Open Country Podcast
Countryside magazine featuring the people and wildlife that shape the landscape of the British Isles
Episodes to download
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Winter at Binevenagh
Thu 31 Dec 2020
Helen Mark immerses us in her local landscape surrounding Binevenagh in Northern Ireland.
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Frank Turner and the Meon Valley
Boxing Day 2020
Frank Turner returns to the area in which he spent his early life, the Meon Valley.
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The Lighthouse on the Headland of the Great Seas
Thu 17 Dec 2020
How the local community is preserving the history of Scotland's Ardnamurchan Lighthouse.
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Kitty Macfarlane and the Somerset Levels
Thu 10 Dec 2020
Singer-songwriter Kitty Macfarlane explores how the Somerset levels inspires her music.
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Rediscovering Redesdale
Thu 3 Dec 2020
How the community in Redesdale, Northumberland, is restoring and celebrating its landscape
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Eilean Shona
Thu 26 Nov 2020
Eilean Shona, once a Highland crofting island, now a nature reserve and holiday retreat
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New Land Owners, New Visions
Thu 19 Nov 2020
Caz Graham meets the people behind two historic land buyouts in the south of Scotland.
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The Sea
Thu 12 Nov 2020
A cross-channel swimmer, a bird watcher, and an environmental artist reflect on the sea.
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Gilbert White’s Selborne
Thu 5 Nov 2020
A tour of Gilbert White’s Selborne 300 years after this pioneering naturalist was born.
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The Bord Waalk of Amble
Thu 29 Oct 2020
Landscape and wildlife have inspired a Bird Sculpture trail called Bord Waalk in Amble.
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Ghost Ponds and Underwater Songs
Thu 22 Oct 2020
In Norfolk, ghost ponds are being recovered, restored and heard to sing once again.
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Cleeve Common
Thu 3 Sep 2020
Sybil Ruscoe visits Cleeve Common, the highest point of the Cotswold Hills.
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Brett Westwood's Summer Nature Diary
Thu 27 Aug 2020
Brett Westwood shares his audio-diary of the natural world in summer.
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Pete Waterman at Braunston Marina
Thu 20 Aug 2020
Songwriter and music producer, Pete Waterman, revisits his childhood holidays
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The Great Spotted Woodpecker Quest
Thu 13 Aug 2020
Finding a Great Spotted Woodpecker’s nest is far from easy for cameraman James Aldred.
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Green Pavements
Thu 6 Aug 2020
Why the plants in our pavement cracks are attracting attention as important urban flora.
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Restoration in the Lake District
Thu 30 Jul 2020
Ian Marchant talks to people restoring landscapes in the Lake District.
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Dawn Walk
Thu 23 Jul 2020
A coastal dawn walk with wildlife filmmaker John Aitchison in West Scotland.
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Ben Shieldaig
Thu 16 Jul 2020
Helen Mark learns about a Scottish mountain and the village that nestles in it's shadow.
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Landscapes in lockdown
Thu 9 Jul 2020
How archaeologists have made new discoveries about the landscape, even during lockdown.
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Julie Walters on Warley Woods
Thu 2 Jul 2020
Julie Walters shares memories of her favourite childhood park, Warley Woods in Smethwick.
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Closed Country: Changing seasons
Thu 7 May 2020
Helen Mark looks at the changing seasons on her family farm near Limavady in N Ireland.
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Closed Country: A Spring Audio-Diary with Brett Westwood
Thu 30 Apr 2020
Spring - an audio diary with Brett Westwood
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Birmingham Tree City of the World
Thu 23 Apr 2020
Helen Mark finds out why Birmingham is so obsessed with trees.
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The Music of the Surrey Hills
Thu 16 Apr 2020
Ian Marchant explores music inspired by the landscape of the Surrey Hills.
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Small Fish - Big Project
Thu 9 Apr 2020
How a little known fish, rare and remarkable, is behind a huge project on the River Severn
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Closed Country: Helen Glover in her Buckinghamshire back garden.
Thu 2 Apr 2020
Helen Glover discovers what's in her own back garden with the help of Steve Backshall.
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Halsway Manor
Thu 6 Feb 2020
Helen Mark visits the national centre for folk arts which sits in the Quantock Hills.
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Tintagel
Thu 30 Jan 2020
With storms and high winds will Helen Mark be able to cross Tintagel's new bridge?
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Ryebank Fields
Thu 23 Jan 2020
Helen Mark visits Ryebank Fields in Chorlton and asks if it can be saved from development.
