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PODCAST

The Plodcast

BBC Countryfile Magazine brings you The Plodcast - a weekly escape to the British countryside with fascinating guests and the wonders of the great outdoors. Enjoy a new escape into the countryside every Tuesday and wind down with our Sound Escapes on a Friday. Find out more about us at www.countryfile.com/podcast Subscribe to the print version of BBC Countryfile Magazine at https://www.buysubscriptions.com/print/bbc-countryfile-magazine-subscription

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All Episodes

63:37

308. Embark on a Big Butterfly Count on the Dorset...

The Plodcast ·

2025/07/22

Be inspired to join the Big Butterfly Count with a walk on the Dorset coast with Richard Fox, Head of Science at the charity Butterfly Conservation. Britain's butterflies are in trouble but you can help.Richard leads this week's Plodcast host, Kevin Parr, on a magical butterfly walk at Bindon Hill on the Dorset coast – and shows how you can embark on your own Butterfly Count where you live. Join the Big Butterfly Count at: bigbutterflycount.butterfly-conservation.org/ - and remember, the count

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17:09

Sound Escape 230. The soothing gentle patter of rain...

The Plodcast ·

2025/07/18

After many dry weeks, heavy rain falls and the oak woodland thirstily drink in the live-giving water. You pause at the base of a particularly magnificent tree and listen to the gentle fall of raindrops.BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a weekly audio postcard from the countryside to help you relax and transport you somewhere beautiful, wherever you happen to be. Recorded by Fergus Collins, introduced by Hannah Tribe. Email the Plodcast team – and send your sound recordings of the

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47:28

307. Take a wander along Britain's most famous...

The Plodcast ·

2025/07/15

Take a springtime wander along the River Test, near the pretty Hampshire town of Stockbridge. Plodcast host Fergus Collins joins regular Plodcast listener and children's author Andrew Hussey to explore the wildlife along this most famous of trout fishing rivers. Listen on for some rare wildlife encounters – and some curious and disturbing tales from the river.Andrew runs a small independent publishing company called Muddy Little Boots and his books are Any Trout About? and There's No Deer Around

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20:59

Sound Escape 229. Revel in the pure music of curlews...

The Plodcast ·

2025/07/11

The sun is sinking low in the sky, its golden light glowing through the meadow grasses. As young swallows twitter in their maiden flights and a blackbird sings a lullaby, the eerie bubbling calls of curlews rise to meet the dusk. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a weekly audio postcard from the countryside to help you relax and transport you somewhere beautiful, wherever you happen to be. Recorded by Fergus Collins, introduced by Hannah Tribe. Email the Plodcast team – and send

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60:12

306. Walk a Viking battlefield and discover a...

The Plodcast ·

2025/07/08

About 1150 years ago, on a ridge on the edge of Salisbury Plain, the Saxons defeated the Vikings in a battle that had a profound impact on the history of the English people and their language. And yet, the battle is surprisingly little known. Discover what happened and why with writer and cultural historian Rupert Gavin. Rupert joins Plodcast host Fergus to explore the battlefield and discover how the English language, character and nation was formed. Rupert's book Amorous or Loving? The Highly

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12:00

Sound Escape 228. The sheer delight of a nightingale...

The Plodcast ·

2025/07/04

This week's Sound Escape was recorded in Kent by Plodcast listener Jeanette Sharples. Jeanette was up early, walking along the edge of a field when she heard this wonderful male nightingale in full voice. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a weekly audio postcard from the countryside to help you relax and transport you somewhere beautiful, wherever you happen to be. Recorded by Jeanette Sharples, introduced by Hannah Tribe. Image by Getty. Email the Plodcast team – and send your sound

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64:57

305. Discover the strangest relationships in the...

The Plodcast ·

2025/07/01

Enjoy a walk in Devon with Sophie Pavelle and discover the most unexpected relationships in the animal kingdom. In her new book, To Have or to Hold, Sophie explores why some species work together, while others exploit host animals as parasites. It's a fascinating world full of surprises – and even horrors. Plodcast host Fergus joins Sophie for a meander along the River Otter – with a cast of wildlife turning up along the way. To Have or to Hold is out now, published by Bloomsbury And now you can

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18:33

Sound Escape 227. Enjoy the conversations from a...

The Plodcast ·

2025/06/27

As you wander through an old farmyard, the incessant happy chatter of sparrows greets you. Nesting in the crumbling eaves, the colony has had a good year and the walls, shrubs and gutters teem with noisy fledglings and harassed parents. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a weekly audio postcard from the countryside to help you relax and transport you somewhere beautiful, wherever you happen to be. Recorded by Fergus Collins, introduced by Hannah Tribe. Image by Getty Email the

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63:14

304. Meet some of the UK's most elusive animals - at...

The Plodcast ·

2025/06/24

Britain's wildlife is often extremely elusive and many species are rarely seen. Unless, of course, you head to the British Wildlife Centre in Surrey. Here, David Mills has an unrivalled collection of mammals, reptiles and other creatures that you can watch and photograph in semi-natural surroundings.Join Annabel Ross who visited David and enjoyed a fabulous tour and some unique insight into our native wildlife. For more about the British Wildlife Centre: https://britishwildlifecentre.co.uk/ And

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21:52

Sound Escape 226. Be seduced by the song of the...

The Plodcast ·

2025/06/20

A male blackbird sings so seductively, you have to stop to listen. Perched deep in an elder tree, and with his mate snug on a second brood of eggs this year, he has time to croon, his notes sweet and lazy as the scent of the elderflower around him. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a weekly audio postcard from the countryside to help you relax and transport you somewhere beautiful, wherever you happen to be. Recorded by Fergus Collins, introduced by Hannah Tribe. Image by Getty Email

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82:46

303. Learn how to photograph gardens with...

The Plodcast ·

2025/06/17

Jason Ingram has photographed some of the world's finest gardens and is regarded as one of the very best in the business. His images of famous gardens, from the National Trust to those belonging to royalty have graced hundreds of magazines and books – and won numerous awards. This week, he shares tips for taking better photos and for getting into the world of photography - with Plodcast host Fergus on a wander through the extraordinary Bristol Botanic Gardens. Jason's new book, How to Photograph

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15:34

Sound Escape 225. Skylarks and corn buntings on a...

The Plodcast ·

2025/06/13

You're walking in the ancient kingdom of Wessex, across a stretch of wild downland that might have looked no different when Saxon warbands passed through 1200 years ago. The intense serenades of skylarks and the spring-loaded whirrs of corn buntings have replaced the clink of mail and swords. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a weekly audio postcard from the countryside to help you relax and transport you somewhere beautiful, wherever you happen to be. Recorded by Fergus Collins,

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54:14

302. Roaming a magnificent unspoilt downland - and...

The Plodcast ·

2025/06/10

Come with us to explore the magic of Martin Down, a glorious stretch of largely unspoilt chalk downland on the borders of Hampshire, Wiltshire and Dorset. It's Plodcast host Fergus's favourite place to escape to – and he's joined by Plod regular, naturalist Kevin Parr.Join the pair for a gentle afternoon's adventure – some incredible birdsong and one extremely unusual sound captured on the recording. And now you can get in touch with the Plodcast team via: The BBC Countryfile Magazine Plodcast

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19:53

Sound Escape 224. Take a moment in the serene...

The Plodcast ·

2025/06/06

Overlooking the vast escarpment of Watership Down, you pause for thought. The sound of gently swaying beech trees is welcome relief from the hustle-and-bustle of daily life.BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a weekly audio postcard from the countryside to help you relax and transport you somewhere beautiful, wherever you happen to be. Recorded by Lewis Dobbs, introduced by Hannah Tribe. Email the Plodcast team – and send your sound recordings of the countryside – to:

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47:46

301. Explore the D-Day launch point at Lepe in...

The Plodcast ·

2025/06/03

To commemorate D-Day and the 80th anniversary of VE Day, we met with historian Julian Humphrys at Lepe Beach in Hampshire. Lepe was one of the launchpads of Operation Overlord, the daring plan to open a western front and liberate Europe from the Nazis. BBC Countryfile Magazine editor Paul McGuinness is your host.Julian works for the Battlefields Trust, a charity dedicated to the protection, research and interpretation of Britain's battlefields.Find out more at

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17:41

Sound Escape 223. Be charmed by the many voices of a...

The Plodcast ·

2025/05/30

Climbing a Peak District moor, you fall into step with a small stream tumbling down the hillside. As you walk, the song of the stream changes – from roaring chorus to trickling solo. Meanwhile, meadow pipits call from heather and willow warblers add their own liquid song to the morning.BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a weekly audio postcard from the countryside to help you relax and transport you somewhere beautiful, wherever you happen to be. Recorded by Andrew Griffiths,

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69:06

300. The team return to Watership Down - the setting...

The Plodcast ·

2025/05/27

It's episode 300 of the Plodcast! To mark this momentous occasion, Plodcast regulars Hannah, Jack and Lewis join host Fergus for a return to the scene of episode one: Watership Down in Hampshire – setting for one of the best loved novels about nature, written by Richard Adams. Back in that first episode, Fergus ventured alone in early January – this time the team are seeing what wildlife turns up in early spring. Thank you so much to everyone who has been on this journey with us. Please do get

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22:54

Sound Escape 222. Hear swallows chatter as they swoop...

The Plodcast ·

2025/05/23

A morning's walk leads you to a ramshackle farm where a bench has been left out for walkers. As you take advantage of this kindness and drink tea from a flask, chiffchaffs, swallows and collared doves compete for your attention – like a parade of avian buskers. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a weekly audio postcard from the countryside to help you relax and transport you somewhere beautiful, wherever you happen to be. Recorded by Fergus Collins, introduced by Hannah Tribe

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60:13

299. Explore The Newt, a nature-friendly country...

The Plodcast ·

2025/05/20

Plodcast host Fergus Collins returns to his Somerset roots this episode to explore a country house that he used to explore as a child. Now it has been transformed into The Newt, a world-famous country house hotel, garden and farm with innovation and environment at its heart. In this part one of the visit, Fergus explores the farm, meets its livestock and gain insight into its ethos with The Newt's Arthur Cole. In part 2, to be broadcast later in the summer, Fergus and Arthur roam The Newt's

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16:45

Sound Escape 221. Be charmed by chiffchaffs and...

The Plodcast ·

2025/05/16

A wander through a scrubby wooded cwm brings you out into a glade with a view towards the Preseli Hills of Pembrokeshire. But at your feet is a calm pool, tadpoles squiggling in the margins. Chiffchaffs, blackcaps, robins and others provide a dizzying spring soundtrack. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a weekly audio postcard from the countryside to help you relax and transport you somewhere beautiful, wherever you happen to be. Recorded by Fergus Collins, introduced by Hannah

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