumbrian artist Percy Kelly. Helen Skelton is a few miles inland meeting the woodsman who gave up life in the city to return to his childhood home where he now handcrafts wooden chopping boards. Sean Fletcher is looking at how a fishing ban might just save England's only breeding colony of black guillemots. Tom Heap looks at how many people say they would pay extra to ensure the best animal welfare standards, but does that always prove to be the case when it comes to the supermarket till? And Adam Henson is on the estate in Wales where they've gone big into a type of livestock you won't find down on his farm - bison!
Anita Rani is in Norfolk meeting the people keeping some of the UK's vanishing trades alive. Her first stop is Horsey Windpump which has been restored to full working glory by Tim Whiting, one of the last millwrights in the country. Next she joins the reed cutters making a living on the Norfolk Broads, where she gets to try her hand at cutting. Then she joins Nigel Ford, a man on a mission to restore all of Norfolk's ancient milestones. Finally, she meets David Wolstenholme who makes cricket bats by hand, a skill that's listed by the Heritage Crafts Association as being critically endangered, before she takes her place at the crease to put the bat to the test.
Matt Baker is in Cornwall to meet Julian Jackson, who lost his sight in 2010 and is raising money for a vision charity by walking from Land's End to John O'Groats, following spring as it spreads northwards through the country. Ellie Harrison hears about a project that has brought beavers back to the riverbanks of Cornwall after a 400-year absence. Steve Brown takes to the warm spring waters in a catamaran, hoping to spot some seasonal marine life. Tom's looking at why farmers can be at high risk of suicide and discovers what's being done to help one particular group. Adam and Charlotte meet up with the first of three finalists as they search for the Countryfile Farming Hero for 2018.
Anita Rani is in Rothbury, being put through her paces with the mountain rescue team and hearing how new technologies are helping search-and-rescue operations. Anita then goes to Amble. She visits the lobster hatchery that is giving the area's shellfish stocks a helping hand. She sees how the baby lobsters are reared before being released back into the waters. Matt is on Coquet Island, the only place in the UK with a breeding population of roseate terns. As peak breeding season approaches they need to make sure everything is in place. Matt get busy constructing nest boxes for the terns, preparing the shingle (which they like to bed into) and rigging up the nest cams. Steve Brown takes in the wildlife at Hauxley Nature Reserve. He meets James Common, whose wildlife blogging has earned him a place in the finals of this year's UK Blog Awards. Tom Heap looks into the export of live animals for slaughter from the UK and the calls for it to be banned after Brexit.
The team are in Hampshire, where Matt Baker hears about a project championing the use of local wood, as more people using locally sourced timber leads to better-managed woodlands, and that means more biodiversity. John Craven hears how oysters are being reintroduced to the Solent in a bid to revive stocks. The Solent Fishery was once the largest in Europe, but oyster fishing was banned five years ago when annual harvests plummeted from 200 to 20 tonnes in five years. On the shoreline around the Solent, Ellie Harrison hears about an innovative project to study coastal erosion. She meets Sasha, who uses radio trackers placed into stones on the beach to follow their movements. Tom Heap looks at how new technology and smart machinery could put UK farmers at greater risk of cyberattack. Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith travel to the Shetland Islands to meet the third and last finalists for the Countryfile Farming Hero Award 2018.
Matt Baker is whipping up a Welsh spring treat with baker Beca Lyne-Pirkis. Ellie Harrison meets the designer who's creating a celebratory 30th anniversary Countryfile garden for the Hampton Court Flower Show. Anita Rani's in Dorset living life on the edge, in the hope of spotting migrating birds. Steve Brown discovers how a Somerset artist gets an unusual view of our fresh new landscape. In the Norfolk Broads John Craven explores the legacy of the Edwardian naturalist and photographer Emma Turner. We meet the Buckinghamshire farmer who's becoming an internet sensation and the metalworker who's capturing spring in miniature. Adam Henson is getting fit for spring, with a little help from some farm friends.
To celebrate 65 years since Her Majesty's coronation, Countryfile, also celebrating its 30th anniversary, has been given unprecedented access to the Queen's Windsor estate. Matt Baker is at Windsor Great Park finding out about the Queen's countryside retreat and how it was as a young princess that Her Majesty first fell in love with the park. It's here where she can indulge her love of nature and also her great love of horses. Matt meets the Queen's head groom as well as her favourite pony Emma. He also explores the park in the Duke of Edinburgh's horse-drawn carriage for a unique tour of some of the Queen's favourite places. Adam Henson explores the farming history at Windsor as well as looking at the Queen's current farming methods. She has a number of breeds of livestock on the farm. Adam meets the farm manager looking after the Sussex breed of beef cattle before meeting the Queen's dairy herd of beautiful jersey cattle which are reared using also the latest farming technology. Adam is also allowed inside the never before filmed majestic creamery - designed by Prince Albert in 1857. Anita Rani looks at the Queen's love of horses and her passion for native British breeds. Anita meets a farmer who breeds Cleveland Bays, a breed rescued from the brink of extinction by HM the Queen. Sean Fletcher is at the Royal Welsh Show. It's a country show Princess Elizabeth first visited in 1947. Sean finds out about the amazing reception she's received each time she's visited. Windsor is home to some of the most ancient and veteran oak trees in Northern Europe. John Craven meets the man in charge of a huge new planting scheme across the Great Park instigated by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh. Countryfile also explores the wildlife on the park, the return of Windsor's vineyards after a gap of more than 900 years and Matt Baker looks at the challenge the Queen has faced to make this 1000-year-old estate environmentally fit to face the future.
To celebrate 65 years since HM the Queen's coronation, Countryfile has been given unprecedented access to the Queen's Balmoral estate. Matt Baker is at Glamis Castle, the family home of Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, the Queen Mother, where the Queen spent many happy childhood holidays. Ellie Harrison is exploring the woodland on the Balmoral estate and seeing how conservation projects introduced by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh are encouraging wildlife. Anita Rani is on the Western Isles where the royal family would travel on board the Royal Yacht Britannia. Anita alights on the Isle of Ghiga where the Queen once made an unannounced visit which the locals still remember today. Adam is back on the Balmoral estate meeting the stockman who looks after the Queen's herd of Highland Cattle and checks out one of the Queen's favourite bulls; Smurf. Adam catches up with the head of the Balmoral stud to see how the Queen is preserving the bloodline of the estate's Highland ponies. Ellie Harrison joins Balmoral's head deer stalker as they go out and about on the estate. Matt Baker is at one of the bothies on the estate and hears about the royal family's taste for dining outdoors and sees the barbecue designed by the Duke of Edinburgh.
To celebrate 65 years since Her Majesty's coronation, Countryfile, also celebrating its 30th anniversary, has been given unprecedented access to the Queen's Sandringham estate. Matt Baker discovers that the Queen's love of her most private rural hideaway comes through her father's side of the family. When George VI died at Sandringham in 1952 it became even more special to the Queen and as Matt discovers, memories of her father are written into the landscape, especially the trees on the estate. Adam Henson looks into the farming history of Sandringham which has run as a mixed farm of nearly 6000 acres for many years. Adam looks at the wheat and blackcurrant crops before turning his attention to the Red Poll cattle. Ellie Harrison is at the Royal Stud just half a mile from the main house. It was here that the young princess would accompany both her grandfather and father to spend time with the thoroughbreds. From this moment onwards the young princess was spellbound and still is today. Ellie learns that the Queen asks for regular reports on all her horses and sees how once the horses' racing careers have finished, the Queen has found a new lease of life for them - dressage. John Craven looks at the great flood of 1953 and meets the local people who were affected in the Sandringham area to hear their stories. Ellie is also looking at the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh's work with scientists and ecologists to monitor the health of the land at Sandringham. She visits the Duke of Edinburgh's bird hide to witness the wildlife that visits the reclaimed land and calls it home. Matt Baker also visits the Royal Pigeon Loft and discovers that the birds are a real passion of the Queen. Finally, Anita Rani learns about Her Majesty's love of gun dogs. Anita meets gun dog handler Bill Meldrum and learns how he taught the Queen to win field trials.
Sean Fletcher, Margherita Taylor and Steve Brown are in Northern Ireland. Sean is at the beautiful Lower Lough Erne meeting the two boat-building brothers reviving the traditional clinker boat. He sees the intricate way they are made and gets to sail in one - the first time a wooden clinker boat has set sail on the Lough in decades. Margherita explores the boom in pine marten numbers in Fermanagh and finds that, while it is good news for the local red squirrel population, it is bad news for smallholders. And Steve Brown heads to Killeter, where the local churches are putting on a very special display to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Cecil Frances Alexander, writer of All Things Bright and Beautiful. Also in this programme, Tom Heap meets Sir James Dyson and hears his vision for the future of British farming. Adam Henson does a bit of spring stock-taking down on his farm, and John Craven is joined by Cerys Matthews and Simon King for the launch of the Countryfile Photographic Competition for 2018.
Matt, Ellie and Steve are in West Sussex, where Matt explores the phenomenon of 'champing' - where people pay to stay in churches. He also meets the man who listens to trees and discovers the surprising world beneath their bark. Ellie meets Maya Leonard, a self-proclaimed insect activist, to hear how beetles are just as important at pollinating plants as bees. Steve is with the volunteers who hope to put an end to food waste. They call themselves gleaners, and today they are helping themselves to a field full of unwanted rhubarb. Also in this programme, Tom looks at the problem of untreated sewage being dumped in rivers, Adam meets the brewer who he hopes will buy his barley, and Adam and Charlotte announce the winner of Countryfile's Farming Hero Award.
Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are in Dorset, where Matt spends time at Lorton Meadows, a nature reserve renowned for its birds of prey. He meets Sam Dallimore, who shows him some of the nest boxes, before meeting up with Jason Fathers, who is installing web cameras. And the stars of the show are the polygamous kestrels - one male with two females, a rare occurrence in the raptor world. Thanks to the webcams, Matt gets a close-up view of the chicks too. Margherita dons her oilskins and tests her sea legs out with the couple who turned their passion for sea fishing into a thriving business. The programme also features Kieran Peree, who gave up his training as an engineer to dive for scallops off the Dorset coast. Adam visits a care farm that is helping people rebuild their lives. Tom discovers how low pupil numbers and a lack of funds mean many rural schools are facing a fight to survive. And Anita meets the first of the contenders in Countryfile's search for a young presenter.
Ellie Harrison and Sean Fletcher explore the grounds and surrounds of Hampton Court Palace. It is home to the last stable of working shire horses in London, and Sean hears how they offer a natural alternative to modern machinery. While Sean is at the house, Ellie is in the garden, at the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show, revealing the finished design of the Countryfile Wildlife Garden. Anita Rani and Adam Henson meet the next two Young Presenter finalists. Adam also hears how lupins are being used as an alternative to soya in livestock feed. Tom Heap finds out whether a US free-trade deal after Brexit would mean boom or bust for UK farmers.
Sean Fletcher spells out what it is he loves so much about Wales, with his 'seven wonders of Wales' - the mountains, hill farming, heritage, wildlife, castles, food and the coastline. This final wonder is a particular favourite of Sean's, and he's not the only one to think that. So to celebrate its shoreline, Wales has chosen 2018 as its Year of the Sea. From the 870 miles of pathway that run the whole length of the coastline, many Welsh wonders can be seen. Sean journeys along Pembrokeshire's stretch of the Welsh Coastal Path. On the way he flexes his Welsh language skills as he meets people who live and work on the path with tales to tell.
To celebrate Countryfile's 30th anniversary, John Craven takes us through 30 of the most memorable moments from the programme from the past three decades. Matt Baker meets local legend Joss Naylor, who has been running over Cumbria his whole life and is known as the king of the fells. There's a look back over some of the big news stories covered by the programme, including foot and mouth. Tom meets a farmer featured at the height of the outbreak to see how he's coped. There's also a look at some favourite wildlife encounters and Ellie meets the students who could become the future of wildlife film-making. We revisit some of the quirkier events in the rural calendar, such as the world nettle eating championships and the world tin bath racing event. Steve Brown is on Ullswater meeting those on a quest for the Holy Grail of the boating world. Countryfile has often travelled abroad to see what we can learn from our farming neighbours and Adam is in France hearing how ancient methods of farming could be the future.
The team travel to Exmoor. Matt Baker meets a group of youngsters on the National Citizen Service scheme, a residential course that uses outdoor activities to help children from all backgrounds to build skills for work and life. Exmoor is one of only a handful of places in the country where the UK's most endangered butterfly - the high brown fritillary - can be spotted, and Margherita Taylor meets those doing all they can to restore its habitat in a bid to increase its numbers. This involves using a remote-controlled mini-tractor that breaks down bracken to create runnels that the butterflies can travel though. It also encourages the underlying violets to grow that the caterpillars feed on. Adam Henson meets the Sikh family of strawberry-growers that are uniting farmers around Worcestershire, who have started the Growers United Football Charity. It not only brings local farmers and growers together and raises money, but also promotes agriculture as a key sector of the economy. Tom looks at what is being done to fight lyme disease, a debilitating illness that affects up to 3,000 people a year and is often transmitted through a single bite from an infected tick. Joe finds out how moorland communities are dealing with the impact of this summer's wildfires, looking at how the continuing dry spell is forcing farmers to use up vital supplies of winter fodder to make up for the lack of grazing in the parched countryside. The Young Presenter Talent Search reaches its climax, as Anita is joined by fellow presenters Nick Baker and JB Gill to decide the winners in each age category.
John, Margherita and Steve are in East Yorkshire where John takes a trip down memory lane to the seaside holidays of his youth. He returns to Bridlington where he meets the enthusiasts keeping the traditional coble boats afloat, and is lucky enough to set out in one under sail. Margherita discovers a secret arts trail in the Wolds and meets poet Ian MacMillan to hear about his love of the area. Steve is a few miles inland meeting a farmer who grows hemp and discovers how versatile a plant it is. And to prove this he helps build a wall made of hemp bricks. Charlotte looks at how tourism is having a negative impact on some of best loved beauty spots, and Adam meets the farmer taking to the internet to get his message about farming out.
Matt, Ellie and Steve are in Nottinghamshire where Matt reports on the plight of the original Bramley apple tree. He joins the scientists working to preserve as much genetic material from it in an effort to unlock the secrets of its long life. There's a double hit of wildlife from Ellie as she goes on a night time hunt for one of Britain's rarest bats - the barbastelle. It's appearance this far north is creating a stir amongst conservationists. Then she joins the husband and wife team behind one of the country's most successful barn owl projects, and gets up close to their latest clutch of chicks. Steve heads for the woods to see how nature is helping some of the county's most vulnerable people. Also in this programme Charlotte looks at the threat to our country parks from council funding cuts and Adam's on his farm counting the cost of the continuing dry spell.
The team are at Countryfile Live, set in the stunning grounds of Blenheim Palace. Matt Baker tries his hand scurry racing, where it takes skill to handle the horses and make the scurry take corners at speed. Ellie Harrison meets the artist whose skill is taxidermy without the animals. John Craven takes along his pet dachshund Dora and explores Churchill's love of dogs. Steve Brown goes backstage at the first ever British charcuterie awards and meets the producers putting British meats on the map. Adam Henson is with Blenheim's head shepherd finding out how to manage a flock of 1,500 sheep on a World Heritage site. Tom Heap looks at the impact plastics are having on the environment. Anita Rani is joined by the winners of the Young Presenter Talent search. Anita and ten-year-old Matilda get hands-on with hedgehogs and discover why, despite being endangered nationally, their numbers are on the rise in the grounds of the Blenheim estate. Thirteen-year-old Archie teams up with Anita to find out why fishing has increased 50 per cent amongst under-16s. While Archie gets some angling advice from a teenager helping to get more youngsters involved, Anita meets comedian and fishing fanatic Paul Whitehouse for his top tips. Anita and Archie then go head to head in a fish-off.
Matt and Margherita are in North Wales where Matt discovers how miniature technology could tell us more about the habits of one of our best-loved insects. He's shown how tiny antennae are strapped to individual bees which are then tracked by drones. Matt also meets the entrepreneurial young beekeeper already farming her own bees and selling the honey to businesses nearby. Margherita takes a ride on the famous Blaenau Ffestiniog railway along with people living with dementia and their carers. The trip is the brainchild of Emma Jayne Quaeck who saw how being out in nature helped her own mother's condition. Margherita also heads underground to see how old slate mines are being used to help age prize-winning local cheese. John is joined by fellow judges Cerys Matthews and Simon King to announce the final 12 in this year's Countryfile Photographic Competition, and Adam comes face to face with a cattle breed that is shaking up smallholding.
Steve Brown goes on a whistlestop tour of the place he calls home - the Isle of Sheppey. A flat landscape typified by saltmarsh, sea and big skies, this is a wilderness full of wildlife. The programme spends the day immersed in nature at Elmley Marshes on the north Kent coast. It's the country's only family-run farm that is also a designated national nature reserve. With waders within the wetlands, livestock on the saltmarsh that snakes down to the sea and raptors soaring high in the enormous skies, Steve gives viewers an insight into the landscape he loves. The programme also looks back at some of Countryfile's favourite forays on to marshland, on the seas and in the sky.
Anita Rani and John Craven are in Essex, where there is so much more going on beside the seaside than just sandcastles and seagulls stealing chips. Anita hears how tough old timber that has travelled half way around the world from the tropics to the UK is being up-cycled and repurposed to find new life in the Essex landscape. John visits a farm which is a leader in the field when it comes to growing niche crops. Peter Fairs was one of the first farmers to grow quinoa back in the 1970s, and an increase in plant-based diets means that Peter's unusual crops are becoming more mainstream. John gets a taste of their latest superfood crops - borage and chia. In a couple of weeks Countryfile celebrates Britain's best shepherding talent, playing host to the One Man and His Dog sheepdog trial competition. As the competitors and their collies get ready, Adam Henson heads out to meet teams Scotland and Ireland. Tom Heap looks at why the government has finally given fracking the go ahead.
Harvest is one of the busiest times of the farming year, but this year many farmers are bearing the brunt of the winter storms and summer drought. Helen Skelton visits a farm in York to hear how carrots are in crisis. The extremes of weather have lead to the lowest yields for decades and the highest levels of imports. Steve Brown is in Cornwall looking at a much smaller harvest. He meets Seth Pascoe, a man who wants to bring the nutritional benefits of sea berries to the wider public. But it is a delicate fruit with many sharp thorns to bypass. Adam Henson meets the Welsh and English contenders for this year's One Man and His Dog. Have they got what it takes to be crowned champion? Charlotte Smith investigates whether farmers can really trust their banks when it comes to their future financing. Matt Baker has all the information on to take part in this year's Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need.
The British Isles' top shepherds and their collies descend on the small village of Llansteffan in south Wales as we host Countryfile's One Man and His Dog 2018. Teams from England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland are all competing for the coveted trophy, each team made up of a senior shepherd and the up-an-coming talent of a youngster. This year the seniors take on trailing's most difficult discipline, 'the brace' - working two dogs at the same time, and our youngsters have an average age of just 11 years. Whilst Matt Baker takes to the commentary box, Anita Rani explores the Llansteffan ferry, making its return after 60 years, and which for generations has connected two communities across the Tywi estuary. Anita also hunts for one of the area's richest natural resources - cockles.
This week we're in Herefordshire where Sean is at Bodenham Lake, site of a huge habitat creation project. When work is complete there will be new spaces for otters, water rail, bitterns and the lake's best known inhabitant, the grass snake. Sean joins Sophie Cowling, the warden here, and her volunteers as they seek out these slippery creatures as part of an ongoing survey. Margherita meanwhile is in a traditional orchard looking to turn its fortunes around with the help of a brew popular in medieval times - verjuice. Made from the juice of unripe apples, verjuice is proving a hit with foodies and top chefs alike. Adam is also in Herefordshire, helping to get another of the country's famous crops in - hops. Matt's getting ready for this year's Countryfile Ramble for Children in Need by meeting Josh, an inspirational 14-year-old whose ambition is to climb a mountain. John is here to announce the winner of this year's Countryfile photographic competition, and Tom is investigating how city-based drug gangs are targeting some of the countryside's most vulnerable children.
Ellie Harrison takes an unflinching look at the state of the country's wildlife - the pressures it is under, the challenges it faces and the prospects for some of the most vulnerable species. Ellie visits Devon to see the efforts being made to save one of the rarest insects, the narrow-headed ant. She also visits the Exmoor estate where water voles haven't been seen in 30 years. Matt Baker is in Cornwall to see how a project to rear lobsters sustainably could have benefits for other threatened sea species. Steve Brown visits a seabird sanctuary still dealing with the after-effects of the Torrey Canyon disaster 50 years ago. Adam Henson is in Northern Ireland to see how farmers are working with the RSPB to bring back farmland birds.
Ellie Harrison is in Derbyshire to explore some of the things people can do on a different day out. Her first stop is Carsington Water, where she learns how to build a makeshift raft before taking to the water and racing it. Then she takes in an arts trail that features chainsaw sculptures, including a giant frame in which the landscape becomes the art. She heads to a limestone quarry to do some daytime moth-spotting and learns that this unusual habitat is the ideal home for some of the country's rarest moths. Finally, she takes part in the world-famous Bonsall Hen Racing Championships, meets the current world champion, eight-year-old Jack Alsop Smith, and gets some hen-racing tips before competing to see who will be crowned 2018 champion. Ellie also looks back through the Countryfile archives to come up with other ideas for a different day out.
Countryfile celebrates all things autumn. Matt Baker is on the Isle of Skye otter spotting. Anita Rani meets a potter on the Ards Peninsular who is capturing the essence of the season in her work. Steve Brown experiences the beauty of autumn leaves in miniature and all their mighty magnificence. In north Wales John Craven visits the kitchen garden where autumn produce is coming to a sticky end. Adam Henson meets a couple making the most of autumn's random apples. In South Yorkshire Margherita Taylor gets her hands dirty with a third-generation forager. The programme visits a pumpkin farmer at his busiest time of year, and beauty expert Liz Earle explains why autumn is her favourite season on the family farm.
The fourth annual Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need features the show's presenters leading rambles across the UK, joined by viewers and inspirational youngsters helped by the charity. Anita Rani heads to Northern Ireland's Mourne Mountains, Adam Henson takes in Scotland's Galloway Forest Park, Ellie Harrison leads a mass ramble of more than 1,000 round the cathedral city of Ely, John Craven and Steve Brown team up to take a group of ramblers through Padarn Country Park in north Wales, and Matt Baker heads to the Isle of Skye, hoping to fulfil a young boy's dream of scaling a mountain. Meanwhile, roving reporter Tom Heap catches up with some of the thousands of public rambles which took part across Britain in aid of the cause.
Countryfile visits Worcestershire, where Matt Baker finds out about plans to save Pershore Lock Island and encourage more wildlife to live there. He also meets a group of visually impaired children who are experiencing nature from the water. Anita Rani meets the couple who fell in love over their passion for Holstein cattle. She also uncovers the mysterious history of the county's black pear. John Craven discovers Ruskin Land and meets the architecture students getting hands-on with oak. Tom Heap looks at whether enough is being done to keep the great British oak tree safe from disease and parasitic pests, and Adam Henson meets the farmer whose chickens only lay white eggs.
Countryfile visits East Sussex, where Sean Fletcher meets a family who have a passion for poultry. Ellie Harrison discovers the life and work of little-known British landscape artist Eric Slater, and she also meets the woman keeping the age-old craft of trug-making alive. It is an emotional day for Adam Henson as he tests his cattle for TB, plus, on this very special Armistice Day, John Craven is in the village of Rotherfield honouring the parish's war dead, 100 years on. And Tom Heap investigates the outbreak of a mystery disease that could take the UK's hare population to the brink of extinction.
Countryfile visits Cambridgeshire, where Anita Rani is at the 40th annual hedge-laying competition and meets a painter that finds trees totally inspiring. Sean Fletcher meets two water buffalo helping in the battle against invasive pennywort. Margherita Taylor is bowled over by a group of woodworkers. And it's a big day for Adam Henson as he finds out if his cattle are TB free, and Charlotte investigates claims that hundreds of villages have been condemned to an early grave.
Countryfile is in Suffolk, where John Craven takes to the water to meet the Walberswick ferrywomen. He also finds out about the age-old craft of pargetting. Margherita Taylor is on the hunt for one of our sleepiest little mammals - dormice. She also visits a farm that run an adopt-a-pig scheme. Adam Henson introduces his rams to his ewes, and Tom is looking at whether the UK is falling short when it comes to the welfare standards of one of the nation's favourite foods - fish.
Countryfile is in County Durham, where Helen Skelton finds out about the traditional rapper dance of the region. She meets the High Spen Pink Diamonds rapper troupe who show her a few steps and how to dance with an 18-inch strip of sprung steel! She also meets Shona Branigan, an artist who uses a blow torch and raw wood to make stunning prints. Steve Brown enters the rare world of fancy pigeon showing. He meets 11-year-old Joseph Morrow, a champion pigeon fancier, to pick up tips on what it takes to show a prize-winning pigeon. He also speaks to a stained glass artist drawing inspiration from nature. Also in this programme Adam Henson finds out that whilst harvest time may be long past, in Somerset it's still going on. But then willow isn't your usual crop! And Tom Heap looks at how some farmers have been accused of trying to cash in by tampering with their livestock TB test.
John Craven, Helen Skelton and Margherita Taylor are on the Isle of Wight, where John meets the amateur dinosaur hunter finding new prehistoric creatures along the coast. He also visits the miniature village where traditional building skills are being applied on a tiny scale. Margherita takes to the waves to see how artificial rock pools are throwing a lifeline to some of the islands most vulnerable sea species, and Helen hears about the challenges of farming in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. She also meets the young farmers who is also a wiz in the mountain-biking world. Tom Heap looks at the problem of hidden waste being revealed by coastal erosion and, with the recent legalising of cannabis for some medical use, Adam Henson visits one of the biggest growers in the country.
Matt Baker, Sean Fletcher and Margherita Taylor are in the Cairngorms, where Matt meets Tilly Smith and her herd of 150 reindeer. The reindeer roam wild and free and a team of scientists are studying their grazing habits to assess its impact on the environment. Sean spends the day with ten-year-old Xander Johnson, who is part of a big effort to save one of the UK's rarest insects - the pine hoverfly, found only in two places in the Cairngorms and under threat in both of them. Margherita learns all about mountain safety and smartphones should not be trusted out in the wild. She also hears from Amanda Thomson, an academic who is on a mission to preserve disappearing Scots words and whose work has inspired Marina Dennis, a crofter keen to preserve old crofting traditions and the language used to describe them. And with Christmas just a week away, Adam Henson checks in on a couple of new arrivals who lend a very seasonal air to the farm, and Tom Heap investigates whether enough is being done to help the rural homeless when extreme weather hits.
Matt Baker and the team are in the small village of Elsdon in Northumberland, where preparations are in full swing for a big Christmas bash. Matt helps get the Bird in Bush pub all decked out for the party and meets some of the locals for whom the pub is much more than merely a place for a quiet drink. Steve Brown is out and about picking sloes for a festive tipple with a difference. Anita Rani turns to blacksmithing for an unusual Christmas decoration. John Craven is in the woods with the foragers looking for pine needles to give their cookies a seasonal twist. Ellie Harrison heads to Wallington Hall to see the red squirrels in all their winter pomp. Tom Heap joins the choir spreading good cheer door to door in a bid to combat isolation among the more elderly in the community. And Adam Henson is in Worcestershire at the biggest mistletoe market in the country.
Anita Rani is in Yorkshire celebrating some of the many remarkable women who have been featured on the programme over the years. She revisits stories of courageous and determined women - from those who stepped into male shoes, working the land during the First and Second World Wars, to a female polar explorer with a big attitude. Anita also meets the women making their mark on the countryside today, from a champion tree climber to an ornithologist whose passion for birds has a long lineage. Plus the graffiti artist with big and bold ideas about flora and fauna, and farmers of the future.
Adam Henson looks at the harsh reality of being a rural vet in the depths of winter - a job that's often a matter of life and death. He also looks back at the trials and tribulations of one the country's largest practices - seeing first-hand the challenges they face treating all creatures great and small.
Countryfile is in Kent, where Matt Baker is exploring the magnificent Leeds Castle as it celebrates its 900th anniversary. He tries his hand at a spot of falconry with the castle's resident birds of prey. Margherita Taylor is visiting a nature reserve where our feather friends are flocking in. She also meets the farmer whose fussiest customers are gorillas and elephants! And Adam Henson is finding out that this time of year can be difficult for our farmland birds. Tom looks at the problems of waste plastic on farms. UK recycling facilities are so flooded with domestic plastic waste that options for dealing with agricultural plastic are shrinking whilst farmers' waste stockpiles are growing.
Countryfile is in Wiltshire, where Matt Baker discovers the incredible work of the care farm which is changing children's lives. Anita Rani tastes a local cheese with a long heritage and unearths a type of coral only found in this county. Paralympian Hannah Cockroft is in the Highlands of Scotland meeting a young gamekeeper to find out what the job entails. Adam Henson is on his farm taking stock at the turn of the new year. Tom Heap investigates how far we are prepared to go to keep the UK's farms free from disease.
Matt Baker explores Dalby Forest as the Forestry Commission marks its centenary, and Turner Prize-winning artist Rachel Whiteread shows us her sculpture, commissioned to mark the anniversary. Ellie Harrison captures the winter beauty of this county's diverse landscape. John Craven meets the wood carver known as Stick Man. We go dolphin spotting with Paralympian Hannah Cockroft and Adam Henson is meeting the ex-England rugby player who has traded in world cups for prize-winning cattle. Tom is on the trail of the dog thieves targeting the countryside.
Winter is a tough time for wildlife, but at Lower Moss Wood nature reserve in Cheshire they pull out all the stops to help. Steve Brown meets the volunteers and the inspirational head of the reserve Ray Jackson, who was awarded an MBE for his services to wildlife. Steve is shown the specialist hospital unit where volunteers are busy tending to some poorly hedgehogs. Ray also helps injured bats build up their strength ahead of release in the spring. Steve gets to meet some of the reserve's permanent residents, including foxes tame enough to feed by hand and the owls who wouldn't survive in the wild. Adam Henson launches this year's search for Countryfile's farming hero.
The team head out across the UK to reveal how the countryside is full of life even in the coldest of months. Matt Baker travels to the Norfolk Broads, lending a hand in one of the area's most ambitious environmental schemes, transforming water into new land for the area's plantlife. He then helps restore one of the Broads' historic drainage mills which used to maintain the landscape in years gone by, before joining in a project taking a snapshot of Norfolk's winter wildlife. Ellie Harrison explores the Scottish lifestyle concept of coorie, where getting in touch with the season involves a winter dip in a freshwater loch before sampling the taste of the Scottish landscape, courtesy of Michelin-starred chef Tom Kitchin. Steve Brown heads to Devon to discover the challenges faced by barn owls in making it through this harshest of seasons. Adam Henson leaves the mainland for the Isles of Scilly, where in winter the main economy turns from tourism to farming as islanders gather in the narcissi harvest. And John Craven has a heartwarming experience when he visits the village of Lover in Wiltshire, where residents are using their romantic name to regenerate their rural community with a Valentine's postal service.
Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are in a very snowy Devon. Matt looks at the work of photographer James Ravilious, who spent years photographing the Devon countryside. He meets Brian Low, one of the farmers who appeared in the photos back in the 1970s and discovers what Ravilious's legacy means to him. Later, Matt returns to Brian's farm to meet some just-born calves, before heading to the farm of Lisa Lucas Ridge, where lambing is in full swing. Margherita meets the people from the Axewood Co-operative, a group who chop down wood and give it away. Margherita meets some of the beneficiaries of this log bank and finds out how this initiative is helping ease fuel poverty locally. Margherita also heads to Greenway, the fabled summer home of Agatha Christie and inspiration for many scenes in her books. The gardens are famous for their camellias, which are in full bloom despite the icy weather. Also in this programme, Hannah Cockroft does a spot of bird-watching, Tom Heap investigates the growth of illegal bloodsports online and Adam Henson sees how virtual reality is being used to train the farmers of the future.
Matt and Helen are in Gloucestershire where Matt pays a visit to the world-famous Slimbridge wetland reserve to see how a massive multi-million-pound refurbishment is going. Matt gets a sneak peak of Sir Peter Scott’s personal studio, soon to be opened to the public for the first time. He also finds out how some old hunting kit is being used to aid conservation. Duck decoys were used to funnel ducks for shooting, but now they are being used to help gather data on Slimbridge's many duck species. Helen is on a dairy farm where two enterprising brothers have come up with a winning use for their produce: kefir, a kind of fermented milk drink from Russia that is currently one of the hottest foodie trends. She also meets an artist who draws with wire and takes her inspiration from the wildfowl at Slimbridge. Also in this programme, Hannah Cockroft is on the Gower helping rid its beaches of plastic. And Adam’s in Devon, where despite it being winter, it’s shearing time for one special breed of sheep, and Joe investigates the row over how some of the UK’s richest landowners want to manage our moorland.
Matt and Ellie are exploring Cheshire and a wildlife haven in the Wirral. Matt is on a dairy farm meeting sixth-generation farmer Henry Cooke and hearing his plans to become the biggest producer of clotted cream outside the south west. Matt takes a look at Henry’s Danish red cattle, whose rich milk is the secret ingredient. He then sees how the cream is baked to become clotted cream. Ellie meets the retirees who have hooked up with Cheshire Wildlife Trust to make bespoke furniture, the sales of which go toward helping local wildlife. She then heads to the Wirral, to the unspoiled Hilbre Island, with bird enthusiast Allan Conlin to see the wide variety of birds there and to hear about Allan’s passion for this remote island, just a stone's throw from Liverpool city centre. Also in this programme Hannah Cockroft travels to beautiful North Uist in the Outer Hebrides to get a taste of the crofting life. Tom is looking at the struggle faced by many rural vets to stay in business, and Adam is in Somerset finding out about a scheme to help young people get a foot on the farming ladder.
This week Countryfile is in Somerset. Matt Baker is visiting a farm that’s giving budding farmers a helping hand. Helen Skelton’s got a liking for lichen deep in Exmoor’s woodlands, and she’s discovering the creatures that call the north Somerset coastline home. In a special film for Comic Relief, Sir Tony Robinson will be visiting a charity that’s making a real difference to people’s lives. Adam Henson is in Cheshire on a shopping trip with a difference - he’s buying livestock, and Tom Heap is looking at whether enough is being done to protect our coastal waters.
Countryfile is in north west Wales, where Joe Crowley visits a sheep farm and meets its striking new arrivals - Valais Blacknose sheep. Margherita Taylor discovers the Welsh names for the local flora and fauna, and she cooks up a mushroom-flavoured storm with a local barbecuing fanatic. Steve Brown meets a group that's helping to get people of all abilities out on the water. Adam Henson welcomes some new arrivals to his farm, and Tom Heap tries to figure out the true extent of the financial threat now facing the UK’s farms.
Across the country, farmers are working hard to provide us with the bulk of our food – from chicken and beef to peas and potatoes. But there are many individuals producing the more unusual foods we like to indulge in from time to time. Sean is in Oxfordshire meeting those with a passion for our more unusual produce, from picklers to cheesemakers. He’ll be on the hunt for the perfect ingredients to make that most traditional of British meals - a hearty ploughman’s, with a twist. We’ll also be looking back through the archive to some of the foodies championing the more extraordinary edibles – from the time John met the kelp grower in Northern Ireland to when Anita helped harvest peppermint; from Matt, pulping pears for Perry, to Adam harvesting a spice worth its weight in gold.
Countryfile is exploring Surrey, where Matt Baker meets the women who have inspired generations of conservationists. Helen Skelton visits a biodynamic vineyard, John Craven finds out how best to go about keeping pigs, Steve Brown unearths the history of the Surrey landscape through sculpture, Adam finds out what Brexit means to our farmers, and Tom looks at whether the UK’s favourite meat could – or should - ever be antibiotic-free.
This programme marks the 70th anniversary of the creation of our national parks. Matt will be looking at the history of their formation, and he’ll be joining a diverse group of walkers recreating historic photographs from the mass trespasses of the 1930s. John is exploring the industrial history of Rosedale on the North York moors and meeting the modern day glassmakers following in the footsteps of 16th-century Huguenot artisans. Charlotte is in the New Forest looking at the pressures on the park caused by its proximity to big urban centres. Sean is in Pembrokeshire finding out how park authorities have engaged walkers in a citizen science project to record coastal erosion on their smartphones. Margherita is on Exmoor telling the story of long-forgotten 19th-century landscape visionary John Knight, who planned his own embryonic 'national park' back in the 1820s, and Adam is in the Trossachs finding out about the challenges of farming in a national park.
Matt meets the farmer using a no-till method of raising crops to help save our soils. He also discovers that prehistoric long barrows are making a comeback as people look for alternatives to traditional burials. Ellie is on the trail of Shropshire’s Clun sheep, meeting people who turn Clun fleeces into sought after garments. She also joins the volunteers rescuing our small woods from oblivion. Steve’s all in a lather as he gets to milk a lively herd of goats and turn that milk into soap. Tom investigates how going green has left thousands of farmers out of pocket, and Adam meets the farmers pinning their lot on one of our favourite snacks.
Matt is in Panshanger Park in Hertfordshire, seeing how an old quarry has become one of the best places for wildlife in the county. He also finds out that the park's many old trees are whole ecosystems in their own right, teeming with life. Sean is in Panshanger too, helping move a herd of English longhorn cattle to complete a 300-year-old vision for the park. This being Easter Sunday, Anita is on the trail of one of our favourite Easter snacks - the hot cross bun. She visits a restored, working watermill and helps grind the flour needed to make her Easter treats. Steve is in Buckinghamshire at Whitecross Green Wood nature reserve, looking for signs of spring. Down on Adam’s farm there is plenty of new spring life, but in among the new arrivals there’s also a note of sadness too, and Tom looks at how the fight to prevent a UK water shortage could hit food producers the hardest.
Matt meets caravan enthusiasts near Morecambe Bay as they celebrate 100 years of caravanning history. He also discovers how the rise of camping has allowed farms to diversify. Ellie steps aboard a ‘floating apothecary’ run by two trained herbalists who use plants from the forest to make natural remedies. Adam meets top chef Michael Wignall as they take a tour of his favourite suppliers in North Yorkshire, including a Himalayan salt chamber. John goes from fleece to fabric as he tries his hand at shearing with blade scissors and dying unspun wool using spring flowers. The whole process is sustainable, biodegradable and bringing cloth-making back to Bristol. Anita is doing the donkey work in Northern Ireland as she takes part in a tradition stretching back centuries in which donkeys do all the ploughing and planting of traditional Irish crops. And while Steve is on a quest to spot some of the birds returning to the UK this spring, he meets a local artist who makes 3D paper sculptures inspired by nature.
Ellie Harrison introduces archive reports on people and animals living on Britain's coastline. She also visits Somerset's Steart Peninsula, home to the UK's biggest new coastal wetland, created to play a vital role in preventing flooding and fighting the impact of coastal erosion, and meets farmers who still manage to make a living from the surrounding land in the face of flooding.
Countryfile is in Aberdeenshire, where Anita Rani meets a farmer and her daughter who have a passion for the hardiest of livestock, Highland cattle. She also visits some farmers with a hankering for heritage vegetables. Joe Crowley turns detective to track down the disappearing wild Atlantic salmon. Steve Brown visits a wildlife rescue centre that’s been making headlines, Tom Heap looks at plans to force devvelopers to pay to improve the countryside, and on Adam Henson's farm it’s time for his animals to quit their winter feed and hit pastures new.
This month marks 200 years since Queen Victoria’s birth, so Countryfile is exploring the Victorians' fascination with nature and the great outdoors. Matt Baker visits Queen Victoria’s beloved country retreat, Osborne House on the Isle of Wight, where preparations for the celebrations are well underway. Ellie Harrison finds out about the rebellious Victorian women’s cycling clubs. John Craven delves into Darwin’s theory of sexual selection and his issues with the flamboyant peacock. Margherita Taylor takes a microscopic view of the Victorian obsession with science and the ordering of nature, Adam Henson meets the dairy farmer who overcame adversity to realise his dream, and Tom Heap looks at the impact of bringing Britain’s biggest bird of prey back to our skies.
This week the team are in Derbyshire. Matt Baker joins a group of people who have been restoring Chesterfield’s canals – bringing both employment and life back to the area. Anita Rani is in Tissington – a village owned by the same family for 400 years, but with some very modern ideas about land management and development of an agricultural estate. Anita hears all about the area's industrial past and meets a modern-day knife maker. Steve Brown meets the 'nectar inspectors' and learns how we can all help pollinators by calculating the 'nectar score' in our own back gardens and yards. Tom finds out whether a vision of chemical-free farming could ever become a reality. And Adam and Charlotte meet the first finalist in our search for the Countryfile Farming Hero 2019.
This week the team are in south Wales. Matt Baker is on the Gower Peninsula to learn about a project that’s not only creating new structures from the fabric of the land but also building a future for the people on it. Ellie Harrison is in Monmouthshire, where it’s already shearing time. But this isn’t a sheep farm – there’s a new flock on the block: alpacas! Sean gets a taste of the landscape on a pig farm in the Black Mountains, Tom Heap asks whether our countryside has become a tax haven for the super-rich, and Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith meet the second of our Farming Hero finalists for 2019.
This week the team are in Hampshire celebrating our chalk streams. Anita is with the volunteers of the local Wildlife Trust who use novel ways to check for water pollution. She also joins a group of women with breast cancer who’ve found companionship and support through fly fishing. Matt meets the farmers who are trying different approaches to help reduce run-off from their farms, including one whose water buffalo were causing a bit of a problem. Joe Crowley investigates claim that factories are flushing polluting chemicals into watercourses, and he also meets Cyril Bennet, one of the world’s leading experts on mayflies, to learn about his work reintroducing them to rivers. Also in this programme, Adam and Charlotte meet the last of the three contenders for our Farming Hero Award.
This week Matt Baker is in West Yorkshire at the beautiful Hardcastle Crags near Hebden Bridge. It’s 50 years since protesters saved this beauty spot from being turned into a reservoir. These days it’s a different kind of watery enemy that threatens - floodwater - so Matt joins volunteers working on various ways to prevent future flooding. He also spends an afternoon exploring the special habitat and diverse wildlife that thrives in this natural gorge, and whose existence depends very much on preventing floods. Meanwhile, Anita Rani meets a woman looking to change our laundry habits with tiny sheep-shaped tumble dryer balls. Anita also meets the dairy farmers whose Pontefract cake flavoured ice cream helped them bounce back after lean times in the farming industry. John Craven is joined by fellow judges Simon King and Cerys Matthews to launch this year’s photographic competition, Adam meets the Devon shepherd who’s taking on the best sheep shearers in the world and beating them hands down, and Joe is on the trail of the smugglers targeting one of our most endangered creatures - glass eels.
We’re in Lincolnshire where Ellie is kicking back in a bar where it’s not drinks on the menu but clouds! Visitors to this 'cloud bar' are encouraged to looks to the skies, spot a few clouds, and let their minds drift. Ellie also sees how eels are being used to combat the threat from invasive signal crayfish. Matt looks at a new way of managing the county's grass verges that benefits not just wildlife but the farming community too. There’s another of Adam’s looks at what Brexit could mean for our farmers, and he’s joined by Charlotte at the Food and Farming Awards where they’ll be announcing this year’s Countryfile Farming Hero. And Tom looks at whether funding art in the countryside is really worth it.
Machynlleth is the first town in Wales to declare a climate emergency. Anita pays a visit to see how the local community is coming together to do its bit in the fight against a warming planet. She stops off at the repair café where everything from bikes to old umbrellas is given a new lease of life. She picks her own veg at various help-yourself plots around the town and heads to the Centre for Alternative Technology where she cooks up a feast with the veg she’s picked in a big solar-powered oven. Also at the Centre she checks out the latest designs in solar heating and finds out that everything from cherry stones to bracken can be used to insulate our homes.
The Countryfile team are at the Royal Highland Show celebrating the best that rural Scotland has to offer. Matt Baker goes behind the scenes amongst the feathers and fleece, hair and horn. Stockmanship takes centre stage here, and the show is a shop window for the best livestock in the country - a chance for farmers to take pride in what they do and show it off. Of course rural produce is also on display. And there’s one delicacy so important to the Scottish economy it was recently granted special status to stop imposters from using its name - the Arbroath Smokie. Anita Rani meets fifth generation ‘Smokie man’ Ian Spinks for a real taste of tradition. Exports of Scotch whisky hit a record high last year, and Ellie Harrison meets one local lady taking a shot at the drinks market with her own award-winning Scottish gin. There are more than 900 prestigious competitions at the show and Sean Fletcher learns at first hand the art of competitive horseshoe-making from one of the best farriers in the business, Sarah Mary Brown. A show like this inevitable produces tonnes of waste. As recycling the waste produced by everyday life has become increasingly important, it’s become increasingly more complicated. Tom Heap asks if it is even worth it. Away from the show, Adam Henson sees the preparations involved for farmers, as they get ready to show their prized cattle at what is the pinnacle of the rural calendar.
In Bedfordshire, Ellie Harrison is on the Totternhoe nature reserve, hearing how tiny temperature loggers could help some of our rarest species combat the effects of climate change. John Craven visits the secluded estate of Luton Hoo, where the walled garden and the estate’s farmland have played an important role throughout the years. Both were used as training grounds for Land Girls, and John meets Zeita Holes who trained as a dairy maid there. Matt Baker spends the day on the Franklin family farm. It started life as a poultry farm, and has been passed down through six generations. But over the years the family have diversified to keep up with changing market demands, and their focus now is on producing slow-grown, 100% traceable food. They also supply their meat to another producer in the area making something that Bedfordshire only wishes had the same fame as its Cornish counterpart – the Bedfordshire Clanger! Adam Henson visits his Suffolk Punch, Lexie. She’s been in stud for the last few months and Adam’s hoping for some good news. It’s said we’re seeing a new dawn in environmental campaigning – where established power structures are being turned on their head. Tom Heap asks if the old way of working – where top-down policy-making is enforced and monitored by bureaucratic bodies hamstrung by red tape and a lack of resources – has had its day? The eastern counties of England are known for their arable farming. But the rich soils aren’t only perfect for growing all sorts of crops; they also nurture some very rare plants, as Margherita Taylor discovers, just over the border in Lincolnshire, where she learns all about the rare tall thrift.
This week the team are in Cornwall. Anita Rani is on the Rame Peninsula, visiting the Antony Estate. It’s quiet, calm and full of wildlife, and the managers here are working closely with one of their tenants to keep it that way. It’s rather an unexpected relationship, though – with the Navy! Anita also visits a family dairy farm that has diversified into making Cornish Gouda cheese. John Craven is inland near Truro, at an off-grid camp where children are swapping digital devices for the natural world. Sean Fletcher meets a film director bringing the plight of small rural communities to the big screen. Tom Heap meets the farmers at the heart of the UK’s bovine TB outbreak who are choosing not to cull badgers, and Adam Henson helps out with a cherry harvest.
The team is in Gloucestershire to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Riding for the Disabled Association. John and Anita are at their National Championships, at Hartpury College. This is the biggest event of its kind in the world for disabled horse riders and carriage drivers. Three days, 200 horses and 500 competitors! We have an exclusive interview with Princess Anne who tells John of her long association with the RDA. Also Sean learns how to make a canoe out of flax. Adam helps with a cherry harvest in Herefordshire and Tom looks at the threat posed by equine flu.
John and Margherita are in Norfolk, where John is up at the crack of dawn to help with a release back into the wild of one of our rarest birds, the corncrake. He also meets the team behind the breeding programme and the farmers who are doing their bit by creating the right kind of wetland habitat for the birds. Margherita meets Shauna Richardson, an artist renowned for her crochet animals, an art Shauna calls crochetdermy. Margherita also meets the shepherdess and top sheepdog trainer who just happens to breed red squirrels too. Tom looks at how devices designed to scare seals away from salmon stocks could be having unintended consequences, while Joe is in Hampshire meeting a man who has made it his life’s work to save our mayflies, and Adam is in Kent meeting the young shepherdess making a name for herself in the sheepdog-handling world.
Matt, Charlotte and Steve are in Perthshire, where Matt visits Cultybraggan, a former prisoner of war camp that is now a thriving community of artisans, craftspeople and food producers. He hears about its past and meets people who remember it during wartime. Charlotte jumps in a kayak and takes to the water on a wildlife safari. She’s goes beaver spotting and hears how they’re becoming a big tourist attraction. She also tries her hand at stand-up comedy when she meets 'Farmer Jim' Smith, the farmer turned comedian famed for his wry look at the farming life. Steve meets the ladies growing tea in the south Highlands and learns the art of making the perfect cuppa, Tom looks at the hidden threat from microplastics in animal feed, and Adam is in Kent meeting the blackcurrant farmer rising to the challenge of climate change.
Sean is in the Lake District taking a look at some of the jobs working animals do. He joins Cockermouth mountain rescue team to see search and rescue dogs in action, and he meets 15-week-old Jura, a border collie pup learning the ropes from the older dogs. Then he’s off to see George Newton and his two Dales ponies, Charlie and George. They work the forests for timber as they’re able to get to places that normal machinery can’t. But Sean is surprised to find that the biggest job is being done by the smallest creatures, beetles. Katy Dainton and her team at Forestry England are using a predatory beetle to attack the destructive spruce bark beetle that threatens thousands of trees in commercial plantations. We’ll also be going back through the archives to take another look at other working animals we’ve featured, including some laid-back donkeys Matt spent time with on the Isle of Wight, the runner ducks that gave Anita the run-around in Norfolk, and the alpacas sprinkling a little joy with Adam in care homes.
Matt and Helen are in Warwickshire, where Matt is marking the centenary of the death of Joseph Arch, the one-time farm labourer who rose to become an MP. Arch fought all his life for farm workers’ rights and formed the first national agricultural workers union back in the 1870s. Matt also visits Wellesborne allotments, where the owners have recently paid their own homage to Joseph Arch, who was also a great champion of allotments. Helen learns about the importance of our hedgerows for wildlife and meets the team launching the first national hedgerow survey. She also joins the volunteers making a check at a secret site on the numbers of dormice there a year after a major reintroduction. Adam is battling against the elements to get his harvest safely home, and John, Cerys Matthews and Simon King are here to reveal the final twelve pictures the viewers will get to vote on in this years Countryfile Photographic Competition.
It was the greatest family and social upheaval ever experienced in Britain. Over the course of three days, 1.5 million people waved goodbye to their families as they headed off into the unknown - sent to live with strangers. 80 years ago to the day, on 1 September 1939, the first wave of evacuees were sent from towns and cities, under the threat of enemy bombers, to the safety of the countryside. It shaped the lives of a whole generation and its effects are still felt today. In this special programme, Steve Brown retraces his grandmother Rose’s evacuation from Croydon to Cornwall. We also have a special film with former evacuee, and patron of the British Evacuee Association, Michael Aspel OBE. Sean Fletcher experiences life as an evacuee with some schoolchildren at Acton Scott Historic Farm, Margherita Taylor meets some evacuees who were relocated to Chatsworth House for safety during the war, Adam takes Gerry Emsley back to the farm in rural Shropshire that he was evacuated to as a ten-year-old, and Tom looks at how the UK countryside is still providing sanctuary to refugees of modern-day conflict.
This week the team are in Northumberland, where Helen Skelton visits the Blyth Tall Ship scheme, where students from disadvantaged areas work with retired engineers and craftsmen to learn traditional boat building and shipwright skills. Joe Crowley meets a man on a mission - a slightly bonkers mission. Paul Farley is not only an award-winning writer, he’s also attempting to map Britain - in poetry. Places of Poetry is a community arts project where members of the public are invited to write poems and 'pin' them on a digital map of the locations that inspired them. The aim is to celebrate the diversity, history and character of the places around us. Adam meets the next of our contestants hoping to lift the trophy in this years One Man and His Dog competition, Matt has all the information on how you can take part in this year’s Countryfile ramble for BBC Children in Need, and Tom investigates the safety risks posed by the UK’s hidden reservoirs.
This week the team are in Dorset, where Ellie Harrison meets a larger-than-life character. He’s 180 feet tall and as well known as he is endowed - the Cerne Abbas Giant. But after nearly a decade of soggy summers and being trodden on, his power is waning. However, next year he has a hot date. It’s 100 years since the giant was gifted to the National Trust, and he needs to be smartened up! Ellie joins a group of volunteers to re-chalk the figure and restore it to its former glory. Ellie also visits a farm where you can harvest your own bouquet. You’ve heard of pick-your-own fruit - well, this is cut-your-own flowers! Steve Brown visits the only managed flock of mute swans in the world, at Abbotsbury Swannery. It’s thought to be the oldest continuous conservation project in the UK, dating back almost 1,000 years. Adam Henson meets the Welsh and Scottish contenders hoping to lift this year’s One Man and his Dog trophy, and Charlotte investigates the true scale of domestic abuse in the countryside.
Countryfile plays host to One Man and His Dog 2019 as the best shepherds from across the British Isles descend on the Scottish Borders to find out which nation has what it takes to claim this coveted title. Matt Baker and Helen Skelton present proceedings from Bowhill House, as the best youngsters and senior shepherds from England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland are teamed up in a bid to win the trophy for their country. We also find out about the history of Bowhill House and its unique canine connection to rare breed Dandie Dinmont dogs, and how the River Ettrick, which flows through the estate, is at the centre of a project aimed at protecting declining numbers of Scotland's wild salmon.
Joe Crowley is in Cumbria exploring the lakes’ wild side. He meets Tom Lloyd Tom, who runs fell pony treks that follow old pack-horse routes. As they trek up into the fells, it’s like going back in time, treading in the hoof-steps of countless pack ponies before them. Fell ponies would once have transported all kinds of riches from the lakes in this way, like iron, lead and copper. Joe then hears more about the lakes’ industrial heritage as he meets the artists behind a new installation celebrating the area's copper-mining history. Meanwhile, Charlotte investigates the rise of far-right extremism in the countryside.
Helen Skelton is in Buckinghamshire reaping nature’s bounty for a harvest festival and learning about the history of harvesting and the traditions surrounding it – from the introduction of the threshing machine to the origins of the corn dolly. We’ll also be digging into the Countryfile archive to revisit the times we’ve got stuck in to help harvest our country’s varied produce - like the time Matt Baker discovered Jersey Royal potatoes are still unearthed in the same way they were 200 years ago, and when Adam Henson explored the newest techniques used to grow our fruit, meaning it’s ripe and ready all year round.
Countryfile is exploring Wembury, near Plymouth. It has some of the best rock pools in the country, as Joe Crowley’s discovering at the annual nature survey happening here, known as a bioblitz. Anita Rani unearths Wembury’s naval history – until not so long ago it was the sound of gunfire you could hear overhead, not seabirds. Ellie Harrison dips beneath the waves on the hunt for the watery wildlife that calls this place home. Adam Henson is moving some of his sheep and they’ve gone all up-market – Downton Abbey no less. And Tom Heap is on the trail of the ram-raiding gangs ripping out the cashpoints which our villages rely on.
This week Countryfile is in the Forest of Dean. Matt Baker hunts for the elusive adder and finds out about a project in the forest that is teaching locals heritage crafts. Margherita Taylor meets the brass band making a big noise in the area, and she also explores the extraordinary Puzzlewood to discover how a landscape like this is protected. Adam Henson is on his farm, keeping everything crossed as Lexie, his Suffolk Punch mare, gets a pregnancy scan, and Charlotte investigates whether enough is being done on the ground when it comes to boosting the number of trees across the UK.
For the fifth annual Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need, the team head out across the UK joined by viewers and some inspirational youngsters who've been helped by the charity. They celebrate the beauty of our countryside while raising vital funds for the cause. Matt Baker takes on the challenge of completing our longest ramble ever, laid down his ramble partner, 14-year-old Ethan, who was born with cerebral palsy. Ellie Harrison and Steve Brown lead the biggest ramble of all along the city of Worcester's riverside, joined by 16-year-old Aaliyah who suffers from the heart condition cardiomyopathy, while John Craven leads a regal ramble through the grounds of Perthshire's Scone Palace alongside 13-year-old Lucy, who was born with spina bifida hydrocephalus. Walking with Anita Rani on Cornwall's north coast is 11-year-old Cara, who benefited from Children in Need-funded bereavement counselling, after losing her older sister 18 months ago. Adam Henson heads to Northern Ireland's Glenariff Forest Park, taking in the area's famous waterfalls with children from the Eco Warriors group. And Tom Heap heads to south Wales to catch up with some of the many hundreds of rambles put on by members of the public across the country.
In this special programme, the team are looking at all things autumn. Ellie is on Alderney, where autumn storms have washed up seaweed that's providing a seasonal feast for an unexpected animal. She also takes part in a survey of gannets' nests, now that the birds have left for the winter. Steve is in North Yorkshire exploring the colours of autumn and finding out what causes this seasonal display. John takes a walk in the footsteps of the poet John Keats and explores the landscape that inspired his famous poem To Autumn, written 200 years ago this autumn. Anita is on the farm of Michelin-starred chef Tommy Banks, getting some hints on pickling and preserving autumn produce. And Adam is in Herefordshire, meeting some farmers turning their seasonal crop of spuds into vodka.
Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are in Essex. Matt is with the Essex Wildlife Trust on Fingringhoe Wick – a newly created stretch of saltmarsh. It's a race against the tide as Matt helps the team do their first ever winter fish survey. They continue their 'wildlife stock take' by monitoring the mammals that also call this place home. Margherita Taylor hears about a project to preserve the spirit of the Dig for Victory campaign, before meeting Adrian Thomas from the RSPB. Adrian has done something that's never been done before in the society's 130-year history. Not only has he created the RSPB's first sound archive, but he also released a single using only birdsong! Adam Henson meets a farmer feeding his cows charcoal in the form of biochar, and Tom Heap asks if enough is being done in rural areas to support our veterans.
Charlotte Smith, Ellie Harrison and Steve Brown are on the Balcaskie Estate in the East Neuk of Fife. It has a stunning coastline, top farmland and is the source of some of the best produce in Scotland. We’ll hear how it farms, feeds and supports the local community. Charlotte hears from the estate manager how they are overhauling the way they farm, introducing new techniques such as mob grazing. She also tries her hand at what’s being dubbed 'the fastest growing rural sport in Scotland’ - competitive ploughing! Charlotte also asks whether farmers are being stopped from cashing in on one of the high street’s fastest growing health trends? Steve is at Pittenweem harbour as the local fishing boats bring in their catch of the day, Ellie meets some local food producers and hears how the facilities on the estate offer a vital link in the chain from food to fork, and it’s a tense time for Adam Henson down on the farm as his cattle are tested for TB.
Matt Baker is in the heart of the Snowdonia National Park, taking a walk through history. As well as building the backbone of the region's culture, the slate industry shaped the landscape, leaving behind apocalyptic wonderlands for lovers of the outdoors to explore. Matt is on the Snowdonia slate trail - an 83-mile loop taking in some of the area's least-trodden paths. Ellie Harrison is in the foothills of Llanberis, where the spectacular scenery is home to an activity project with a difference. The Outdoor Partnership is all about getting people outdoors. Nothing new there, but this is specifically for people who've rarely, if ever, ventured into the countryside before. From disabilities and additional needs to unemployed and all-female groups, it's all about inclusion in activities like climbing, hill-walking, rowing, sailing and paddleboarding. Ellie also meets Sydney Langton, who has a rather unusual hobby for a teenager. She likes to bring new life to dead things. Ellie meets Sydney to find out where her passion for taxidermy arose, and how she turns dead animals into works of biological art. Ellie's grounding as a biologist and naturalist means she can help Sydney put together one of her new models while explaining some of the fascinating biological elements of the subject. Meanwhile, Adam meets a farmer with a breed of sheep so rare, they were once nearly extinct – Manx Loaghtans. And Tom Heap investigates the impact of falling farm-gate prices on the British beef industry.
Sean Fletcher and Helen Skelton explore the Tees Valley. Sean meets the team behind a scheme to train dogs not to chase wading birds, although he’s got his work cut out handling 11-week-old collie pup Stanley. He also spends time with a group of visually impaired people on a sensory walk in the woods. Helen takes a tour of the mighty Tees barrage and sees how it’s improving the lot of wildlife at the mouth of the River Tees. Then she takes to the whitewater course nearby to be put through her paces by a crack team of Olympic kayakers. Adam Henson says goodbye to one of his favourite bulls on the farm, Archie, and Tom Heap investigates whether enough is being done to protect UK farming and food production from flooding.
The team are in Wiltshire, where John Craven visits a wood that has been ravaged by ash dieback. It is being left to die so that researchers can learn more about the impact of the disease. Anita Rani meets a craftsman who is keeping the ancient art of bee skep making alive. She also takes a trip to a wildlife hospital where the warm late summer has seen a huge influx of young hedgehogs too weak to hibernate. Steve Brown pays a visit to one of Britain's top wood engravers, Adam Henson is in Lincolnshire to see for himself the impact of the recent devastating floods, and Charlotte Smith investigates one of the most controversial methods of wildlife control, snaring.
Matt, Margherita and Steve are in Buckinghamshire, where Matt is with a group of schoolchildren making their very first visit to a farm. He helps them set up their own Christmas market with some of the farm produce they pick up. Margherita meets the people working hard to preserve some of the UK’s last box trees and finds out what is at stake for the crafts people that use boxwood to make fine woodwind instruments. She also takes a hike up Ivinghoe Beacon to meet the model plane enthusiasts flying their planes from the highest point in Buckinghamshire. Steve heads to Tiggywinkles wildlife hospital where he helps return a couple of barn owls to the wild, Adam goes shopping for a new bull to replace Archie, and Tom looks at whether publicly owned farms could help reinvigorate UK agriculture.
John Craven and the team are at Tyntesfield in Somerset, a stately pile that celebrates Christmas in high Victorian style. John meets the staff getting the place spruced up, and he gets measured up for his own Victorian outfit. Anita Rani tries her hand at making eco Christmas cards. Steve Brown helps make some decorations based on Victorian originals. Ellie Harrison explores the estate's ancient trees and sees the novel way they are protected from livestock. Sean Fletcher turns his hand to a bit of festive woodworking, Tom Heap looks at the plight of village halls, struggling in the festive season due to a lack of volunteers, and Adam Henson is on the farm, where cheese is being made for Christmas. The whole team come together with a 25-strong male voice choir, in full Victorian garb, to sing us out with Ding Dong Merrily on High.
Steve Brown is in Somerset celebrating the work that volunteers and communities do in our countryside. He spends the day on the community farm that’s bringing people together to learn about food, helping with mental health issues and doing its bit for the environment and sustainability. Steve helps with a bee count, meets the man who has turned his life around through woodworking, and helps pick an assortment of vegetables grown on the farm for a big alfresco meal with the volunteers.
Countryfile is been given unprecedented access to the Queen’s Balmoral estate. Matt Baker opens the programme at Glamis Castle, the family home of Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, the Queen Mother. It is where HM the Queen spent many happy childhood holidays. It is also where her love of the countryside was born, and as Matt finds out it is where she and her family explored the nearby countryside in all weathers. Ellie Harrison explores the woodland on the Balmoral estate and sees how conservation projects introduced by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh are encouraging wildlife. Anita Rani is on the Western Isles, where the royal family would travel on board the royal yacht Britannia before it was decommissioned. Anita alights on the Isle of Ghiga where the Queen once made an unannounced visit which the locals still remember today.
Matt Baker and the team commemorate the Queen’s lifelong passion for the countryside, the little girl who said her ambition was to marry a farmer. A countrywoman at heart, her love of all things rural is explored on the Windsor estate. From beekeeping to how she helped to save the Cleveland Bay, championing ancient trees – including one reckoned to date back to King Offa – pioneering hydropower, creating vineyards and wetland habitats, Matt Baker, Adam Henson, John Craven, Anita Rani and Sean Fletcher reveal how the Queen embraced the past but always looked to the future.
Compilation programme championing cottage industries. Whether heritage crafts or modern rural start-ups, this episode looks at the crafters and grafters who work in harmony with the land, or the resources on their doorstep, to make a living. Ellie Harrison is in Herefordshire meeting a woman who sells hand-crafted products all revolving around fire. And there is also a look back at some of the skilled craftspeople the team have met across the country.
The team are at Welney Wildlife Reserve in Norfolk. Thousands of birds flock to this wetland as it offers the perfect spot to roost, feed and shelter over the winter months. And January is a big month in the swan world as the international swan census takes place. Charlotte Smith helps out with the count. Steve Brown is on the trail of the illusive cranes that live in the washes around Welney. Margherita Taylor sees how the reserve's staff control flooding on the wetlands, and Sean Fletcher hears how mini donkeys are helping residents of a Welney care home. Tom Heap investigates the threat posed by the alien species making their way to our shores, and Adam Henson has designs on his own mini wetland down on the farm as he starts creating a dewpond.
The team are in Ballycastle, a coastal community on the north eastern tip of Ireland that's quickly becoming known for its local crafts and artisan food and drink. Margherita Taylor is on a small ‘forward-thinking farm’ that produces ethical and sustainable produce from animals that would other be considered waste products in the dairy industry. Joe Crowley catches up with a couple who produce award-winning smoked salmon and dulse seaweed, a popular local delicacy. Charlotte Smith goes on a red squirrel safari with a local school group, and Adam Henson welcomes new bull Black Prince to his farm.
This week, Countryfile is in the heart of the Peak District, where the pub is most definitely the hub! Anita Rani hears how the locals here saved Bamford’s village pub. It is now owned by the community and seems to be the epicentre of village life. Anita meets some of the locals and puts her best foot forward with a group of ramblers that meet here before exploring some of the stunning countryside that surrounds it. Sean Fletcher meets Luke Osborne, who is a grocer with a difference. He pulls together the best regional foods from farmers and local producers and delivers it to people in the wider rural community. Helen Skelton hangs out with a few more of the locals. When they are not propping up the bar in the village pub, some of them can be found dangling off rock faces! And the Peaks has some of the top climbing spots in the country. And there are some unexpected arrivals down on Adam’s farm, and Tom is looking at whether going green will pay off for the UK’s farmers in the future.
Matt Baker, Margherita Taylor and Steve Brown are in Dungeness in Kent, where Margherita meets people behind a campaign to save film-maker and artist Derek Jarman's famous cottage and garden. She talks to the people who knew him best and explores his life and legacy. She also spends time with the last of the 'lady launchers', those hardy women who helped launch lifeboats by hand in former times. Matt explores Dungeness's strange and barren landscape, where blackthorn grows flat against shingle, and meets people harvesting sloes for a very special gin festival. Steve is given a photography lesson by a photographer who shoots on film, Adam meets a farmer who has already started shearing her rare breed Gotland sheep, and special guest presenter Deborah Meaden looks at what the future holds for rural post offices.
Matt, Charlotte and Steve are on the Auchlyne Estate near Killin in Perthshire. It’s the first of four visits they’ll be making over the next year, charting life on the estate throughout the seasons. Matt meets Emma Paterson, the laird of the estate, to learn about its history and the plans for its future. He also gets a lesson in preparing their prized highland cattle for a show. Charlotte hooks up with Emma’s daughter Nicola for a spot of deerstalking and chats to gamekeeper Ian Dingwall about turning a profit from the venison. Steve is down by the river trying his hand at fly fishing for salmon, and there is a closer look at the life of Auchlyne’s resident handyman Dave Christie. Away from the estate Adam discovers that for one rare breed of sheep it’s already shearing time, and Tom goes back to the classroom to see if the next generation of farmers are being given the training they need.
Sean is in Essex meeting a farmer who has taken diversification to the next level. David Eagle has let the sea inundate acres of his farmland to create vital saltmarsh habitat for migratory birds, and already thousands of Brent geese are making the most of his hospitality. David is also on trend with his sea buckthorn juice, made from the berries of hundreds of sea buckthorn shrubs he has planted. Sean finds out that they are not easy to harvest though. Sean then dons his running shoes to take part in a farm run – a form of diversification designed to help those with stress. We’ll also be looking back through the Countryfile archives at other farm diversification stories featured on the programme.
Matt, Ellie and Steve are in Shaftesbury in Dorset, where they take part in the town's celebrated snowdrop festival. Matt meets the growers and enthusiasts dedicated to the small white flowers. He discovers some of the rarer varieties and learns of the high prices some bulbs attract. Steve meets a potter whose snowdrop planters are in demand and who has his own special way of sourcing the clay he uses. Ellie finds out that there is more to spring flowers than just snowdrops. She goes on a seasonal stroll and sees some of the different plants whose early flowering is a blessing for insects. She then joins Matt and the townsfolk of Shaftesbury on a snowdrop-themed lantern parade that takes in the famous cobbled street, Gold Hill. Elsewhere, Adam meets a trailblazing vet, and Tom looks at whether the UK’s farmers can go carbon neutral by 2040.
This week the team are on the Gwent Levels. Matt Baker meets a group of fishermen who are still catching salmon the way it has been done there for centuries. Ellie Harrison is on the trail of a star species that has made an amazing comeback on the Levels. Tom Heap is looking at what is being done to ensure that those most in need in the countryside can access the healthiest fresh food, and it’s the calm before the lambing season storm down on Adam’s farm.
It’s International Women’s Day, and we’re in Somerset on the Holnicote Estate. Anita Rani meets Holly Purdey who farms with a baby on her back and her three-year-old as her farmhand. She’s part of a local Women in Farming group that aims to reduce the isolation often felt by women who live and work on farms. Meanwhile, Matt Baker finds out that the picturesque Holnicote Estate is at the beginning of an innovative river restoration project that is the first of its kind in the UK. It is also home to a new family of beavers. It's a busy day on Adam Henson's farm as he gets ready for the lambing season, and our special guest reporter, the 'Red Shepherdess' Hannah Jackson, looks at whether times have really changed for women in farming.
Countryfile visits Looe in Cornwall during Cornish Pasty Week. Margherita Taylor and Matt Baker meet the town's pasty makers and compete in a pasty-making competition. Margherita finds out more about the area's seal population and the fisherman who live and work on the shores. Adam Henson has his hands full as lambs start to arrive, and Tom Heap finds out if the UK's leading food-standards scheme is delivering when it comes to animal welfare.
Lake Vyrnwy in Wales is gearing up for the warmer spring days ahead, when there will be a huge increase in migratory birds and tourists. Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison immerse themselves in the landscape, discovering the history of this man-made Victorian reservoir. Ellie finds out about the bird species that make the surrounding forests and breathtaking moorland home. The Evans family farm the moorland for the RSPB, and Matt helps out as they gather in their ponies for health checks and get their ewes ready for lambing. Meanwhile, Adam, Charlotte and Tom are joining forces for a special report on what future global trade deals could mean for UK farming and food production.
Ellie is in the Lugg Valley in Herefordshire, where recent heavy floods have left their mark. Despite this, she is on the hunt for signs of spring - not least toads. She joins volunteers making sure the amorous amphibians can make it safely across main roads to their favoured spawning grounds. Ellie also meets members of the community who have just planted out their first forest garden, and she joins an artist who sees beauty in the flooded landscape.
It is all systems go in the lambing shed as Adam Henson and Helen Skelton work round the clock to help a Wirral farmer at one of his busiest times of the year. Plus, Sean Fletcher is in Carmarthenshire to learn first-hand about the rigours of lambing outdoors.
The Countryfile presenters take you on a trip down memory lane, as they pick out their favourite films from the archive, including Anita Rani surfing in Snowdonia, Ellie Harrison counting gannets, Matt Baker visiting an alpaca blood bank and Helen Skelton fell running. Adam will be on his farm finding out about the pecking order of his chickens, and as always, we’ll be celebrating the glory of the countryside that surrounds us and the people who make it so special.
In the first of a new-look Countryfile, Anita Rani is on her home patch discovering what the coronavirus lockdown means for Woodberry Wetlands and what the future holds for the animals of Hackney City Farm. Back at home, she gets stuck into reinvigorating her garden and cooks up a barbecue tandoori. Adam Henson is feeling the effects of the pandemic on farming, and Tom Heap investigates how a new British land army might work for our fruit and veg growers.
With the country still in lockdown, Matt Baker is on his home patch doing all the jobs he’s not had time to do, until now. We see him getting stuck in building a pond, meeting a peregrine who lacks the confidence to hunt, and getting crafty with the paint brushes in his back garden. Also in the programme, wildlife film-maker Jack Perks reveals the wonderful world beneath the surface of his garden pond, Adam has a lot of hungry mouths to feed on the farm, and in the first of a series of new films, Kate Humble takes us round her home village to find out how the community is pulling together in these challenging times.
Joe Crowley is on his home turf in north London, exploring the wonderful Lea Valley. He pays a visit to one of the UK’s biggest salad growers to see how Covid-19 is affecting them. He also heads to the mysterious gunpowder mills, its overgrown ruins a testament to past battles. As it is International Dawn Chorus Day, bird expert Adrian Thomas will be telling us what to listen out for. We hear from Hannah Jackson, the Red Shepherdess, about how she’s coping with the pandemic, and it is a race against time for Adam as he goes flat out to get his spring barley in.
Helen is staying close to home in West Yorkshire, finding out how current restrictions are affecting her community. She pays a visit to Harewood House to learn more about their conservation projects, and she drops in to meet some of the lonely residents of her local donkey sanctuary, who are missing their regular volunteers. Local brothers and Olympic medallists Jonny and Alistair Brownlee demonstrate how to keep fit under lockdown, and Tom discovers how school closures have hit vital outdoor education. Adam steps in to help a nanny goat in distress, and we catch up with young naturalist Xander Johnston as he keeps an eye on local insect life on his daily walks.
Ellie Harrison is on her home turf in Gloucestershire. At the Slimbridge Wetland Centre she helps with important conservation work and gets a ringside seat to watch some kingfisher parents busy feeding their young. She also visits an ancient bluebell wood, exploring the treasures of the forest floor. Adam Henson reveals how his horses are helping to create a wildlife haven, and Tom Heap investigates how fly-tipping is blighting the countryside more than ever.
Sean Fletcher visits Hampton Court, not far from his west London home, seeing how the team there keep the gardens and grounds in top condition. There is no machinery here, though - it’s a team of magnificent shire horses that do the work. Sean meets the handlers and takes the reins as the horses start another shift, pulling and harrowing and preparing the grounds for the summer ahead. Back home, Sean gives us tips on how to stay fit during lockdown by building his very own home gym. Kate Humble reports from her Wye Valley home patch on how local food producers are rallying round during the crisis, and Adam turns out a new Gloucester calf onto spring pasture.
John Craven is at home in his garden where he gives us tips on what butterflies to look out for and how to get involved in a nationwide survey and he catches up with super fund-raiser Captain – now Colonel – Tom Moore to discover what role the countryside has played in his life. We also find out how Hannah Jackson, the Red Shepherdess, is getting on with her two new collie puppies as she puts them through their first paces as working dogs. And Adam Henson turns teacher as he brings his piglets to the country’s home-schooled children.
Steve Brown explores one of his favourite local haunts, Elmley Nature Reserve on the Isle of Sheppey, where swallows and swifts are gathering in their hordes, heralding the arrival of summer. Margherita Taylor is on the hunt for an invasive species of moth which threatens not just the oaks on Hampstead Heath in London but walkers too. On the farm, Adam’s horses are getting a hoof health check, and he catches up with top trainer Jonjo O’Neill to see how his racehorses are coping with life off the track. And wildlife film-maker Richard Taylor Jones hangs out with a busy vixen and her litter of playful cubs.
As well as tending to his crops, much of Adam Henson’s time on his Cotswold farm is devoted to caring for his animals. Each and every one of them is important to him, from his commercial flock of sheep to his chickens, his pigs and his ponies. Many have become much-loved Countryfile characters. We are dipping into the archive to rediscover some of Adam’s highs and lows with his marvellous menagerie.
Anita Rani is in Epping Forest to find out about its past, its wildlife and to meet some of the people who look after it. She discovers the art of cattle whispering when she meets the herd of Longhorns that helps to conserve the forest, and at dusk she goes on the trail of one of the UK’s rarest creatures. Wildlife filmmaker Hamza Yassin gets up close to one of our best-loved seabirds, the puffin, near his home on the west coast of Scotland, Gareth Wyn Jones gives us a glimpse into his life as a hill farmer in Wales, and down on his farm Adam Henson has a shearing dilemma to solve.
As organisations like the National Trust open up to visitors again, Ellie Harrison is at Charlecote Park in Warwickshire, one of the great estates of the Elizabethan era. Ellie rolls up her sleeves to help with Britain’s oldest managed flock of Jacob sheep and visits a working Georgian water mill that’s busier than ever, supplying the lockdown baking boom. Dwayne Fields investigates the challenges facing members of the BAME community living in the countryside, and Adam is judging entrants in an online livestock show.
Matt Baker explores the stretch of the Grand Union Canal that runs close to his home in the Chilterns. He meets those who live and work on the water and gets to grips with an engineering marvel that keeps the system flowing. Tom Heap investigates how farmers are adjusting to climate change, and with the help of Cerys Matthews and Simon King, John Craven launches this year’s Countryfile photo competition.
This week Anita Rani and Matt Baker are visiting The Blean, an ancient woodland in the heart of Kent, to get an exclusive look at a wilding project like no other. Matt comes face to face with the beast that will hopefully make this conservation scheme a reality – bison - and Anita finds out about a sleepy success story: dormice are being breed here to boost the numbers in the wild. We also revisit the Auchlyne hunting estate in Scotland to catch up with Emma, the incoming laird. Deep in wilds of Gloucestershire we get a very special look at some of the UK’s most elusive creatures, pine martens, and down on Adam’s farm one of the driest springs on record is causing big problems.
Ellie Harrison and Tom Heap are in the Shropshire Hills to find out about an ambitious project to create a nature corridor between the two peaks of Long Mynd and Stiperstones. Tom meets a farmer who has become a convert to environmentally friendly regenerative farming, while Ellie goes in search of some rare and much misunderstood wildlife. In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, and with Brexit on the horizon, Charlotte Smith tests the strength of Britain’s food supply system. And could the pitter patter of tiny hoofs be on the horizon for Adam’s Suffolk Punch?
Countryfile visits Chichester Harbour, the only Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the UK that’s managed by a harbour authority. Matt Baker and Anita Rani discover how you balance the needs of a very busy harbour with those of nature and wildlife. While Matt is out on the water doing the daily rounds with the harbour master, Anita finds out about projects that help to protect the local populations of oysters, terns and seals. And Adam Henson’s Highland bull Archie might not have long left on the farm, but his legacy lives on …
Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are at Wisley and Ockham Common on a mission to discover why heathland habitat like this needs to be prized and protected. Margherita goes in search of one of Britain’s rarest reptiles, the sand lizard, while Matt is on the hunt for one our strangest and most elusive birds, the nightjar. For Adam Henson, it’s a time of new beginnings as he opens the farm park again to visitors and celebrates the arrival of a litter of rare piglets, and Tom Heap investigates whether brewers and hop growers can recover from the impact of coronavirus.
Day in, day out, our countryside is a hive of activity. Farmers grow our food, while guardians nurture our nature and wildlife. But you don’t have to dig too deep to discover the weird and the wonderful, as Ellie Harrison is finding out. She is in the Cotswolds to visit Broadway Tower, a folly which sums up British eccentricity. Also, a look back through the the archive to encounters with the more unusual events taking place in the countryside - such as the time Anita Rani met the farmer growing a crop of chairs and when Margherita Taylor made microscopic art from nature.
Matt Baker and Anita Rani are in Northumberland in the beautiful coastal village and ancient English royal kingdom of Bamburgh. Matt is busy in the castle, which covers nine acres, discovering what it takes to safeguard it from the elements, while Anita digs into the secrets of bones dating back to the seventh century. Tom Heap investigates the new trend of escaping the city for the country – but at what cost? And on the farm, Adam goes head to head with his actor neighbour Robert Llewellyn to discover how green machines measure up to traditional diesel.
Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor visit the Somerleyton Estate in Suffolk to find out about an ambitious Wild East project aimed at turning East Anglia into a giant nature reserve. And it’s not just something that’s confined to the the 5,000-acre estate, as Steve Brown discovers. He is in the village of Risby, where residents are doing their bit no matter how small a patch they have. Margherita meets youngsters learning old rural skills to rescue Herringfleet smock mill, the last of its kind in this neck of the woods, and discovers why poo is key to otter communication. Meanwhile, Adam fears the worst for his winter barley as he starts harvesting.
Special guest Mary Berry reveals how farming and the countryside have influenced her life and career – and still do. Matt Baker is by her side to discover what inspired her during her childhood on her parents’ smallholding and the rural issues she holds dear today. Mary is a champion of small producers and local produce, but she loves her pigs too. Adam Henson is despatched to investigate the state of British pig farming, while Anita visits a school with a field-to-fork ethos. This is music to Mary’s ears, and something she would love to see rolled out across more schools across the country. And how will Matt fare when he has to cook for the UK’s queen of the kitchen?
Anita Rani goes back to her Yorkshire roots, exploring the lesser-known River Burn in the glorious Swinton Park estate. She discovers why we’ve fallen in love with fishing since lockdown and how the humble willow is the perfect weapon against river bank erosion. Meanwhile, there are competitions all round as Adam Henson meets this year’s One Man and His Dog competitors from Northern Ireland and Wales with their amazing sheepdogs, and John Craven joins Cerys Matthews and Simon King for the photographic competition as they all battle to get their favourites from the thousands of entries into the final twelve for the Childen in Need 2021 Countryfile calendar.
Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are in Stoke-on-Trent to learn about an ambitious scheme to bring the countryside into the heart of the city. Margherita finds out what it takes to move a stretch of the River Trent, while Matt meets the next generation of nature lovers as he glories in mud with some of the city’s youngest residents and their parents. In the light of the coronavirus pandemic, Tom investigates whether the UK is sufficiently armed against further threats of diseases that spread from animals to humans. And Adam meets another set of regional competitors vying to be crowned national One Man and His Dog champion.
Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith are with four of the UK’s top shepherds and their amazing sheepdogs for this year’s Countryfile One Man and His Dog competition. It is taking place on a tough course in the grounds of historic Hardwick Hall in Derbyshire, which will really test man and dog alike. Coronavirus means things have to look a little different this year, with just one competitor from each home nation vying for glory. But this socially distanced shepherding showdown is as testing and competitive as ever. The premier league of shepherding talent from England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland must battle it out over two rounds – the ‘singles’, where they run one dog, and the notoriously difficult ‘brace’, where they must work two dogs at the same time. Whoever gets the highest combined score will secure the pride of their nation and the coveted One Man and His Dog title. Who’s got what it takes?
Ellie Harrison and Joe Crowley are in the Lake District to celebrate the 250th anniversary of William Wordsworth’s birth. They discover how his sister Dorothy and her writings were as influential as the beauty around him. And while Wordsworth’s poetry may lure many of us to the lakes, visitors can mean extra challenges. So we’re also commemorating another significant anniversary - 50 years of Langdale and Ambleside Mountain Rescue. And Adam finds out where he might get the best prices for his rams - online or at a traditional livestock market?
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison visit south Devon, once the cider capital of England, to discover how orchards are being revived. Matt meets eighth-generation cider-makers who have as close an eye on conservation as they do in making the liquid gold, while Ellie finds out why one of Britain’s rarest bats is so at home in this particular part of the south west. Adam Henson is on a quest to ensure the survival of one of Britain’s rarest cattle breeds, the Albion, and Tom Heap investigates whether efforts to combat air pollution could come at a high cost to those rural communities already fighting fuel poverty.
It’s a harvest that will go down in history - downpours and drought, pests and a pandemic. Adam Henson takes us through the toughest harvest of his career on his Gloucestershire farm. Charlotte Smith picks grapes from sun-ripened Welsh vines, and Matt Baker races to keep up with the booming strawberry harvest in Yorkshire. Who will be the winners and losers of harvest 2020?
We could all do with a bit of adventure in our lives after the last few months - and what better place to find it than in our great British countryside! This week, Joe Crowley visits Box Hill in Surrey to take on its infamous zigzag cycle route – pitting himself against cycling Olympic gold medallist Joanna Rowsell Shand. And we go on an adrenalin-fuelled journey through the Countryfile archives in search of the some of the best thrills and spills in our countryside.
Matt and Ellie are in Wales, exploring how industry and conservation are working together to safeguard important habitats at Lake Vyrnwy. Ellie gets hands-on with woodland management in a bid to protect a rare day-flying moth, while Matt discovers the fascinating story of the Bank of the Black Ox. After a disappointing harvest, Adam hopes some new crops will make for an improved yield, and Charlotte investigates concerns that the UK’s environmental watchdogs aren’t doing enough to protect our wildlife and their habitats.
The Countryfile team head out for Children in Need Rambles like you’ve never seen before. In this 75-minute special of one-to-one rambles with inspirational youngsters from across the UK, Matt Baker goes canoeing, climbing and walking with bereaved teenager Harvey. We discover how a five-year-old has inspired Steve Brown to pit himself against the challenges of Pen Y Fan in the Brecon Beacons. Margherita Taylor is in Northern Ireland with a youngster who has been helped with anxiety issues, while Anita Rani’s in Scotland to find out more about sibling support. Adam Henson rambles in the Cotswolds to learn how dogs are helping to transform the lives of two children, and John Craven catches up with ramblers supporting Children in Need – all putting their best foot forward up and down the country on Covid-safe sponsored rambles.
Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith are in Falmouth for the start of the oyster season, where successful hatching is down to the moon. They also discover how old traditions are being used in modern ways, from boat building to using horse power to manage an ancient landscape. Charlotte also helps out in the exotic gardens of Trelissick, and Adam Henson finds out why British turkey farmers could be in for tough time this Christmas.
The healing powers of the great outdoors have never been more valued than now, so Ellie Harrison visits Gloucestershire to discover just how our countryside can provide the perfect tonic in troubled times. From forest bathing to wild swimming, she immerses herself in nature. We also take a restorative visit to the Countryfile archives to rediscover the health-giving potential of the UK’s green havens. John Craven finds out how nature helped wartime wounds, Anita Rani visits a farm giving respite to refugees, and Steve Brown learns about the healing power of goats’ milk.
Anita Rani and Joe Crowley are in the Lincolnshire Wolds at historic South Ormsby, which has ambitions to be the finest farming estate in the world. They discover the entrepreneurial spirit driving the revival of the local rural economy, including two young women carving out new careers. Adam Henson has high hopes for an inner city teenage jockey competing in her first race, while Tom Heap investigates whether it's time to ditch the greenbelt.
Countryfile launches Plant Britain, an ambitious two-year challenge aimed at galvanising everyone in the nation to get planting - no matter where you live or how large or tiny a space you may have - to help combat climate change and at the same time, boost our wellbeing and wildlife. Matt Baker will be in Cheshire planting the very first trees in what will become the Countryfile Plant Britain wood, while Anita Rani is in her home town of Bradford helping residents of the Canterbury Estate to plant trees in their front gardens and at the local primary school. Margherita Taylor is at Wytham Woods in Oxfordshire discovering exactly how trees capture carbon. Steve Brown is in Neath, south Wales, to learn which trees to plant in which location, while John Craven discovers a micro-forest close to his home and plants a simple window box to demonstrate how you can still do your bit even if your outdoor space may just be a window ledge. Ellie Harrison climbs high at Westonbirt Arboretum in Gloucestershire, finding out how trees function as a vital life support system for Britain’s wildlife. There will also be special messages from such well-known tree lovers as HRH The Prince of Wales, Dame Judi Dench, Sir Mark Rylance and Brian May.
Ellie Harrison and Sean Fletcher are in the Black Mountains, which straddle the border between Wales and England, to find out more about a drive to preserve ancient rural skills and traditions. Sean gets a bird’s eye view of the spectacular landscape, while Strictly alumni and former thatcher Joe Sugg battles for supremacy in a hedge-laying competition. Joe Crowley investigates the challenges facing the Scottish salmon industry, and Adam has high hopes that his smart new ram will be a hit with the ewes in his flock.
The Stour estuary in Essex has just been added to Suffolk Coast Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty - the first extension of an AONB for thirty years. At this time of year, birds flock here in their thousands to over-winter, but Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are on a quest to find the area's unsung heroes that don’t get the recognition they deserve: bugs, beetles, crabs and worms. Adam Henson welcomes early lambs to his farm in the Cotswolds, and Tom Heap investigates a tale of two rural high streets in lockdown .
Countryfile celebrates Christmas on the stunning Auchlyne estate in Scotland. Charlotte Smith and Joe Crowley join laird Emma and her family to help monitor beavers and tame some deer. Charlotte also discovers the remarkable story behind a Scottish version of German stollen, Matt Baker makes decorations for a special Christmas tree that will help birds survive the winter cold, and John Craven finds out about the ancient tradition of Gaelic psalm singing. Adam Henson is as busy as ever on the farm but gets some welcome help from Countryfile’s very own Xmas elf, Anita Rani, and Tom Heap is in search of Christmas cheer.
Ellie Harrison has a love for the natural world and all creatures great and small. She is in Bristol to meet wildlife photographer and friend of Countryfile, Simon King, to get a crash course in how to photograph wildlife. His top tip is, if you’re experimenting with nature photography, don’t make your life too hard by picking nervous subjects. So they attempt to capture on camera birds in flight over the magnificent Avon Gorge, inquisitive city squirrels and a herd of deer who live semi-wild in the nearby Ashton Court estate. Ellie has also combed the Countryfile archive for some of her wildlife highlights plus a few extra treats.
Sean Fletcher looks back at 2020 – a difficult year for all of us as we faced a pandemic but a year when the countryside became a lifeline for unprecedented numbers; when wildlife came out to play and also made their homes in curious places during lockdown. Sean also catches up with some of the inspiring young people at the forefront of the battle to protect the environment, and there's a timely reminder of how we can all do our bit to safeguard our countryside.
After the turmoil of 2020 and as a new year gets underway, how do we plan to make the countryside a bigger part of our lives? Matt Baker wants to get fitter and tries his hand at canicross, Anita Rani straps on her walking boots, Margherita Taylor heads for the woods, Helen Skelton wants to buy local, Tom Heap discovers the joys of “blue” therapy, and Adam Henson gets creative with clay.
Ellie Harrison and Tom Heap are in the Mendips looking at how this stunning but fragile area is being protected from the invasion of visitors. Ellie scales Cheddar Gorge and discovers the damage cars are wreaking on narrow, winding roads. She also learns how white-clawed freshwater crayfish are being saved from voracious invaders. Tom finds out how the countryside can help transform lives and investigates if the government’s new green subsidy scheme can really deliver for farmers and the environment. Meanwhile, Adam meets one of his heroes, international rugby ref turned farmer Nigel Owens, who is facing his herd’s first TB test.
Matt Baker is staying close to home, exploring the Chilterns landscape and the people and skills that have shaped this Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. He discovers some hidden historical gems revealed by a revolutionary new mapping technique, heads deep into the woods to learn about the ancient art of bodging and rolls his sleeves up to help clean up ponds which are so desperately needed by wildlife. Joe Crowley investigates if large-scale schemes such as HS2 tally with the government’s pledge to go green, and on the farm, Adam calls in a horse whisperer to help with a nervous Exmoor pony.
Ellie Harrison is in Gloucestershire, finding out how communities on her home turf are pulling together to support each other in these tough times. She meets the producers on a mission to get everyone eating local and healthy meals at affordable prices, finds out why gardening is on prescription and helps out with Britain’s favourite mammal, the hedgehog, which is facing a precarious future. Wildlife film-maker Jack Perks gets up close to dippers, Adam sizes up a new boar for his pigs, and Charlotte investigates what future trade deals could mean for the food on our plates.
Helen Skelton is on Crompton Moor in the Pennines, braving all weathers to discover what makes this site of biological interest such a special place. Battered by rain, wind and snow, she helps install ‘leaky dams,’ discovers how a plant with superpowers is helping to restore these uplands and meets the community coming together to bring wildlife back to the hills. Adam Henson tries out a new app to show how contented his animals are, wildlife film-maker Richard Taylor-Jones shows you how to spot wonderful wildlife on your doorstep, and Tom Heap investigates the rural mental health crisis.
Whilst visiting Kentish Town City Farm to lend a helping hand, Margherita Taylor takes a look back through the Countryfile archives to celebrate some winter heroes - the farmers toughing it out in all weathers; wildlife rescue volunteers risking their lives to save one of our most majestic animals; and the community working together to save the heart of their village. Margherita also catches up with one of her childhood winter heroes, Eddie the Eagle. And we couldn’t forget our Children in Need ramblers, as we reveal the astonishing amount our viewers have raised.
Tom Heap explores Northamptonshire’s Nene Valley, discovering how a farmer fighting flooding has embraced wetland wildlife to make his land pay. Tom also meets a sheepdog turned search-and-rescue hero and gets hands-on with a project that has unearthed evidence of riverside residents dating back to Neolithic times. Adam is hoping for good news from his ewes as, thanks to scanning, he discovers how many are in lamb. Charlotte Smith investigates whether Brexit is delivering all it promised for the UK’s fishing industry, and ecologist Josh Styles reveals the secret world inside a prehistoric plant.
This week Anita Rani is on her home turf in London, showing that you don’t need to go far for a healthy dose of green. Anita is taken on an enchanting tour of one of London’s 'magnificent seven' cemeteries, as she discovers a trove of treasures right on her doorstep and sets out to crack the mystery of a non-native bird. Adam Henson shows us how he concocts a super-meal for his animals during the winter months, and Tom Heap investigates a controversial decision that allows UK farmers to use a banned pesticide on their fields.
Charlotte Smith visits the Colne Valley Regional Park, a landscape of forest, fields and waterways on the edge of west London. She does battle with an invasive species, gets up close with tiny creatures that show the health of the park’s rivers, meets a savvy septuagenarian saving her farm from development, and helps secure a future for one of our most endangered mammals, the water vole. Tom Heap asks whether eco-education should be at the heart of our school system, Adam Henson introduces new boar George II to his sows, and wildlife cameraman Jack Perks gets up close with otters.
In this special episode, Ellie joins Adam and his team for 48 hours of hectic lambing action. She may be the rookie in Adam’s lambing shed, but Ellie quickly gets to grips with multiple births, touch and go adoptions and the emotions of the life-or-death decisions faced each day during this busiest of spring seasons on the farm. Tom Heap is on the case to find out why mountains of wool, historically the nation's most valuable sheep product, are now piling up in warehouses across the country. In Cumbria, Hannah Jackson – The Red Shepherdess - meets young upland farmers bringing new ideas to this traditional form of sheep farming. Plus how to count sheep using an almost forgotten Celtic language system.
Ellie Harrison celebrates the arrival of spring on her home turf in the Cotswolds. From the millions of snowdrops in Painswick’s Rococo Gardens to discovering some old folklore, finding out about a scheme to enable wheelchair users to enjoy tougher terrain in the great outdoors and meeting the cattle that encourage wildflowers, Ellie also raids the Countryfile archive. There’s the time she went on dolphin watch in Cardigan Bay, Matt Baker's visit to tulip fields in Lincolnshire and the day Adam Henson went to North Yorkshire to catch his supper.
Joe Crowley discovers how science is helping better understand nature on Bedfordshire’s Greensand Ridge. He gets up close with avian giants, finding out how the world’s longest-running bird survey helps monitor heron numbers. He gets on his bike to help map the amount of plastics polluting our rural landscape, and is out on toad patrol, helping create a new national DNA database to discover why these amphibians are in trouble. As spring appears, Adam finds out if his farming gambles are paying off, Tom investigates whether the UK’s environmental ambitions will change the face of our national parks and areas of outstanding natural beauty, and naturalist Dan Rouse captures the seasonal spectacle of thousands of oystercatchers on the Gower Peninsula.
Ellie Harrison visits the 'golden triangle' in Gloucestershire to find out why the area is so famous for the wild daffodil. She takes a trip down memory lane with villagers who recall picking the daffs as children and how the flowers were sent by rail on the daffodil line to cities across the country. She discovers the difference between wild and cultivated daffodils and witnesses some of the finest medieval wall paintings in England. We also meet the Meanwells - a mother and son fulfilling their dreams of farming in the Cumbrian hills - and Charlotte Smith investigates the challenges facing our rural churches and the communities they serve.
Tom Heap and Margherita Taylor look at the impact of canals on the past, present and future of our countryside. In the Midlands, Tom is on the UK’s longest canal – the Grand Union - discovering the engineering triumphs that helped traverse our rugged landscape and how they could now play their part in a 21st-century green tech revolution. Meanwhile, Margherita celebrates the 200th anniversary of the Regent’s Canal, finding out how this once commercial route now brings a slice of countryside to the city, benefitting both residents and wildlife. Tom also investigates what’s going into our public sector meals, wildlife film-maker Jack Perks dons his wetsuit to get up close to some frisky frogs, and we pay our first visit to Brookvale Farm in Northern Ireland, where we will be following the fortunes of a family staking their future on the success of hi-tech farming.
Sean Fletcher goes wild in the Hambleden Valley in Buckinghamshire with a whistlestop trike tour of a chocolate box landscape that has been the beautiful backdrop for many TV dramas and films. But how can we breathe new life into the area? Sean finds out how the old cottage industry of lace-making is poised for a comeback, and he saddles up to meet a couple opening up their farm to enable safer riding in this corner of the countryside. Adam Henson is busy with some new arrivals, and as picking season dawns, Charlotte Smith investigates whether UK farmers can cover any shortfall in the number of seasonal farm workers needed to gather their harvests.
Helen Skelton is in the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in North Yorkshire, helping prepare for the return of both animals and visitors to the hills. She joins a team keeping track of adders emerging from hibernation, to find out why numbers are falling. She also joins in with efforts to help save essential woodland and its wildlife, and discovers hidden wonders as she heads into the depths of How Stean Gorge. On his Cotswold farm, Adam Henson is struggling with the unpredictable spring weather. Tom Heap investigates how a rise in pet ownership is fuelling dog thefts and wildlife film-maker Jack Perks celebrates one of our most colourful but overlooked freshwater fish – the grayling.
As John Craven celebrates 50 years as a BBC presenter, on this – his 1,250th episode for Countryfile - he opens up a treasure trove of memories of some of his favourite parts of Britain. Each location evokes aspects of his life, his career and his passions: discovering a hidden treasure he never knew existed on his childhood doorstep in Yorkshire; indulging his love of verse with a trip to Cambridgeshire to find out more about John Clare, the peasant poet; and revealing his love of history on an ancient Scottish battlefield. And he has never forgotten the time he was roped up to the heady heights of the dark hedges in Northern Ireland.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison uncover the wonders past and present of Cranborne Chase. Matt unravels a puzzling piece of the area’s past as he explores a 900-year-old mediaeval ‘miz maze’ hidden in the woods, before crossing the Chase to help tend to Britain’s biggest modern day maze on the Longleat Estate. Ellie joins the UK’s only ‘supercluster’ of farmers working together to encourage wildlife on their land. She also heads to the River Ebble to disccover what makes this chalk stream so special and how it’s helping to give rural teenagers a sense of purpose. Steve Brown is in for some special stargazing in the Chase - the UK’s first designated dark sky reserve. Tom Heap investigates plans to launch a new space race from the heart of our countryside – but at what cost to the environment? And Adam Henson has a nervous wait on his hands as his rare-breed Suffolk Punch Lexi goes to the maternity unit.
Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith head to the Peak District to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the UK's first National Park. Matt joins a pioneering scheme to restore ruined farm buildings and meets 'legend' of the Peak District Gordon Miller, one of the area's early rangers and a last link to those who brought about the National Park. Charlotte channels her inner artist to help create a giant anniversary art mural and records the special sounds of the park's waterways. Sean Fletcher meets a 'tyre runner' using the Peak District's hills to help his mental health. Meanwhile, as some of his traditional crops fail, Adam takes a glimpse at what the farming of tomorrow might look like and Joe Crowley investigates new pollution laws causing controversy in the countryside.
Plant Britain is all about encouraging community gardens and planting wildflowers in a two-year initiative to help combat climate change, help wildlife and pollinators and transform our own wellbeing. Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor help Bristol locals to create a community garden, and Charlotte Smith visits a project in Glasgow that is blooming. Sean Fletcher is in Northern Ireland with primary school children to find out about their field-to-fork project. Helen Skelton is with a young botanist who is on a mission to save our native wildflowers, while Joe Crowley discovers the secret life hidden in a special meadow in north Wales. The Natural History Museum do some cutting-edge soil and pond DNA forensics, and John Craven finds out how to do your bit no matter how small a space you have - from a pot on a windowsill to a balcony planter. Also, look out for special messages from some well-known faces.
Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor visit the stunning Llyn Peninsula in north Wales, known as 'Snowdonia’s arm'. Margherita finds out about plans for a major blue energy project. While harnessing the power of the tide might cure energy issues, what do residents make of it all? And what will the impact be on wildlife and fishing? Matt dons his wetsuit, wading into the sea to help check the health of a critical crop of carbon-capturing sea grass, and also helps launch new research into mountain goats. Joe Crowley is hoping for a close encounter with angel sharks to find out why they are appearing more and more frequently in Welsh waters. Adam Henson celebrates the success of the rare breeds revival, and Tom Heap investigates planning loopholes that could see park holiday homes become permanent residences and threaten some of the most beautiful parts of our countryside.
It’s a tale of transformations as Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith head to the Norfolk-Suffolk border. Matt gets his fingers dirty gardening and feels the heat of the forge at a social enterprise that is harnessing the healing power of the rural landscape and training homeless people in traditional skills to give them a fresh start. Charlotte heads into the surrounding countryside to meet farmers making Britain’s only raw brie, and she sets sail with a lady fisherman who swapped a job in logistics for lobsters and whelks. Adam Henson looks at how science is using biobanks to secure the future of rare breeds.
Matt Baker and Anita Rani head to County Down in Northern Ireland to catch up with the dairy farming Lilburn family and their quest to diversify. Matt jumps into a tractor to help cut grass to feed the cows, and he discovers how ‘zero grazing’ works. Anita helps check the calves’ health with a cattle nutritionist, before seeing how the farm’s milk is being turned into ice cream ready for the summer months ahead. Elsewhere, Adam Henson discovers how science is helping to save rare breeds, Charlotte Smith investigates a ‘shadow pandemic’ of rural domestic violence, and John Craven launches the thirtieth Countryfile Photographic Competition.
Ellie Harrison is in Gloucestershire at Nature in Art, the world’s first museum and art gallery dedicated to art inspired by nature, as she goes in search of her inner muse. Under the expert eye of award-winning wildlife artist Jackie Cox, Ellie picks up some top tips including how old make-up can do just as good a job as fancy pencils. Ellie also takes a look through the archives to find out how the countryside has been an abiding influence, from early man to modern-day artists braving the extremes to capture a landscape or using wildlife itself to create a picture.
Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith are in the stunning Cumbrian Hills as we catch up with the formidable mother and son farming duo Andrea and Hector Meanwell. We first met them in early Spring, but Adam is rolling up his sleeves to discover what life is like on the farm as summer beckons. We also see how the Meanwells are diversifying to make ends meet. Charlotte meets their neighbours to find out how they are working to protect this beautiful landscape and the animals which call it home. We also head to Northern Ireland to catch up with award-winning author Dara - one of Countryfile’s young naturalists - as he takes a group of young eco warriors out on a nature adventure. Meanwhile, Joe Crowley investigates the worrying rise in attacks on livestock by dogs off the leash.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison explore Wimbledon Common to celebrate its 150th anniversary. Matt saddles up with one of the UK’s only mounted rangers, finding out how horseback patrols have been enforcing the common’s 57 bylaws for the past seven decades. Ellie goes on the hunt for miraculous but often maligned moths, discovering how these winged wonders can be creatures of beauty and are more prolific pollinators than bees. And Matt and Ellie join together to celebrate the common’s most famous ‘residents’, the Wombles, meeting the daughter of their creator and seeing how these original eco warriors are still inspiring others today. Elsewhere, Adam Henson has a busy day on the farm as some new bulls are introduced to the herd; Tom Heap investigates whether efforts to protect the world’s oceans are delivering for UK waters; and, in the first of a four part series, explorer Dwayne Fields leads four youngsters at a crossroads in their lives on an expedition into the Welsh wilderness.
Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are in Dorset, on the stunning Isle of Purbeck, looking at the importance of its diverse landscape and the changes the coastline has gone through over the centuries. Matt goes on safari to look at the wildlife that call this habitat home, and Margherita discovers what used to live along these shores millions of years ago. We catch up with Dwayne Fields and his gallant team of explorers on the second part of their Snowdonia adventure, and Tom Heap investigates the damage that is being caused to the countryside and coast by an influx of visitors and holidaymakers.
Anita Rani and Tom Heap head to Yorkshire’s Flamborough Head. Anita visits England’s largest onshore seabird colony at Bempton Cliffs, helping track breeding numbers and witnessing a very special arrival as a rare Albatross pays a visit. Below the cliffs, Tom explores some of the coast’s chalk caves, discovering the rare life they support, and Tom and Anita are joined by local youngsters as they go on a rockpool safari to take stock of the marine life washed up at low tide. Charlotte Smith investigates the environmental impact that increases in offshore windfarms are having both on land and at sea. Adam Henson visits an project that gives teenagers a step on to the farming ladder, and in the third of our four-part series with explorer Dwyane Fields, our four youngsters overcome their fear of heights, getting to grips with climbing a rockface - but things take an unexpected turn when one of the team has to leave the challenge early.
As more and more of us yearn for a life in the country, Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith roll up their sleeves on a community farm in Herefordshire. Matt helps to save a bee colony and harvests fruits from their walled garden. Charlotte hand milks Snowdrop, one of the community’s dairy cows, before making her own butter. It’s the final challenge for Dwayne Fields and his gallant team of adventurers as they set out to climb Wales’s biggest mountain, Snowdon. Tom Heap investigates why some plant-based products on supermarket shelves may not be as good for us as we might think.
Joe Crowley meets chef Romy Gill to celebrate the glories of seasonal food at Chew Magna Community Farm. From pickles and preserves to a feast making the most of fabulous produce, Joe also delves into the world of no-dig farming and rolls up his sleeves to help pack orders with a thriving veg box business. He calls into Hartcliffe Community Garden, which Countryfile helped to establish as part of our Plant Britain initiative, to check in on the venture and join school children as they harvest vegetables they have grown in the garden. He also delves into the archives to celebrate the best of British food and drink, like the time Anita met a highland beef farmer, Matt visited a 200-year-old cider orchard, and Steve found out how surplus produce can be ‘gleaned’ to reduce food waste.
Joe Crowley and Charlotte Smith are in the Highlands, visiting a 100-acre rewilding site near Loch Ness known as the Natural Capital Laboratory. But this is no ordinary lab, and there’s not a white coat in sight. Instead - and with the help of the latest technology - scientists here are mapping, tracking and quantifying the changes to the landscape and the life in it. Charlotte looks at hi-tech devices that track animals and create a virtual vision of what the site will look like in 100 years’ time. Joe digs in, discovering how efforts to restore neglected peat bogs could pay dividends for the environment. Tom Heap investigates the impact that reintroducing long-lost species could have on our countryside and its people, and wildlife film-maker Tom Hartwell take us on a journey into the beautiful and brutal life of the cinnabar moth.
Charlotte Smith and Steve Brown are on Yew Tree Farm in Coniston, which sits in the stunning landscape of the Lake District National Park. Steve meets first generation farmers to find out how they are diversifying and tries a bit of therapy with some of their woolly residents. Charlotte discovers how the landscape surrounding the farm is one of their driving inspirations, Sean Fletcher visits a farm in Monmouthshire that has branched out into music and some of the biggest names in rock and roll, and Tom Heap investigates if plans for a greener, more environmentally friendly economic recovery can really bring benefits for the UK’s wildlife and its habitats.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison are on the border of England and Wales to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Offa’s Dyke Path and to explore the fascinating history and treasures that lie along this 1,200 year old man-made monument. Matt kicks off conservation efforts to help to preserve the dyke and the surrounding landscape for future generations to enjoy, while Ellie abseils to measure and record one of the UK’s rarest trees. She also discovers the engineering skills of nature’s very own master builders. Adam Henson has got the experts in to calculate the carbon footprint of his farm, and, in its 30th year, it’s decision time in Countryfile’s photographic competition. Which of the thousands of entries will make it into the top 12?
Sean Fletcher and Steve Brown are in Staffordshire at the Manifold Valley Agricultural Show, where the focus is on encouraging young people to get into the countryside, agriculture and the show ring with their prize livestock. After weeks of preparation, will it be a red rosette for eight-year-old Owen and his Limousin calf, and how will 12-year-old Myles and his Clydesdale fare? Adam Henson finds out what he needs to do to go green on his farm, and Tom Heap investigates a toxic threat to dolphins, porpoises and killer whales.
Joe Crowley is on Isle Martin, a dot of an island off the west coast of Scotland, which is getting ready to host Scotland’s very first seaweed festival. Joe meets the island's sole occupant, explores the magical qualities of seaweed and sees how it is on the forefront of the battle against climate change. Joe also delves into the Countryfile archives to revisit some island jewels around the UK, including the time Anita Rani visited the Hebridean island where all the farmers are women, Ellie Harrison's visit Church Island in Northern Ireland, and Margherita Taylor surveying seals off Looe Island. And we catch up with Mari Huws on Bardsey Island, just off north Wales’s Llyn Peninsula.
Charlotte Smith is in County Down, Northern Ireland, catching up with the dairy farming Lilburn family after our last visit in June. The pressure is on for them – Richard is up against the weather to get his harvest done. Will the rain scupper his plans for his pea crop? Charlotte also hits the road with Pamela to meet local suppliers providing for the new farm shop, and there’s some taste-testing to do on bakes – good news for the three Lilburn children. We also meet the first two teams, England and Wales, vying for glory in this year’s One Man and His Dog competition, while Adam Henson starts his quest to find Countryfile’s young countryside champion of the year when he visits a teenager carrying on the family farm after his father’s untimely death. And get ready to ramble as Matt Baker meets brother and sister Ailsa and Finn, who will inspire everyone to get outdoors and raise money for Children in Need in this year’s Countryfile ramble.
Anita Rani is in Herefordshire to discover the secrets behind the great hop revival, from pest-eating predators to new flavours to help pack a punch in our pints. She also meets one of the last pickers who harvested hops by hand. Adam Henson meets another inspiring contender in the running to be Countryfile’s Young Countryside Champion, and he meets the final two teams of shepherds and their dogs going for glory in this year’s One Man and His Dog competition. As the countdown continues to the Children in Need Countryfile Ramble, we discover what a difference we can all make to young lives.
Matt Baker and Helen Skelton are at the helm of this year’s One Man and His Dog sheepdog trial competition as competitors from all four nations compete to clinch the coveted trophy. And there couldn’t be a better backdrop than Penryhn Castle in Gwynedd, set between the waters of the Menai Straight and the dramatic mountains of Snowdonia National Park. The best young talent from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales are paired up with top senior shepherds from each home nation. The youngsters will compete with one dog while the seniors take on sheepdog trialling’s toughest discipline - ‘the brace’ - where they must work two dogs at the same time. Who has got what it takes to lift the trophy? Away from the action, Helen also discovers how the surrounding landscape supports a wealth of wildlife and investigates what it takes to keep the Olympians of sheepdog world in top condition.
Sean Fletcher and Charlotte Smith catch up with mother-and-son farming duo Andrea and Hector Meanwell in Cumbria. Countryfile has been following them throughout the year, and they have some big challenges ahead - not least the results of TB tests. Will Hector’s cattle be clear? Get ready to ramble as we meet 14-year-old Alfie, who is determined to live life to the full, no matter what. Adam meets the third and final contender in our Young Countryside Champion Awards, and John has a big surprise for an unsuspecting photographer when the winner of this year’s Countryfile Photographic Competition is revealed. In an exclusive Countryfile investigation, Charlotte uncovers fears that the UK’s farm labour shortage has left the foreign workers who bring in our harvest at greater risk of exploitation than ever before.
It’s harvest time on Adam’s farm. The old reliables are back - wheat, barley and oilseed rape - and the combines, tractors, trailers and balers are hard at work. But how much longer will farmers be working like this? Big changes are on the horizon for British agriculture, and harvests of the future will be very different to what we’re used to. But how exactly? In this harvest special, Countryfile turns its eyes to the future and meets the machines and robots that could be the farmers of the future.
Steve Brown is on the Isle of Mull in the hope of realising a life-time ambition to see white-tailed eagles in the wild. They are Britain’s largest bird of prey, and not the only wild wonders he might encounter. Steve also delves into the Countryfile archives to celebrate wild Britain, including the memorable moments when Anita visited the Northern Ireland's Causeway Coast, Margherita explored how nature has taken over ancient mines in the Forest of Dean, and Charlotte investigated wild flavours for chocolate-making in Scotland.
In this 75-minute special, the Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need heads out on a tour of the UK in the company of some truly inspirational youngsters. Matt Baker takes on a challenge in the Lake District with Alfie and his family, all of whom were helped by Hope House Children’s Hospice after Alfie had his leg amputated following cancer treatment. Steve Brown heads to the Mendips with sports-mad eight-year-old liver transplant patient Violet, on a ramble with a high-octane finish; Margherita Taylor walks the vast open sands of the Norfolk coast with 17-year-old Chloe, who shares how therapy sessions have helped her with anxiety and other issues; Ellie Harrison is in County Down, hearing how the Children in Need-funded charity Women’s Aid helps children caught up in domestic abuse; and, for her first Countryfile Ramble, Charlotte Smith is on a memory-filled stroll along Scotland’s stunning east coast with brother and sister Finn and Ailsa, whose dad passed away during lockdown. At the same time as our presenters are rambling, hundreds of viewers are putting on their own sponsored rambles across the length and breadth of the UK, and John Craven is on hand to catch up virtually with some of them.
Joe Crowley and Ellie Harrison are in Cornwall, exploring the fishing port of Newlyn with a remarkable secret history. Joe also discovers the fishy equivalent of ‘nose to tail’ eating, while Ellie finds out how the area is reeling from the 2021 Staycation Invasion. As global climate change talks get underway, Tom Heap investigates the threat posed by rising sea levels here in the UK. And on his farm, Adam Henson has some new arrivals - but will they all be delivered safely?
Countryfile’s Plant Britain autumn special celebrates the magic of trees and hedgerows in combatting climate change, boosting wildlife and our own wellbeing. We also look at the future guardians of our planet as Charlotte Smith finds out about green careers and Matt Baker meets a six-year-old environmentalist with big ambitions. Tom Heap joins the front line in the fight against tree disease, John Craven is at Westonbirt Arboretum to discover what our future forests could look like, and Joe Crowley is busy learning how to collect and sow seeds. Margherita Taylor pops into a Bristol community garden to help them get ready for winter, and there are some special messages from well-known faces to encourage us all to plant Britain.
For Remembrance Sunday, Ellie Harrison visits the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire to help the Royal British Legion mark their centenary and to explore the diverse ways nature can offer healing and recovery. She also treks with llamas and discovers how an old pair of jeans are key to converting old Second World War pillboxes into new des res for bats. Adam Henson discovers why military veterans are armed with just the right skills to be the farmers of tomorrow, and Charlotte Smith investigates the true cost of protecting the countryside’s most historic landmarks and landscapes.
John Craven revisits the Gloucestershire village of Hillesley 50 years after he first reported on the local newspaper. He meets Hollywood screenwriter William Nicholson, who cut his teeth on the paper, catches up with today’s editor, meets three generations of farmers and pops into the pub that was saved by the community to discover what’s at the heart of village life. And he delves into the Countryfile archives for some of his favourite autumn moments across the years.
Ellie Harrison and Joe Crowley are at the Compton Verney estate in Warwickshire to mark 300 years since the death of Britain’s greatest master carver, Grinling Gibbons. Known as the Michelangelo of wood, Gibbons was influenced by nature, and Joe discovers how his legacy lives on today. Ellie explores Compton Verney’s 120 acres of parkland, shaped by 18th-century landscape architect Capability Brown, and finds out why it is now a haven for local wildlife, including orphaned badgers. Tom Heap investigates the crisis facing UK pig farmers, and Adam Henson is on Exmoor to help with the annual round-up of one of the UK’s rarest native pony breeds.
Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith are in Kielder in Northumberland to explore some of the 250 square miles of England’s largest forest. Charlotte discovers how this man-made landscape supplies a quarter of England’s timber - from the joists in your house to the chair you sit on - and heads to a ‘rock festival’ as Northumberland Wildlife Trust celebrates its 50th anniversary by revealing secrets going back millions of years that are hidden in the stones that shape this landscape. Matt finds out how the forest is managed for its wildlife, helping a team clean out osprey nests 65 feet high up and foraging for fungi that help the forest thrive. Adam Henson gets to grips with the latest entrants into the milk market - camels - and Joe Crowley investigates whether schemes to reduce the impact of big building projects on wildlife are working.
Matt Baker and Anita Rani explore the beauty of the Malvern Hills and discover how this area inspired writers such as JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis and composer Edward Elgar. Anita visits Malvern College, where Lewis studied and was visited by his friend Tolkien, and up on the hills she meets a group of young writers hoping to follow in the great masters’ footsteps. She also steps into Narnia as she meets the world’s only female gas light engineer, who repairs and maintains the famous lights that influenced CS Lewis. Matt is on the musical trail of Elgar and meets cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason for a special Countryfile recital. Adam Henson welcomes a very festive new arrival to his farm, and Tom Heap investigates the toxic risks being served up in our winter game.
Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith head to Christmas Common in Oxfordshire, home to one of the biggest Christmas tree farms in the country, to celebrate the festive season. Matt finds out why a dairy-farming family swapped cows for Christmas trees and how seasonal farming is a year-round business. Charlotte channels her inner elf, heading to the local market town of Watlington to help a butcher, a baker and a candlestick maker prepare their festive treats. The cattle are lowing as Adam Henson visits a Christmas cattle market in Rutland and also launches a cracker of a competition to design a bobble hat for Children in Need. Tom Heap gets gift wrapping with the countryside communities preparing a rural welcome for refugees. John Craven gets a Christmas present to remember as he meets the descendants of red kites he helped release nearly three decades ago, and wildlife cameraman Richard Taylor Jones goes on a white Christmas wildlife walk.
Charlotte Smith takes a look at some of our Christmas traditions. She visits historic Lacock Abbey in Wiltshire - the birthplace of photography in Britain - to discover how the Fox Talbot family celebrated the festive season in the run-up to New Year. She also finds out how to make the most of Christmas leftovers, learns about some intriguing, age-old cures to relieve festive overindulgence, and delves into the archives to revisit some special Countryfile Christmas moments from across the UK.
As we usher in 2022, John Craven pays tribute to inspirational young people who are doing their bit for farming and the countryside. John is at College Lake on the edge of the Chilterns, which was created from a derelict quarry. He meets young volunteers and rangers learning about conservation and wildlife, and he also catches up with award-winning author and Countryfile young naturalist Dara, a girl who has been on the warpath against litter since the age of six, and a 14-year-old shepherdess. He also revisits mountain leader Rehna Yaseen and finds out how Alishba is faring after a freak accident put her out of action on an adventure in Snowdonia.
Sean Fletcher is in the snowy Cairngorms as we mark the centenary of the death of the great explorer Ernest Shackleton. In this mesmerising yet unforgiving landscape, Sean meets adventurer Mollie Hughes, who solo-crossed the Antarctic following in Shackleton’s footsteps, and discovers just how tough it is to train and trek in some of the harshest conditions in the UK. Sean also meets two scouts who are preparing to go on a Shackleton expedition, and learns some vital survival tricks. We also catch up with young naturalist Xander, who is on a mission to help save the northern damselfly, while Adam Henson discovers the damage growing numbers of deer are causing to farmers, and Tom Heap investigates the cost of renewable energy to our rural homes.
Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith visit the last traditional farm in the Bristol postcode to meet a farmer fighting to keep her farm and her connection with the local community she feeds. Matt helps out with a spot of animal husbandry and some porcine romance while Charlotte discovers how the farmland provides the city with a 'green lung' and a wildlife haven. On his Cotswolds farm, Adam Henson is keeping the peace between two testosterone-fuelled rams, and Charlotte also investigates whether cuts to rural youth work are putting youngsters at risk of criminal exploitation.
On the 50th anniversary of the miners’ strikes, Matt Baker and Anita Rani are in County Durham on the Heritage Coast to discover how this area has risen from the ashes and reinvented itself after pit closures. Matt finds out how a colliery has become a nature reserve, and Anita discovers how one pit is now enjoying a new lease of life as a source for cutting-edge clean, green energy. Also, Tom Heap investigates the hidden threat facing countryside communities living in the shadow of our mining past, and Adam Henson sees how the avian flu crisis is threatening the livelihood of free range egg farmers.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison visit the largest privately owned estate in Devon, which has been in the same family for more than 700 years, to discover how the 25,000 acres are shaping up to the future. Matt joins the calving team at Clinton Devon Estates and sets the wheels in motion at a 900 year old watermill while Ellie checks out a mammoth project where the sea will be more than welcome to flood the land. Then, she meets the organic farming duo who also juggle part-time jobs as a lecturer and a GP. Adam’s getting ready for spring on his farm, and Charlotte investigates what the new environmental land management schemes will mean for the future of food production.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison are at the Allerton Project in Leicestershire, where cutting-edge research by farmers for farmers enables agriculture to keep ahead of the challenges facing the industry. Matt finds out how sheep urine could help combat climate change, Ellie discovers the miracles of the humble hedge, and binoculars at the ready, both do their bit for the Big Farmland Bird Count. Also, Tom Heap investigates what’s being done to keep antibiotic-resistant superbugs out of the food chain, and Adam Henson is busy with winter checks on his livestock.
Matt Baker and Joe Crowley get their walking boots on as they visit Snowdonia National Park. Home to Wales’s largest natural lake and its highest mountain, Mount Snowdon, the park shot to the top of the staycation list last summer as more Brits than ever holidayed on home turf. But Snowdonia is paying the price for its popularity, as the heavy influx of tourists is taking its toll on the landscape. Matt finds out about the invisible scourge of micro-plastics plaguing the scenic landscape, while Joe mucks in with a mountain makeover as he helps repair the footpaths. Tom Heap investigates the growing problem of vandalism and anti-social behaviour in our National Parks, and Adam Henson visits a farm in Wiltshire where cow dung is being used to generate electricity.
This week we’re visiting the Holkham Estate in Norfolk. Joe Crowley witnesses the awesome spectacle of thousands of overwintering pink footed geese leaving their roost. Matt Baker unearths the remarkable life buried deep in long-abandoned ponds and discovers which exotic creatures have a penchant for a certain type of oak. Charlotte investigates why the UK’s sugar beet farmers are facing an uncertain future, and it’s a visit to the vet for Adam’s trusty sheepdog Peg. Could her working days be numbered?
John Craven is at Wrest Park in Bedfordshire to help with an ambitious 20-year restoration project to breathe new life into fabulous features that reflect fashions across three centuries, from statues to cascades and an 18th-century bath house. And it’s the perfect place for John to dip into the Countryfile archives, revisiting the occasions when Ellie Harrison helped to spruce up the Cerne Abbas Giant, Anita Rani mucked in to clear a toxic scrapyard in Shropshire, and Matt Baker rolled up his sleeves to help restore a 12th-century church in Herefordshire.
Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith head to the High Weald, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the borders of Sussex and Kent, to discover the role of wood, iron and clay both historically and for the future. While Matt meets a visionary architect, Charlotte explores an ancient clay technique for fermenting wine and catches up with a father-and-daughter duo keeping alive the craft of blacksmithing. Tom Heap investigates what’s being done to ensure rural communities get the GP access they need, and Adam Henson is on the trail of British strawberries grown all year round.
In the wake of the recent storms that have rampaged across the UK, Charlotte Smith and Tom Heap are on the River Severn to find out how living with the constant threat of floods is affecting rural communities and how climate change could make things worse. Adam Henson checks in with farmers to see how flooding impacts their livelihoods, and Matt Baker is at Steart Marshes by the Severn estuary to discover how surrendering to the waters can help wildlife.
To mark British Pie Week, Countryfile is in the birthplace of the pork pie – Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire. Margherita Taylor visits the cathedral of pies, home of the British Pie Awards, to find out what makes for pie perfection. Matt Baker discovers Melton Mowbray’s other mouthwatering delight, stilton cheese, and Matt and Margherita both put their taste buds to the test as they try the art of pairing food and beer. Adam is on the trail of Somerset strawberries grown all year round, and who will be top dog when comedians Tim Vine and Kiri Pritchard-McLean go head-to-head in a special Red Nose sheepdog trial for Comic Relief?
Like so many farmers across the UK, Adam Henson is facing a dilemma. In the face of pressure to go green, how can you change your farming habits and still pay the bills? Adam catches up with his neighbor, David Wilson, who is a regenerative farmer, to find out more about one of the big new trends in agriculture and to see what ideas might work on Adam's farm. Charlotte Smith checks out the soil on both farms and investigates 'greenwashing'. As big companies start buying up land for carbon off-setting, are they putting the UK's food production at risk?
Anita Rani and Sean Fletcher explore the beautiful south west corner of Wales as they celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. Anita faces her fears as she abseils 100 feet down a sea cliff to discover how best to protect the nesting spots of the thousands of sea birds that flock here. Sean meets the artist behind the coveted annual fish licence and heads to Angel Bay to discover how to farm oysters. Adam’s Exmoor ponies are in for a treat when a farrier gives them a pedicure and they meet a new stallion. and in a special investigation, BBC News’s rural affairs correspondent Claire Marshall meets the farmers with Parkinson’s Disease who fear their condition could be linked to years of using a toxic herbicide.
Countryfile's Plant Britain by the Sea special shines the spotlight on the incredible coastline of our island and how we can all do our bit to help combat climate change, revive the fortunes of our wildlife and boost our own mental wellbeing. Matt Baker launches Countryfile’s Coastal Clean Up initiative while Ellie Harrison helps to sew meadows out at sea and discovers the miracle properties of seagrass. Charlotte Smith goes on the hunt for rare dune plants saved from the brink of extinction, John Craven finds out how helping our coast to be in the best of health is also remedying young people’s eco anxiety, and Tom Heap investigates the importance of protecting our sand dunes.
John Craven visits two villages in Herefordshire to find out about ancient rural Easter customs and traditions from field blessings to grave dressing and the pax biscuit, which, 500 years on, is still eaten at this time of year as a token of peace and good neighbourliness. Stained glass artist Tamsin Abbot creates a special piece to celebrate Easter and spring, inspired by the beautiful countryside around her. And John delves into the Easter archives for some treats, including the time Matt made a very special delivery to the Isles of Scilly and when Sean discovered the significance of wild daffodils.
It’s springtime in County Down, where Anita Rani and Joe Crowley meet the Mackies of Mahee Island during the first of four seasonal visits this year. Anita gets a tour of the family’s very own arboretum and is introduced to the art of a well-known friend, while Joe lends a hand on the farm as the cattle head to the fields for spring. He also hears from the family’s conservationist about how they created their own wetland – one of Northern Ireland’s wildlife treasures. Also, Tom Heap investigates how the war in Ukraine has sparked a surge in the cost of fertiliser which could affect the price of the food on our plates.
Nothing says spring quite like lambing, and Adam Henson is in his lambing shed getting ready for the last of his new arrivals. Anita Rani meets 15-year-old shepherd Katie on her family farm in Cumbria. Anita has never lambed before but soon finds herself at the sharp end of an emotional rollercoaster in the battle to save lives. Adam is also joined by Pip Jenkins from top knitwear company John Smedley and designer and Great British Sewing Bee judge Patrick Grant to decide the winner of Countryfile’s bobble competition for Children in Need. And with the cost of living on the rise, we rediscover forgotten cheap lamb cuts which are enjoying a revival.
Countryfile this week visits the breathtaking coastline of Mount’s Bay in Cornwall and explores the magical St Michael’s Mount. Matt Baker is in for some extreme gardening as he abseils on the island’s craggy cliffs, while Margherita Taylor takes to the water to meet the team of female gig boat rowers who are going for gold in the world championships. Charlotte Smith investigates how the UK’s shortage of farm vets is threatening not just animal health but also our own. Adam’s getting ready for the arrival of some very special calves. And, in the first of a series of five films, Adrian Chiles explores some of the fascinating customs from around the British Isles. Today, he’s just along the coast in Mousehole and discovers an intriguing Cornish tradition or two.
Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison explore the grounds of the beautiful Blenheim Palace estate, meeting the people who make this place tick. Matt catches up with young apprentices who are learning the tools of their trades. As well as lending a hand with lambing, Matt is also kept busy with essential maintenance. Ellie makes a beeline for the ancient woodland and finds herself swinging from one of their prized oaks in search of a rare bee. Adrian Chiles is in Dorking to meet the creator of a weird and wonderful take on the traditional horse-drawn carriage, while Adam Henson catches up with students on a new initiative to introduce young people from the city to careers in agriculture. And Tom Heap investigates claims that by 2050 the UK could run out of water.
In Ystradgynlais in south Wales, Joe Crowley visits a local rugby club where mental health is every bit as important a physical fitness. Anita Rani gets knitting with a group of grandmothers whose woolly wonders have given them a new lease of life. Tom Heap discovers what new rules around gene editing could mean for the future of our food. Nigel Owens, former international rugby referee turned farmer and current president of the National Federation of Young Farmers' Clubs, explains how he has dealt with mental health, and Adam Henson catches up with a young Welsh farmer to find out what can be done to combat loneliness in agriculture. Adrian Chiles is in Dorking in Surrey to explore more weird and wonderful goings-on in our countryside.
As cycling booms, Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison jump on their bikes to explore a new greenway in Warwickshire. It’s the latest National Cycle Route to open in the UK. Matt hops off to discover the secrets of Britain’s mini-dinosaur, the great crested newt, and meets the people moving heaven and earth to protect them. Ellie goes in search of the water vole, one of the UK’s rarest water mammals, and meets a walking group who are mapping and reviewing thousands of accessible walkways in a whole new way. Adrian Chiles has a go at a local tradition in the village of Upperthong in Yorkshire, while Adam is in for a surprise when he welcomes Lexi the Suffolk Punch’s new foal. And Tom Heap investigates the increase in cycling deaths on our rural roads.
The team visit Flat Holm, an island perched in the middle of the Bristol Channel. Tiny as it is, it packs a punch, as Matt Baker discovers the fascinating history of the place, from pirates and queens to the birthplace of radio. Ellie Harrison ducks for cover from divebombing gulls, while Joe Crowley investigates the water companies still dumping sewage into our rivers. Adrian Chiles coracles off the west coast of Wales as he discovers more fascinating tales from across our countryside, and to celebrate the platinum jubilee weekend, Adam finds out more about the Queen’s passion for a special pony.
John Craven visits the Mardale Valley in Cumbria. The Lake District is one of the best-recognised landscapes in Britain, but in this neck of the woods, it’s all set to change. At Haweswater Reservoir, John meets the people behind the new radical thinking to boost biodiversity. John also enjoys a very special breakfast with one of our rarest mammals, the red squirrel, and he meets wildlife film-maker and photographer Hamza Yassin to launch this year’s Countryfile photographic competition with two new categories for children and young people. Adrian Chiles lifts the lid on Manx customs on the Isle of Man, Adam sells one of his prized Gloucester bulls, and Charlotte Smith investigates the recent poisoning of sea eagles in Southern England.
Sean Fletcher visits Whitby. Isolated between the North York Moors National Park and the sombre North Sea, it’s not a place you stumble upon; it’s a destination. This North Yorkshire seaside town has been attracting people with its architectural, geological and literary charms for generations. This May marks the 125th year since the publication of Bram Stoker’s Dracula, a novel that was influenced by Whitby’s folkloric past and continues to shape this maritime outpost. To celebrate the occasion, Sean is in town visiting the people of Whitby who work and protect its coastline today, providing a springboard for a deep dive into our archives of coastal Britain.
Charlotte Smith is back in the Cotswolds on Adam’s farm to find out how he’s getting on with his plan to try out regenerative farming, the big new trend in British agriculture. As well as catching up with his farmer neighbour David Wilson, who is showing him the ropes, Adam also meets a robot that could one day eliminate the need for pesticides. Charlotte visits an innovator in Wiltshire who is recycling waste into fertiliser that could help farmers battling sky-high prices. But how realistic is the shift to regen farming for farmers like Adam, and with the war in Ukraine, is this the right time to try it?
Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith pay the first of two visits to Jersey, where they find out about the agile frog that is capable of leaping up to two metres but is on the brink of extinction on this Channel Island. Matt mucks in on an organic farm producing exotic fruit and vegetables for the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, with a little help from what comes naturally, while Charlotte explores how the brutal landmarks of German occupation are being repurposed to boost the local economy. Meanwhile, Adam is in search of a new sheepdog pup to take over from his faithful companion Peg, who is nearing retirement, and Tom investigates the potential impact on rural communities of plans to double nuclear capacity within 30 years.
Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are in the New Forest in Hampshire, as the community comes together to help Ukrainian refugees. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, more than 50,000 people have arrived in the UK, and rural communities across the country are giving them a warm welcome. Margherita meets a mother and daughter who have fled the war and found sanctuary in the Hampshire countryside, while Matt lends a hand to a group of volunteers collecting and packing Humanitarian Aid to send to Ukraine. Tom Heap spends time with Ukrainian farm workers who have escaped the war and are providing a vital rural workforce for the UK, and Adam Henson chats to a farmer in Ukraine and finds out what impact the war is having on agriculture there.
It’s summer, and Margherita Taylor is on Mahee Island in County Down to meet the Mackie family for the second of three Countryfile visits to the island. Margherita joins Julie to go through the family archives, which reveal what life was like during World War II when they hosted evacuees from Belfast and Europe. Young naturalist Dara McAnulty reveals how the great outdoors helped with exam nerves, while Charlotte investigates what the Northern Ireland protocol means for farmers, and Adam finds out how avian flu might affect the Christmas turkey market.
Charlotte Smith and Matt Baker are back on Jersey for a second visit to the sunny channel island. After a dramatic entrance via the sea, they discover how people power stopped development on Jersey’s sensitive coastline and why the battle is on to save the island’s puffins, which are on the brink of extinction. Matt discovers the healing powers of surfing, and we meet the rugby-playing mates who decided to try making their own sea salt after running out of the stuff at a beach barbecue. We also catch up with the Power Rangers, young environmentalists doing their bit for the island. Adam Henson takes some pigs to school, and Tom Heap investigates how the UK’s worst ever avian flu outbreak is devastating some of our most precious seabird colonies and could pull the shutters down on British poultry farmers once again.
John Craven and Margherita Taylor are in Blairgowrie, also known as Berry Town, in the east of Scotland, to celebrate the town’s passion for producing what are said to be among the finest raspberries in the world. John steps back in time to discover how this town would come alive in the summer months as people flocked from the cities of Scotland for picking holidays to make a penny or two, and he finds out why this neck of the woods is so perfect for growing these luscious summer fruits. Margherita reveals the secrets of the world’s tallest hedge and tries her hand at the dying craft of hand-making kilts. Meanwhile, Adam Henson has a busy day on the farm, including welcoming some new arrivals. And Charlotte Smith investigates if our farmers can still feed us all despite big targets to free up land for nature.
Matt and Charlotte visit the world-famous Hadrian’s Wall as it celebrates its astonishing 1900th anniversary to uncover some hidden histories of the area. Charlotte makes an amazing discovery at the Roman fort of Vindolanda, an archaeological excavation site where they are unearthing the lives of women and children of our past, and meets the chemist trying to chart the changes beneath the surface. Matt finds out about the rich multicultural history of the soldiers that manned the wall - from Syrian archers to Iraqi bargemen on the Tyne - and meets the artist who's brightly coloured art installation has brought a Roman fort’s history to life. Meanwhile, Adam is also in Northumberland, learning how one farming family is turbo-charging birds, and Tom Heap investigates why the aging, government-owned Scottish island ferry service is leaving locals feeling cast adrift.
Ellie Harrison is at Oxfordshire Wildlife Rescue to help care for injured creatures great and small, from orphaned fledglings to deer and hedgehogs. Ellie finds out why rescue centres across the UK become increasingly busy during the summer months and why this Oxfordshire centre is under so much pressure that it has had to temporarily close its doors. In just six months, it has taken in the number of wild animals it would normally help in a year. Ellie also delves into the Countryfile archives to revisit films by some of Britain’s finest wildlife film-makers about the wonders of our natural world. Richard Taylor Jones revealed the wooing techniques of a kestrel desperate to impress a potential mate, Tom Hartwell took us up close with the mason bee, Hamza Yassin went in search of red deer fawns, and Jack Perks revealed the wealth of wildlife living in his garden pond.
Just a few miles from London, Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith revel in the serenity and beauty of the Surrey Hills - a landscape that was home to one of Britain’s best-loved composers, Ralph Vaughan Williams. This year marks the 150th anniversary of his birth, and world-renowned violinist Pekka Kuusisto treats us to a very special performance of The Lark Ascending. Charlotte finds out how farmers could help to reverse the fortunes of the skylark, one of our favourites songbirds, while Matt sniffs out some fabulous local produce including a cheese called Dirty Vicar. We meet 3D embroiderer Amanda Cobbett, who creates incredibly lifelike masterpieces of local nature. Tom Heap investigates why saving our trees could mean declaring war on grey squirrels, and Adam Henson meets Pat Quinn, one of the driving forces behind saving longhorn cattle and Cotswold sheep, who swapped a life of rally racing for farming. Now in her nineties, she’s hanging up her wellies.
As the heat bakes the British countryside into crisis, Adam Henson and John Craven meet those on the front line. They include the farmer who is double sewing and trying a new crop; the wildlife champions battling to save chalk streams - some of the most vital but fragile habitats in the world; and the firefighters and scientists contending with the wildfires ravaging swathes of our landscape. John also meets the winemakers who, thanks to the scorching summer, could have a vintage harvest, and finds out how the heatwave has revealed some hidden historic secrets. Lastly, he teams up with Wildlife Trust ambassador and much-loved actress Alison Steadman and wildlife film-maker Hamza Yassin to decide which photographs will grace 2023's Countryfile calendar for Children in Need.
As the BBC marks its centenary, Adam Henson and Margherita Taylor step back in time at Cogges Farm in Oxfordshire to look at farming 100 years ago and to chart the radical changes that have shaped our countryside - from the appearance of the first tractor to the changing role of women in agriculture. Adam gets behind some serious horse power to tend the land, while Margherita tries her hand at pickles and preserves and discovers how women made their mark beyond the farmhouse kitchen. Farmer Helen Browning, chief executive of the Soil Association, reveals the heroines who inspired her, while 90-year-old author and retired farmer Bryan Edgley reminisces on how farming has changed in his lifetime.
Margherita Taylor is in the Quantock Hills to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, one of the leading lights of the Romantic movement that took its inspiration from the beauty of the British landscape. The Quantocks were a huge influence on Coleridge, who was an inveterate walker in the area when he was living here in Somerset, and Margherita joins some young people to put quill to paper. Margherita also visits the Somerset Levels, which this year is becoming the UK’s second 'super' national nature reserve. She comes face to face with some of the wetlands’ tiniest residents and discovers a legend or two. Adam introduces the Irish and English rivals who will do battle in this year’s One Man and His Dog competition, while Tom examines the crisis facing pig farmers. And, as we prepare to ramble in aid of BBC Children in Need, we meet remarkable 13-year-old Saul, who refuses to let dwarfism stand in the way of adventure.
Joe Crowley is on the south Devon coast, the stunning English Riviera where disco scallops are the talk of the town. A chance discovery that they react to lights could revolutionise scallop fishing. Joe also discovers how new technology can reveal some watery wonders without having to put a toe in the sea, and we meet the farming brothers who’ve turned to aquaponics. Adam Henson meets the two final contenders going for glory in One Man and His Dog. For Scotland, it’s veteran Sandy and his dog Sam, while Dewi and Jock run for Wales. John Craven catches up with the winner of Countryfile’s 2023 Calendar in aid of Children in Need, and we meet young Riley, who doesn’t let a rare lung condition stand in his way of conquering the world.
For some, it's been the earliest harvest ever in the UK. We join Adam Henson on his farm to find out if he’s being persuaded by pioneering neighbour David Wilson to give regenerative farming a go. It’s the big new buzzword in agriculture, but how do Adam’s conventional crops compare to David’s heritage breeds? And who comes out on top in terms of profit and for soil health? As energy costs rocket, Charlotte Smith finds out whether methane might be fuelling our tractors in the future and also if a giant grass could help to heat our homes. Tom Heap investigates why British farmers need to grow more protein, and we meet the Norfolk whisky maker who reckons he can give the Scots and the Irish a run for their money.
Anita Rani is in a green pocket of Blackburn to catch up with fashion designer and Great British Sewing Bee judge Patrick Grant to find out about the growing field-to-fashion movement. Patrick is behind a movement to revive the flax industry, once a mainstay of British agriculture, to create home-grown linen. Anita also tries her hand at spinning and finds out about growing woad to dye locally produced cloth. And she raids the Countryfile archives to celebrate British field-to-fashion artisans from tanners to sock makers, including the time Charlotte gave an angora rabbit a hair cut.
In a small field in north Wales, four of the UK’s top handlers and their sheepdogs go head-to-head, aiming to claim this year’s One Man and His Dog trophy. Overlooked by the famous Offa’s Dyke, the course at Bodfari is small and simple, leaving our competing teams nowhere to hide from the expert eye of the judge, Mike Northwood. Can English outsider Jessica Saukkonen and her dog Gannon or Scottish veteran Sandy McCulloch and his dog Sam outdo the reigning International Supreme Champions, Wales’s Dewi Jenkins and Jock? Dewi took the title from Ireland’s Tom O’Sullivan, who is looking for revenge with his sheepdog Tess, so there’s everything to play for. And we meet 15-year-old Claudia Pattinson and her faithful companion Jean. She got the sheepdog trialling bug when she was just five years old, and in a showcase round demonstrates why she’s one to look out for the future.
Matt Baker introduces a special episode that comes from all four corners of the UK. Ben Nevis, Slieve Donard, Yr Wyddfa and Scafell Pike – the highest peaks of our four nations are the breathtaking backdrop for a massive art installation. Hundreds of volunteers, or 'lumenators', with specially designed bespoke lights, head for the peaks for this ambitious project celebrating access to and custodianship of the countryside. With a presenter on each of the mountains, we go behind the scenes to discover the vision behind the project, hear the stories of the volunteers and find out how the lighting and drone teams tackled some testing challenges. It all culminates with a 15-minute spectacle marking the finale of the Green Space Dark Skies project.
It’s the big ramble for BBC Children in Need as our presenters step out to meet some inspirational young people and to discover how they have been helped by the charity. Matt Baker is in Northern Ireland with Saul, aged 12, who has a rare form of dwarfism and an unquenchable thirst for adventure, enabled by CiN support. From canoeing to abseiling in the worst of weathers, nothing deters Saul, and there’s a surprise or two to keep him going. Anita Rani is in Wales on a testing ramble up Pumlumon - the highest peak of the Cambrian Mountains - with 11-year-old Riley, who has a rare lung condition. In North Yorkshire, Charlotte Smith joins Isabella, aged 10, and her special assistance dog, Storm, for a walk and a day on the farm. Isabella is autistic, and Storm has helped to change her life.
Margherita Taylor visits Mount Edgecumbe Country Park in Cornwall to mark Remembrance Sunday. She discovers how ex-servicemen and women are being helped to heal old wounds and develop new skills for the future. For many veterans, the transition from military to civilian life can be tough, but dedicated charities and initiatives can help to give them a new start in life – from solace and healing in nature to training in cutting-edge technology in the battle against poaching and deforestation across the globe. Charlotte Smith meets farmers dealing with eye-watering energy costs, Adam Henson reveals who will be crowned Countryfile Young Countryside Champion of the Year at the BBC Food & Farming awards, and chef and food writer Romy Gill meets some inspiring young countryside cooks.
As Countryfile’s Plant Britain initiative to plant three-quarters of a million trees across the UK reaches its climax, John Craven and Ellie Harrison are at the Countryfile wood in Cheshire. Planting here began just two years ago, but John and Ellie discover how the saplings are already helping nature. Ellie also checks out the positive impact trees have on the planet, from seed to deadwood. Charlotte Smith finds out how community gardens are changing lives and discovers the fascinating underground system that enables trees to talk to each other. Tom Heap visits the high-security government labs working to protect trees from climate change and disease. And finally, after two years of Countryfile viewers so magnificently pulling together, John and Ellie reveal an exciting update.
Matt Baker and Sean Fletcher roll up their sleeves to help out on a remarkable smallholding in Bedfordshire. Farmer Mike Duxbury lost his sight at the age of six due to glaucoma, but that didn’t stop him from achieving his dream to farm. Touch and sound enable him to navigate the farm and take on anything that needs doing, from checking livestock to wielding power tools to build animal enclosures. And Mike is determined to inspire young people with disabilities to get into agriculture by running practical courses. Meanwhile, Joe Crowley investigates if enough is being done to combat wildlife crime, and Adam Henson catches up with a farmer who nearly lost his livelihood due to injury.
Anita Rani is at the world-famous Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust in Slimbridge, a centre of research and conservation founded by Sir Peter Scott in 1946, to discover some wonderful winter sights. Anita waits for one of the most magical moments in the Slimbridge calendar, the arrival of Bewick’s swans. Having flown all the way from Russia, these rarest and smallest of swans land here to spend the winter in warmer climes – a phenomenon known to locals as ‘swanfall’. Anita meets Mary, one of the original ‘swan girls’, who explains how she used to spend long hours silently observing the Bewick’s. Anita also spends time with Slimbridge reserve manager Dave Paynter as he reveals the changes he’s made during his 40 years working at the site. Anita also embraces the coming winter as she raids the Countryfile archives, reminding us of Ellie’s wildlife safari in Scotland where she spotted wild mountain hares, and the time John walked with wolves.
Rural households are more vulnerable to the current energy crisis and fuel poverty due to lower wages, poorly insulated buildings and a heavy reliance on cars. However, there are some communities that are finding ways to take power into their own hands - literally. Ellie Harrison heads to Bethesda, a village in rural north west Wales built around former slate quarries and the River Ogwen that is now home to a growing community of energy self-sufficiency. With hydro pumps, solar panels, e-transport, energy wardens and repurposed buildings, this local community has found a way not only to try and survive this crisis but ultimately thrive. Ellie visits a community warm space in the Ogwen Valley where locals are reducing their fuel bills through communal dining and shared transport. It's a model village for renewable and sustainable energy alternatives, run by and for the locals, that could potentially be rolled out across rural Britain.
John Craven and Anita Rani get into the Christmas spirit at Rockingham Castle, which is celebrating its 950th anniversary. Anita discovers that Charles Dickens was a regular visitor during the festive season, and would perform plays not only for the Lords and Ladies but also the servants. Anita forages for greenery to make a Christmas wreath, and John joins a wildlife survey to discover what is making their Christmas home in the castle’s famous elephant yew hedge. Chef and food writer Romy Gill is hard at work in Rockingham’s kitchen to create Christmas treats with the four young cooks she’s met on her travels, while Adam Henson is on the trail of rogue mistletoe. Tom Heap looks at social eating and how it might be the answer to food poverty, social isolation and food waste, while Charlotte Smith finds out how our farmers are getting a raw deal for the produce they put on our plates.
Margherita Taylor is in Auchindrain, a fascinating and perfectly preserved example of a Scottish Highland farm township to discover the roots and traditions surrounding New Year and Burns’ Night. She discovers how tough life was and why Christmas was once illegal in Scotland. And she delves into the Countryfile archive to celebrate other seasonal customs, revisiting the time Ellie Harrison embraced Coorie and when John Craven learned about the ancient tradition of Gaelic psalm singing.
John Craven is at the National Hedgelaying Championships as competitors go chainsaw to chainsaw, billhook to billhook in a bid to claim the coveted title as they set about specific regional styles and work against the clock. John gets a lesson in the Midland Bullock style and finds out why hedgerows are so important to our countryside. He also discovers the Cornish hedge tradition reckoned to be as old as the pyramids, and he delves into the Countryfile archives to celebrate rural heritage skills, revisiting the time Anita Rani met a traditional cricket bat maker and when Matt Baker helped with the ancient craft of wheelwrighting.
Love it or hate it, shooting contributes around £2 billion to the rural economy. But it’s a sporting industry under the cosh, as the UK is gripped by the worst ever outbreak of avian flu. Can game bird shoots survive the 21st century? Charlotte explores the 12,500-acre Rhug Estate in north Wales to see what it means to be a traditional shooting estate in the modern world and looks at how it contributes to local business. Sean is in Perthshire on the 1,300-acre Bamff Estate, which has eschewed shooting for eco-tourism, including a colony of beavers. Tom is in Wiltshire to investigate the threat posed by avian flu to the industry, and in the Cotswolds, Adam puts his new sheepdog Gwen through her paces. Will she pass muster?
John Craven and Charlotte Smith are at Audley End House in Essex, one of the finest Jacobean houses in the UK. They may arrive in grand style but are quickly despatched to the servants’ entrance to roll up their sleeves and muck in with winter cleaning and maintenance. As well as discovering the provenance of some of the house’s eclectic collection of thousands of artefacts, John discovers the intricacies of cleaning delicate seashells while Charlotte finds out why skimmed milk works a treat on flagstone flooring. There’s an ancient vine to tame as well as Charlotte’s fear of horses as she takes on groom duties in the stables. Adam Henson is busy making sure his animals are in the finest of fettle to get through a cold winter, and Charlotte reveals the trials and tribulations of the rural midwife.
It’s 60 years since the Big Freeze, one of the coldest winters on record, when even the sea froze over, and rural communities were cut off by blizzards and towering snowdrifts. Anita Rani and Joe Crowley are in Flash, the UK’s highest village, to see how the community coped then and how they brace for winter now. They also find out what sort of weather we can expect in future winters. Anita unlocks the secrets of Flash's history, from special buttons to a booming business in counterfeit money, while Joe discovers the secrets of seaweed in the village brewery. Adam Henson helps out on one of the remaining Flash hill farms, and Tom Heap is on the Isle of Eigg, where islanders aren’t waiting for government to help them level up but are doing it for themselves.
Charlotte Smith and Steve Brown are visiting first-time famers around the country to discover the trials and tribulations of trying to break into the industry. Steve is in Hampshire finding out what made a former marine and a recruitment worker decide to enter the notoriously tough dairy industry. Charlotte is in Worcestershire to discover what made a successful hairdresser ditch the salon to rear a Valais sheep and Wagyu cattle. In West Wales, Charlotte meets a pair of duck famers who quit the rat race in London and put all their eggs in one basket. On the Isle of Wight, Adam Henson is visiting Medina College which has started a new GCSE course in agriculture, joining the pupils as they get hands-on experience looking after livestock. Charlotte also finds out why farm tenancies are few and far between.
Sean Fletcher is in Cornwall, but he’s not here to explore its fabulous 300-mile coastline. Instead, he will be going underground to unearth the legacy of the county’s renowned tin and copper mining industries. Sean encounters an endangered mammal that has set up home in disused mine shafts at Prideaux Wood, and at Penwith we delve underground to discover the history and geology of a 500-year-old tin mine that contains some of the deepest seams in the country. Meanwhile, Adam Henson is in search of a super fertiliser hidden deep under the North York Moors, and Tom Heap finds out if mining Cornish lithium could herald a new gold rush.
Joe Crowley and Steve Brown are on the North Yorkshire coast in the beautiful village of Staithes to find out how the traditional fishing community is adapting for the future. Where once there was a fishing fleet of 80, now there is just one fisherman left. Joe goes out to sea to discover how one skipper has swapped nets for wildlife tourism, while Steve takes a look at Staithes’s art heritage and tastes some locally smoked goodies. Adam Henson finds out about the challenges facing a sheep dairy, and Charlotte Smith investigates the latest developments behind one of Britain’s biggest ecological marine disasters.
Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith are in Derbyshire at Bakewell Livestock Market as hundreds of sheep and cattle are auctioned. Among the farmers looking to make a penny or two is Keith Harrop, who is hoping to get top dollar for one of his beef cattle. But is business brisk enough today? As well as following a busy market day, Charlotte discovers the history of markets and how Bakewell is adapting for the future with pop-up shops and also a pop-in health clinic. Joe Crowley is in East Anglia, where a proposed new multibillion-pound power grid has been met with stiff opposition.
Celebrating the seventieth anniversary of the first recorded summit of the highest point on earth, Mount Everest, Ellie Harrison is in Kettering at one of the world's most advanced materials research facilities to put outdoor gear – and herself – to the test. As well as getting to grips with a pair of expedition boots that made it to the top of the world, how will Ellie bear up in a cold chamber where the mercury can hit -40 Celsius? The UK may not be able to match the dizzying heights of Everest, but we do have our own extreme landscapes, so how can we best be braced to deal with them?
John Craven and Matt Baker are on the east coast of England to find out how storms are devouring the coastline, putting homes and livelihoods at threat. John is in Happisburgh in north Norfolk which loses two metres of land to the sea every year, a rate predicted to accelerate in the near future. One resident has already lost her home but has bought another in the town, while a neighbour is watching her house edge ever closer to being claimed by the sea, the same sea she swims in to help with her anxiety. Matt is in Suffolk and discovers how wildlife is flourishing where the sea has reclaimed the land, and we meet the farmer who is also letting nature have its way with an eye to the future with salt marsh lamb.
Our national parks are beautiful wild spaces that are free for us all to explore and enjoy. But what does the future hold in light of funding cutbacks and the recent wild camping ruling on Dartmoor? Charlotte Smith discovers how cuts are affecting management of wild landscapes and finds out how political parties are squaring up to the right to camp debate. She also catches up with author Guy Shrubsole to discover a rare rainforest here on Dartmoor, while Matt Baker helps budding conservationists with a bird survey and takes to the airwaves of Skylark FM. With the Cheltenham Festival around the corner, Adam Henson visits an equine rehab centre to find out what it takes to keep racehorses in peak condition. Paralympian Sammi Kinghorn meets the volunteers opening up Dartmoor for everyone in Miles without Stiles, and in the second of a four part strand, Adrian Chiles discovers what it takes to be a hill farmer in Wales.
The Wye is one of the most spectacular rivers in Britain, winding through stunning countryside, the muse of writers and artists, and a Site of Special Scientific Interest and conservation. With that sort of reputation, you’d expect the river to have a pristine bill of a health. But like so many of our waterways, the Wye’s waters are in trouble. Suffocated by pollution, it is slowly dying. But all is not lost. Matt Baker and Anita Rani meet the volunteers going to the rescue of the Wye, from the cider maker turned citizen science champion, whose findings may have forced the farming industry to own up to its role in putting the river into its death throes, to the volunteers creating a 30-acre wetland to harbour some of our most cherished wildlife. Adam Henson meets the farmer trying to do his bit to save the river, while Tom Heap investigates why the Wye has been allowed to decline almost to the point of being declared ecologically dead.
Joe Crowley is in Aberystwyth to meet scientists behind some of the biggest new developments in farming and food security, from insect brownies to the revival of historic crops and why some South American visitors could be the saviours of upland farming. Charlotte Smith is in the Lea Valley, home to 3,500 acres of glasshouses providing 75 per cent of the UK’s home-grown salads, to investigate why what’s known as London’s salad bowl is on the brink of collapse. Adam Henson finds out why the shift towards sustainable farming could mean boom time for native breeds, while Adrian Chiles discovers what the future of sheep farming could be in his final report from the Welsh mountains.
Margherita Taylor and Joe Crowley are in Sherwood Forest to unravel some hidden histories as they discover how much more there is to this nature reserve and site of special scientific interest than Robin Hood. Margherita finds out the role Sherwood played as a training ground in the First World War and catches up with 94-year-old Kevin Topham, who shares the story of how the discovery of black gold in the forest helped to shape victory during WWII. Joe discovers why Sherwood has a missing generation of oaks and how premature ageing is helping to fill the gap. We meet 17-year-old ornithologist Indy Greene, who is on the trail of the forest’s woodpeckers, including the rarest and most secretive: the lesser spotted. And we find out why the new deal for Northern Ireland hasn’t included veterinary medicine, with potentially devastating consequences for animal and human health.
Modern medicine has transformed our lives and wellbeing, but some ancient remedies still have a place in our hi-tech hospitals. Sean Fletcher is in Hendy, south Wales, visiting Europe’s most productive leech farm, which supplies 70 per cent of medicinal leeches worldwide. He joins for feeding time and discovers how these often-reviled three-jawed creatures are making a comeback, helping patients recover from trauma or severe infections. Leeches aren’t the only creepy crawlies with a place in modern medicine. In Swansea, Sean discovers how maggots are working their magic for a patient recovering from a major infection. And we meet Dr Christina Lee, who is taking a fresh look at remedies going back 1,000 years. Sean also dips into the Countryfile archive to explore nature’s medicine cabinet in our countryside, and he looks into warnings that veterinary medicine in Northern Ireland is being overlooked, posing serious consequences for animal welfare and the economy.
Picking up the baton from Sir David Attenborough’s Wild Isles, Countryfile launches 'Wild Britain', an ambitious 12-month initiative to galvanize us all to help and save our precious wildlife. Ellie Harrison and Hamza Yassin are lending a hand on the Lincolnshire Fens, as a group of local volunteers and school children begin the transformation of an old playing field into a wildlife haven by building a bog, a dead hedge and a bug hotel. Hamza also takes the children on a wildlife safari at a nearby nature reserve to show what nature their playing field could attract in a few years’ time. Twenty years after his first visit, John Craven heads to Chester Zoo to discover how our smallest rodent, the harvest mouse, is getting on and takes a trip on the Macclesfield Canal to find out how we can all create our own wildlife haven, no matter what size of space you have.
Charlotte Smith and Hamza Yassin travel to Dumfries House, a showcase for the King's passion for rural life. Charlotte meets school children at the estate’s education farm and garden to find out about the King’s ambition to create the next generation of nature-loving food producers. Charlotte also looks into the King’s mission to reinvigorate traditional crafts. Hamza discovers how the 2000-acre estate has been transformed to help wildlife and welcomes the newest residents to the walled garden – hedgehogs. And organic farmer Elizabeth Buchanan, who was agriculture and environment advisor to Charles III, reveals how she travelled across the country with the King as he experienced for himself working rural life, supporting small family farms and helping to protect countryside communities. Meanwhile, Joe and Hazel Relph talk about how they came to host Charles III in their farmhouse after the foot and mouth crisis of 2001.
There is no surer sign that spring is here than millions of lambs being born across the UK. Charlotte Smith visits the Outer Hebrides to meet teenage farmer Archie, who despite only being 17, already runs a 600-acre farm on the island of North Uist. Paralympian Sammi Kinghorn is back home lambing on her family farm in the Scottish Borders. She grew up there, developing a love of animals and farming, but it’s also where she suffered the accident that left her paralysed; something that's never stopped her helping with lambing. Veterinary student Olivia Nares is fulfilling a lifelong dream as she embarks on her first ever lambing season in East Sussex. And in north Wales, there's a look at how wool fleeces might be helping to making the UK’s next great wine.
Ten months on from their first visit, Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are back in the New Forest in Hampshire to catch up with the community and families who have come together to help Ukrainian refugees. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, nearly 170,000 people have arrived in the UK, with rural communities across the country giving them a warm welcome. Margherita catches up with a mother and daughter who fled the war to find out how life has been since arriving in rural Hampshire over a year ago. Matt revisits a group of volunteers collecting and packing humanitarian aid for Ukraine and Poland to find out how their operation has changed over the past year. We also spend time with Ukrainians working on our farms and look at the change in seasonal worker recruitment after the war cut off much of this vital workforce. Adam reconnects with a farmer in Ukraine to find out the impact the war has had on its agriculture since they last spoke 10 months ago.
Ahead of Mental Health Awareness Week, Charlotte Smith travels to the Roseland peninsula in Cornwall to visit Chaos Farm, which stands for Community Helping All of Society. Charlotte meets the care farm’s founder, Babs Rounsevell MBE, to see how their support programmes, based on agriculture and the great outdoors, help people with both their mental and physical wellbeing. Elsewhere on the farm, Charlotte meets equine therapist Penny Tempest to discover how the gentle presence of horses can help with mental health, and then joins the farm’s ‘Men Outside’ group, which offers peer-to-peer support for men struggling with their mental wellbeing. Charlotte also travels to the north Cornwall coast to see how surfing can help young people cope with stress and anxiety. Marathon runner and champion for diversity and inclusion in the countryside, Haroon Mota, is hiking in Snowdonia, exploring why the great outdoors is so important to him and his mental wellbeing.
For the first of three visits this year, Sammi Kinghorn is on a hill farm in Cumbria, as she catches up with a passionate young farmer, 16-year-old Katie. From dawn to dusk it’s all go, as Katie and Sammi get stuck into all the daily chores and a surprise birth. But it’s not just the farm keeping Katie busy this year – it's also GCSE year! Sammi finds out how this determined young lady is not fazed as she juggles her studies with caring for her animals. Adam Henson looks into the dangers facing sheep and lambs from an increase in dog attacks this year, Charlotte Smith investigates fears a 40-year-old chemical dump is threatening a village in Wales, and in a new strand, we meet four young farmers from around the country as we follow their trials and tribulations over the next few months.
Charlotte Smith and Matt Baker travel to Upper Teesdale in the Durham Dales to celebrate one remarkable lady who has made it her life’s work to look after one of the most important botanical sites in the UK, and to meet the people helping to protect the important species that call this area home. Charlotte meets 97-year-old botanist Dr Margaret Bradshaw on Widdy Bank Fell, who for the last 70 years has been at the forefront of classifying, surveying and protecting the rare Arctic and alpine flora that make up the exceptional Teesdale assemblage. Charlotte hears how in the 1960s Margaret campaigned to stop the building of a reservoir on the site of these special wildflowers. Although unsuccessful, Margaret was inspired to set up the Teesdale Special Flora Trust, which is still responsible for looking after this precious habitat. Charlotte joins the trust as they survey such botanical gems as the spring gentian and lady’s mantle.
Charlotte Smith and Matt Baker are at Lower Hampen Farm in the Cotswolds to meet Lydia and Clive Handy, who have turned back the clock to adopt a more traditional approach to farming. Matt weaves a yarn, using wool from the farm's rare breed sheep, whilst Charlotte lifts the lid on soil microbiology and how it could impact the way we grow our food in the future. Adam looks at how the discovery of a major food fraud has impacted an already beleaguered British pig industry, and Tom investigates how food price inflation could impact the nation’s health.
There are 151 hope spots around the world, including the Galapagos Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. They are areas identified as critical to the health of the oceans, championed by their local communities. Hamza Yassin visits the only one in the UK – the Argyll Coast and Islands. Hamza meets marine biologist Chris Rickard and discovers that the area was designated hope spot status in 2019 because it’s home to the only known nursery in the world of the critically endangered flapper skate. Hamza joins Chris as he conducts research, searching for more nursery sites in the hope of a better understanding of these mysterious creatures of the deep.
We’re in Porthcawl, Bridgend County, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Welsh Surfing Federation. John Craven meets Linda Sharp, the UK’s first female European champion, who helped shape Welsh surfing culture in the 1970s, and further along the coast, John joins Swansea’s Surfers Against Sewage at one of their monthly beach cleans to help combat the never-ending battle against beach litter. Margherita Taylor discovers the magical landscape of the Kenfig sand dune system, which is home to a wealth of flora and fauna, including one of the UK’s rarest wild flowers – the fen orchid. Joe Crowley explores how nature could be threatened by the UK’s growing demand for water, and Adam catches up with our young farmers to discuss the highs and lows of starting out in agriculture.
This year is the 50th anniversary of the Rare Breed Survival Trust, a charity founded by Adam’s father, Joe Henson, to reverse the decline of rare breed numbers in the UK. To mark this date, we visit Adam’s farm to see how he’s taken on the mantle. With summer temperatures rising, Adam welcomes a shearing gang on site to remove the coats of his commercial sheep, before learning more about their ancient cousins. We catch up with an Exmoor pony stallion, Willow Warbler, to find out if he has been welcomed by the mares on the farm and sired any foals. Lexi, a Suffolk punch horse, goes for a pregnancy scan. A Gloucester bull is prepared for a day at a country show with a thorough head-to-tail wash, and Adam is visited by the chief executive of the British Pig Association for a very special moment.
John Craven and Margherita Taylor travel to the village of Charsfield in the heart of Suffolk to celebrate one of our most respected rural writers, Ronald Blythe, who passed away this year at the age of 100. Charsfield and the area around it provided him with inspiration for his bestsellers, including his classic, Akenfield. John and Margherita embrace Blythe’s world by visiting key locations in his work, exploring old rural professions and meeting those who still embrace the way of life portrayed in his books. Margherita talks to nature writer Melissa Harrison, who moved to Suffolk, having been moved by Blythe’s works. She explains the importance of Blythe’s life and the magical rural world he created. Margherita heads up onto a thatch roof to see how this traditional craft is kept alive today by Nick Walker, one of only 20 master thatchers left in the UK.
In the aftermath of one of the biggest fires to ever engulf the UK countryside, Joe Crowley and John Craven explore the impact of increasing wildfires. Joe is in the Scottish Highlands, scouring the ashes around Cannich for signs of life as he meets those who have been tackling a wildfire that has been burning since May, and he wades into the Forsinard Flows, a prospective World Heritage Site and peat bog, that survived a fire to now thrive and is key to combatting climate change. John rolls up his sleeves to help nature bounce back at Chobham in Surrey after a fire in 2020 destroyed 30 acres of the common, and learns how we can adapt nature reserves to stop fire in its tracks. He then steps into the past to delve into a 3,000 year old treasure trove preserved by wildfire in Cambridgeshire, that’s helped to re-shape our understanding of ancient life in Britain.
Long, hot summer days bring farmers out into the fields in their droves. It's hay-making season, so Charlotte Smith and Adam Henson are in the thick of it, discovering what makes one of our oldest crops so special. Charlotte is put to work on the Lizard Peninsula in Cornwall by a farmer whose family have been making hay for over 500 years. She's never driven a modern tractor before, but gets the opportunity to learn from an experienced haymaker. Charlotte also gets the chance to see plenty of wildlife as the harvest activity attracts and excites myriad creatures; she is joined by an award-winning photographer who is taking advantage of the chance to take his next masterpiece. Adam is at a polo match, finding out how nutrients in high-end hay are helping horse owners to get ahead. But making perfect hay every time isn't easy when you're relying on the weather, as Simon from Highclere estate is finding this year.
Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith return to Dumfries House, where the summer activities are in full swing. It’s been three months since the King’s coronation and Countryfile’s last visit, and now the estate is busier than ever. Matt discovers how Dumfries House is providing local people with ways to improve mental and physical well-being and joins a tea dance that can change people's lives. At the farmyard, he finds out how rural skills are being taught and helps out with some health checks on their livestock. Charlotte returns to the craft workshop to try her hand at stained-glass window making, a traditional technique dating back to the medieval era, and adds the final touches to one student’s creation from her visit last April – the bird hide. Charlotte also hears about plans to make energy truly sustainable through plans that reuse, refurbish and re-engineer turbines.
In Renfrewshire, John and Hamza judge this year’s entries to the Countryfile photographic competition with the help of photography enthusiast and DJ Edith Bowman. The final 12 images will grace the 2024 Countryfile Calendar in aid of Children in Need. John also meets cyanotype artist Martha Orbach to uncover the origins of nature photography and visits a Glaswegian community collective who are changing the way that we shop and eat. Hamza reveals a simple butterfly feeder to support wildlife this summer, and Adam has some tough decisions over what to grow after harvest as farmers face another possible year of volatile grain and fertiliser prices.
Every year, hundreds of farms across the UK diversify their income by opening their gates and hosting music festivals. Anita Rani heads to Somerset to meet sheep farmers Andy and Jen, and their sons, as they prepare to transform Fernhill Farm for an annual festival - something this farming family have been doing for 18 years. Anita helps festival organiser Kev make use of wool from the farm’s sheep to build giant sofas for the revellers, and later joins Andy and Jen’s 18-year-old son Kyle as he helps out in the farm café kitchen, where a mutton curry is being prepared for hundreds of campers. Back out in the fields, Anita visits the farm’s remarkable waste water cleaning system – a series of lakes which produce water so pure it’s an official Ark habitat for endangered white claw crayfish. She also dips into the Countryfile archive to explore rural music, revisiting an outdoor violin performance of Ralph Vaughan Williams’ Lark Ascending.
Sean Fletcher and Matt Baker head to the Usk Valley within Bannau Brycheiniog, formerly referred to as the Brecon Beacons. Bannau Brycheiniog is more than a name. It signifies a wider change that is happening to the whole management of the national park. Sean and Matt look at a series of projects and initiatives that are under way, all aiming to restore nature, balance the needs of the people who live, work, and visit the area, whilst ultimately leading Bannau Brycheiniog into a more sustainable future. Not everyone, however, has welcomed the change. Sean meets local businesses to find out their reaction, and he also discovers an ambitious plan to feed the 33,000 residents by food that is all produced in the park. Matt heads into the hills to tackle a problem plant and explore how a restoration project is changing this nature-depleted landscape.
In a special episode, Dame Judi Dench reveals her love of the countryside – and Scotland in particular. From picnics to camping, saving the arts in rural communities and a lifelong passion for wildlife, the legend of stage and screen joins Charlotte Smith in the grounds of Inveraray Castle to reflect on the impact the countryside has had on her and her family. Dame Judi is a talented watercolourist, inspired by the Scottish landscape. So how will she take to oils? She’s joined by her grandson Sam to check in on a tartan that’s being created for her, in which every thread tells a personal story. Adam Henson meets Dame Judi’s partner David Mills, an award-winning farmer who gave up dairying to create the British Wildlife Centre on his Surrey farm. It was Judi’s love of otters that brought the two together. And wildlife film-maker Hamza Yassin takes her to a secret location in a bid to help Dame Judi fulfil a lifetime ambition – to see golden eagles in the wild.
Sammi Kinghorn returns to Cumbria to find out how young shepherdess Katie is doing now that she’s finished school for the year. The summer holidays are no time to rest, as Katie is hard at work tending to her livestock and catching up with maintenance jobs around the farm. They also visit a part of the farm where she has been working with the Woodland Trust on best practice for increasing biodiversity. Sammi also visits Lowther Castle, located just up the road, where a major project is underway to reconnect the estate with its natural environment, long since disrupted by Victorian engineering. It’s a project that involves large scale landscaping and the reintroduction of keystone wetlands species. Land management is also on the minds of the staff at nearby RSPB Leighton Moss where they are cutting back the extensive reed beds, part of the annual maintenance work to encourage a thriving habitat for the birds that draw people to the reserve.
From the Goodwood Estate in West Sussex, four of the UK’s top sheepdog handlers go head-to-head, aiming to claim 2023's One Man and His Dog trophy. The challenging course at Goodwood leaves our competing teams nowhere to hide from the expert eye of judge Jane Drinkwater. Can Scotland veteran Willie Welsh and his dog Cap, or the youngest competitor, 21-year-old Shannon Conn and her dog Yellow Hill Chip outdo England’s Carol Mellin and her dog Pentrabet, or Wales’s Rob Ellis and his dog Todd? There’s everything to play for. We also meet 16-year-old Jack Howells from Wales, with his dog Cydros Boss. Encouraged by his father, Jack caught the trialling bug three years ago, and in a showcase round, demonstrates why he’s one to look out for in the future.
In the first of two special episodes, presenters Adam Henson and Sean Fletcher join the Martin family on their arable farm in Cambridgeshire at the busiest time of year. Harvest can be financially ‘make or break’ for many farmers like Tom Martin, where success can determine the future of a farm. Adam meets Tom out in the field to hear about the stresses this time of year brings and learns how his passion for regenerative farming methods are supporting wildlife surrounding his farm. Sean meets an artisan beekeeper who is also benefiting from the synergy between farming and nature on the farm. Simon Croson has brought along his mobile hives so that his bees can feed on the nectar of Tom’s strong-smelling buckwheat crop. The result is a unique-tasting honey harvest.
Presenters Adam Henson and Sean Fletcher are back in the ‘breadbasket’ of East Anglia, where over a third of Britain's food is produced. Last time, Adam met arable farmer Tom Martin as he harvested his very first wheat crop of the year. Now, the grain testing results are in, and Tom finally learns if this year’s harvest has been a success. Adam visits the megastructures designed to house vast volumes of wheat and explores the tech keeping pests and moisture from destroying high value stored crops. Sean gets involved with a blueberry harvest and joins farmer Zoe Mee on her family farm to learn the trials and tribulations of growing the berries in the UK. With around 170 tonnes of fruit being picked per harvest, Sean encounters their diligent sorting machine, which uses multiple cameras to grade and sort every single blueberry destined for different supermarkets.
Every summer across Scotland, Caledonian culture is celebrated at local highland games and gatherings. Fulfilling a long-standing ambition, Hamza Yassin takes a trip to Royal Deeside to sample perhaps the most prestigious of them all – the Braemar Highland Gathering. In a spectacle of continuous competition, surrounded by athletics races, field events and colourful highland dancers. Hamza meets games vice-president Willie Meston to discover the 1,000-year history of clan gatherings in the heart of the Cairngorms that make up the games. As the sound of the pipes swirls around the arena, historian Jack Davidson reveals to Hamza the origins of the games’ most iconic – tossing the caber. Over on the highland dance stage, Hamza meets 13-year-old Eilidh, who is hoping to be crowned champion in the presence of King Charles III. Hamza also meets the military muscle lined up for battle in the tug of war.
Joe Crowley and Charlotte Smith head to the Wash in Norfolk to see one of the greatest wildlife events in the UK, the Snettisham Spectacular. During the highest high tides, thousands of wading birds take to the air as this incoming tide forces them from their feeding spot on the mudflats. We build up to this great spectacle and explore what the start of autumn means to the people and wildlife of this unique landscape. Joe gets stuck into the mud to understand why so many birds come to this area and also encounters another winged creature at a nearby church, where they are having problems with bats in the belfry. Charlotte joins the RSPB and gets her binoculars out to go birdwatching to see the many different species that flock to this incredible stretch of coast, including the knot. Tom investigates why over a hundred horses were killed last year in jump racing, and how the sport plans to overhaul its safety.
Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith are in Cambridgeshire at Cheffins’ famous agricultural machinery auction. It’s the ultimate trading floor for agricultural machines and a window into the ever-changing mechanics of farming. Ahead of the auction, Charlotte helps farmers William Wombwell and Chris Haylock to get their machines gleaming before they go under the hammer in the hope of fetching a great price. With the help of auctioneer Joe Page, Adam discovers the history of Europe’s largest auction of farming machinery at their 42-acre site, where farmers across the UK and the world buy and sell the vital tools of their trade. He also takes a ride on a mobile auction car to get stuck into the bidding action.
It’s time for presenters Matt Baker, Charlotte Smith, Margherita Taylor, Joe Crowley and John Craven to pull on their bobble hats and get rambling in aid of Children in Need 2023. They join five remarkable young people who have battled and overcome adversity with the help of projects supported by the charity. This year’s rambles include a challenging crossing to Worms Head on the Gower Peninsula in Wales, a trek through the dramatic Nevis Gorge to the 120m high Steall Falls in Fort William, Scotland, a hike through the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee ancient woodland in Leicestershire, England, and a trip to Castlewellan Forest Park in County Down, Northern Ireland, with dramatic views of the Mourne Mountains and the Irish Sea.
Countryfile’s Wild Britain is an ambitious 12-month initiative to galvanize us all to help and save our precious wildlife. In this second instalment of the initiative, Ellie Harrison and Hamza Yassin are at Wytham Woods, Oxfordshire. Hamza climbs into the canopy of the woods to get a unique view of the place many species here call home, and finds out the impact of ash dieback on this ecosystem. Ellie is on call with the Oxfordshire Wildlife Rescue Centre, ready to head out with one of their team if a report of an injured animal comes in. Ellie also visits the Boundary Brook Nature Reserve, a multi-habitat site that provides access to nature for people living in and around the city of Oxford. Elsewhere, Adam Henson is presenting Countryfile’s Young Countryside Champion award in Newport. The Sycamore Gap tree at Hadrian’s Wall was one of the most famous trees in England, and its recent illegal felling has shocked the nation.
John Craven and Sammi Kinghorn visit the South Downs to see how the past is inspiring residents to preserve the future of this diverse landscape. John immerses himself in the world of Gilbert White, whose letters from the 1700s observing animal behaviour made him an inspiration for Charles Darwin and is now influencing a group of farmers to protect the South Downs delicate ecosystem. John also explores the South Downs’ ancient woodland and meets charcoal collier Lucy Wall-Palmer, who teaches him how sustainable charcoal is made. Sammi meets sheep farmer Lisa Tupper, whose family unearthed an ancient Roman villa in the 1800s whilst ploughing the fields. They’re joined by archaeologist Dr Miles Russell, who sheds light on the significance of such a remarkable find.
Countryfile returns to Dumfries House as autumn is in full swing and the first year of teaching gets underway at the new rural skills centre recently opened by the King. Margherita Taylor and Joe Crowley find out how this hub of agricultural learning will benefit future farmers and the wider countryside whilst aiming to remove the disconnect between people and the land. Margherita joins the first group of schoolchildren to put the new facilities to the test and lends a hand (and an arm) in helping with a brand-new piece of educational equipment - the calving simulator. Margherita also dons her gardening gloves to help prune some of the thousands of roses in the estate's collection. Joe tackles one of the biggest jobs of the Dumfries House cleaning team, dusting down a priceless chandelier. Joe also gets to grips with one of Scotland’s most traditional instruments, the bagpipes.
Ellie Harrison and Anita Rani are at Poole Harbour for the conclusion of a three-year environmental study, and thety celebrate Ellie’s last Countryfile episode with a trip down memory lane. Ellie visits artificial rock pools and learns the results of a trial which uses 3D printed reef blocks on the sea floor, hoping to make sea defences more habitable for marine wildlife. Ellie also harvests an unusual cooking ingredient - sea spaghetti. Anita joins a crew fishing for Manila clams on one of the final catches of the season, and she explores bird haven RSPB Arne to see the work done to protect the land for nesting birds such as oystercatchers. Anita also tries paddleboarding for the first time, meeting a local water sports group to find out how structures like piers help to reduce the impact of water sports and walkers on the bird population. Adam Henson is busy on the farm checking in on his Cotswold ewes and seeing how the recent back-to-back storms have affected his wheat crop.
Charlotte Smith and Matt Baker head to Elan Valley, nestled in the heart of the Cambrian Mountains, where the Welsh natural world is getting ready for the onset of winter. The valley is a patchwork of habitats including Celtic rainforests, open moorland and raging rivers, all dominated by huge dams. These dams have changed the landscape forever, and Charlotte finds out how the rivers of Elan Valley have recently welcomed back migrating salmon. She also helps restore peatlands by getting behind the wheel of some earth moving machinery to rework the topography of the rugged peat landscape. Matt helps drive cattle down into forests on the valley floor to not only provide them with shelter for the winter, but to improve ancient Celtic rainforests. Charlotte looks at how some farmers have started a campaign protesting and blockading supermarket depots to demand fairer prices. Adam travels to the Royal Welsh Showground in Builth Wells where the Winter Fair is in full swing.
As we head into winter, the days are getting shorter, the weather is turning colder, trees are losing their leaves, and wildlife is taking shelter. The countryside might appear dormant, but there is still lots to see, especially if you know what to look for! John Craven is in Oxfordshire, where he learns about the signs provided by clouds, the behaviour of birds and a canon of country lore that might be of use at this time of year. Gavin Pretor-Pinney of the Cloud Appreciation Society shows John how to predict an incoming rain shower. Phil Bruss of the Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Oxfordshire Wildlife Trust reveals the elusive signs left by countryside creatures and what they tell us about the behaviour of our winter wildlife. John meets writer Ruth Binney, who opens the book on many snippets of folk wisdom from over the centuries.
We’re back in the Cumbrian fells with 16-year-old shepherdess Katie and her family on their upland farm for this year’s Countryfile Christmas. Sammi Kinghorn and Joe Crawley join in with Katie’s festive traditions to celebrate Christmas on the farm. Katie shows Sammi just how busy the farm is over the festive period, checking up on the livestock and tackling daily maintenance. Sammi also discovers Katie how gets the perfect photo of their Herdwick sheep for the family Christmas card. Joe helps Katie and her mum Kirsten harvest apples for brewing their hot Christmas mulled cider, whilst Sammi is on the hunt for a Christmas jumper from a local knitwear specialist using wool from nearby farms.
New Year's Day is traditionally a day when we get outside and go for a gentle stroll to blow off the cobwebs from the night before and welcome in the coming year. Margherita Taylor goes for a wintry walk alongside the River Lea. On her journey, Margherita meets historian Dr Jim Lewis, who describes its history from the ice ages to the present day. A stop at the UK's oldest angling club reveals what happens on the river out of season, and a short detour finds Margherita at Lee Valley Park, where she meets Cath Patrick, a conservation manager who tells her about some of the beautiful wildlife that calls this area home. Along the way, Margherita will plunge into the archives to look back at other wintry outings enjoyed by the team over the years.
At this time of year, much of the UK’s wildlife is battling just to survive the cold winter months. But along the north Norfolk coastline, during the harshest of seasons, one marine mammal is bringing new life to these windswept shores - the grey seal. Anita Rani and Matt Baker head to Blakeney National Nature Reserve, a four mile long shingle spit that offers protection and provides a perfect habitat for seals to come ashore and breed. Anita joins the beach warden on his rounds, as they count the seal population and ensure the numbers indicate a healthy population. Anita then lends a hand at a nearby seal rescue centre where it’s feeding time.
Charlotte Smith and Sammi Kinghorn are in the west country to experience the landscape, heritage and wildlife highlights of a new 87-mile route – the Tamara Coast-to-Coast Way – connecting the north and south of Cornwall’s coastal paths for the very first time. Starting on the Devon side of the River Tamar, Charlotte meets Will Darwall, one of its team of caretakers, to find out why the route was created and what it offers to those who travel along it. Charlotte ends her journey at the UK’s smallest National Trust property, in the hamlet of Morwenstow, where she helps repair a historic hut built from shipwrecked wood and hears the tale of a surprising historic resident, the colourful Rev Robert Hawker. Just a stone’s throw from the way, Sammi is at the 700-year-old Cotehele estate on the River Tamar to join a pair of local young rangers learning on the job. Sammi gets stuck into winter tasks in the estate’s heritage orchard and riverside wetland.
The Newport Wetlands National Nature Reserve is one of the best sites in the country to view birdlife, and Sammi Kinghorn and Matt Baker are on the lookout for one of nature's greatest displays – a starling murmuration. Located along the beautiful south Wales coast, nestled between the Severn Estuary and the River Usk, the wetlands may look like as if they have always been a vibrant place for nature, but the reserve itself was created from the ashes of a neighbouring coal-fired power station back in 2000. Matt discovers how the wetlands were created and help maintain vital channels for the birds amongst the reeds. Sammi meets a group of female wildlife film-makers, who regularly can be found documenting the reserve’s incredible wildlife. When dusk falls, Matt and Sammi get ready for the spectacle of thousands of starlings taking to the skies for a beautiful winter murmuration.
Joe Crowley is in the Somerset Levels to experience the history, heritage and farming of this unique wetland environment that stretches from the Mendips to the Blackdown Hills. Joe meets farmer Rich Roberts for his wintertime harvest of Somerset willow before getting hands-on to cut and prepare this versatile crop ready for sale. Just down the road, Joe sees how the harvested willow whip is crafted into luxury hampers, hot air balloon baskets and even eco coffins as he meets a Somerset family with long ties to the willow trade who are training the next generation of willow apprentices in this ancient heritage craft. Up in the Cotswolds, Adam Henson is busy restoring his ancient orchard with the hope of a fruitful apple harvest later in the year. And Charlotte Smith is investigating the return to Britain of the animal disease bluetongue.
At the heart of Cornwall lie the rocky uplands of Bodmin Moor, home to the county’s highest point. A wild landscape of moorland, granite tors and waterfalls, Bodmin moor has been an inspiration for myths and legends for centuries – it’s also home to prehistoric settlements, standing stones and mines bearing a wealth of raw materials. Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith explore Cornwall’s rich history and its wild present by seeing how this National Landscape, a windswept terrain scarred by its industrial past, is gearing up to welcome back wildlife. Matt tracks down some newly arrived native pigs, part of a project to rewild the landscape, and helps out first-time farmers milking their herd of goats. Charlotte meanwhile hears about plans to return beasts to Bodmin, in the form of wild cats, and we delve into Cornish folklore by exploring the places behind local legends.
It’s been a century since a fictional bear called Winnie-the-Pooh made his first ever appearance in the children’s poetry book When We Were Very Young. One hundred years later, Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith have come to Ashdown Forest in East Sussex, the inspiration for Winnie-the-Pooh’s magical home, 100 Aker Wood, to learn more about this ancient woodland and its infamous honey-loving bear. After a game of Pooh sticks with Charlotte on the real-life Pooh Sticks Bridge, Matt goes on a bear hunt with Pooh fanatic and local museum curator Neil Reed to hear about the life of writer AA Milne and the forest’s magical landmarks that feature in his iconic stories. Matt also joins a group of volunteers who are protecting the forest’s precious lowland heaths.
Joe Crowley and Anita Rani are at the Colesbourne estate in the Cotswolds, where its gardens at this time of year are home to millions of one hardy flower – the snowdrop. This perennial can handle the frost and snow, but it only flowers for a short while, with them all disappearing by March. Brought from alpine regions to England by monks in the late 16th century, it took almost 200 years to become a wild plant, but now snowdrops are here to stay. Anita meets the latest in a long line of snowdrop specialists, whose family brought some of the first bulbs back into the country, and she learns that whilst snowdrops might not mind the cold, they do still need some help in the garden. Joe discovers how they provide vital food and nourishment for our emerging winter wildlife, and he also discovers how snowdrops provide inspiration for a local artist as he joins in painting and printing these winter flowers.
Britain is home to over 4,000 castles, ranging from scattered ruins and rubble to wonderfully restored fortresses. Charlotte Smith visits one of Wales’s finest examples, the National Trust’s Powis Castle, to explore the impressive grounds and grand rooms of this former medieval fortress. Charlotte finds out about the rise and fall of the castle’s battle-scarred walls and discovers how the 25 acres of formal gardens were created over the centuries. Charlotte also joins the castle’s conservationist to get a hands-on experience of a typical day maintaining its maze of rooms. Along the way, we open the Countryfile archive and revisit stories from across the UK’s finest strongholds. Anita Rani uncovers Saxon treasures buried at Bamburgh Castle in Northumberland, Adam Henson droves goats through Tintagel Castle in Cornwall, and Matt Baker rides a cherry picker to trim Powis Castle’s giant yew hedges and gets a lesson in falconry at Leeds Castle in Kent.
Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith head to the UK's longest and highest aqueduct, the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct in north Wales. Built in 1795, it is one of 26 cast iron aqueducts in the UK and part of the country's vast canal and river network. Now, for the first time in two decades, it’s going to be drained as part of a major project by the Canal and River Trust. Matt and Charlotte are on hand to see what it takes to maintain this massive landmark. Charlotte learns about the history of the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct and helps the team start the mega engineering process of draining the canal. She then joins the repair team to see how they fix the thousands of iron railings spanning the aqueduct. Matt helps repair part of a nearby canal bank before discovering the species that call it home.
As the RNLI celebrates its 200th anniversary, Matt Baker and Sammi Kinghorn meet some of its volunteers at the charity's station in Minehead, Somerset.
Charlotte Smith and Sean Fletcher explore Marlborough Downs, which is home to one of the UK’s newest nature reserves – Bay Meadows.
Anita Rani visits Hinton Ampner in Winchester, a medieval village and Georgian country estate that is also the site of both Neolithic and Bronze Age settlements and burrows
Margherita Taylor and Matt Baker head to the Trent Valley, where over the past two centuries, industrialisation along the river Trent has taken its toll on the landscape.
Hamza Yassin and Charlotte Smith celebrate the arrival of spring at the majestic 600-acre National Arboretum at Westonbirt in Gloucestershire, home to a collection of 2,500 different tree species.
Buckle up as Anita Rani and Matt Baker are on a road trip along the Hardknott and Wrynose Passes in the heart of the Lake District.
From the blooming gardens of RHS Wisley in Surrey, Hamza Yassin and Sammi Kinghorn celebrate one of nature’s heroes – the not-so-humble bee!
Sean Fletcher and Margherita Taylor travel to Rutland, historically the smallest county in England. Despite its size, it is home to the largest man-made body of water in the country - Rutland Water.
Julia Bradbury is at Burnham Beeches on the hunt for giant wood ants with an unusual defence mechanism which lead to the discovery of formic acid.
Matt Baker and Julia Bradbury are in the county of Hampshire investigating Britain's naval history and heroism, with the story of the cockleshell heroes.
John Craven is on a literary journey in the village of Helpston, while Tom Heap investigates the role of the countryside as a playground.
Ellie Harrison examines Newmarket's equine heritage, and John Craven visits Ely Cathedral.
In this special edition of Countryfile, John Craven visits the Lake District - England's biggest national park. Whilst he is journeying in style, John looks back at some of the best stories to have featured cars, boats and bikes on Countryfile.
In the historic kingdom of Fife, Matt Baker explores Tentsmuir forest, a haven for wildlife where the artist in residence has set up a virtual trail so that any visitor is guaranteed to see badgers, otters and other animals which make their home in the forest. Helen Skelton is at Falkland Palace which was once the playground of royalty in the 16th century. Mary Queen of Scots would once have gone hunting and hawking there and the oldest surviving real tennis court is still seeing some action - not least when Helen takes on Mary in a singles match. Tom Heap is across the Irish Sea investigating one of the most controversial issues in the countryside, culling badgers. The cull in England to reduce the spread to bovine TB may be new but in Ireland they've been doing it for years.
