Open Country

Martha Kearney visits Walter Scott country. She traces the writer's footsteps through the Scottish countryside, visiting Abbotsford House near Melrose, where he built his Scottish baronial dream. Scott was the best-selling author of his generation, with Waverley station in Edinburgh named after one of his books. As Martha finds out, his writing explores Scotland’s environmental history, including deforestation, land use changes, and the human-nature relationship. He incorporates ecological themes in his novels, using landscapes as active components of storytelling and reflecting the Romantic view of nature as something to be revered. Scott advocated for the restoration of native woodlands and foresaw the potential for natural regeneration. His love of nature is expressed not only in the landscapes of his novels, but also in his personal passion for tree planting. Producer: Mary Ward-Lowery

Musician Kate Stables visits her favourite spots in Winchester to find out more about the area that she used to call home. From St Catherine's Hill you can see across the whole city. It's where Kate flew kites, and celebrated her wedding - and with the help of archaeologist David Ashby she finds out about the iron-age settlement and medieval chapel that once adorned the landscape. Dropping down to the River Itchen, Kate and conservationist Rachel Remnant dip their toes into chalk streams, before heading to Cowslip Field to find out how the ancient skill of scything can feel like dancing. She was still at school when the protests against the building of a section of the M3 motorway took place, but campaigner Chris Gillham joins Kate on Twyford Down to share his memories of the camps that sprang up in an attempt to prevent the road being built. Chris describes the personal cost of being involved in that action. Kate's day finishes atop Winchester Cathedral, gazing back across the city.Producer: Toby FieldSpecial thanks to Ross Lovett, Winchester Cathedral and Rozi Plain.

The Stroudwater canal in Gloucestershire was built in the 1770s. It brought coal to the mills along the Stroud valleys, which had become an important centre for the manufacture of woollen cloth, but the arrival of the railways in the mid 19th century led to the canal's decline and eventual abandonment. A mile-long section of it was filled in when the M5 motorway was built in the 1960s, cutting the canal off from the rest of the inland waterways network. Now ambitious multi-million plans are underway to restore and re-open the "missing mile" and reconnect the canal.Martha Kearney visits the Stroudwater canal to see how the work is going. She talks to volunteers, and finds out what difference the work will make to the canal - as a local amenity, as a tourist attraction and as a wildlife corridor.Producer: Emma Campbell

Hedges are such a traditional part of the British landscape that most of us don't give them a second thought. They're usually associated with the enclosures of the 17th-19th centuries, when the medieval farming system gave way to enclosed fields surrounded by hedges - designed to keep sheep in and people out. But, as Martha Kearney finds out, many hedges are far older than that - going back thousands of years in some cases. In this programme, Martha explores the history and future of the hedge. She learns that there are an estimated 400,000 miles of hedgerow in Britain, despite the fact that many hedges were grubbed up and destroyed in the years since the Second World War. She talks to a wildlife expert, who explains why hedges are so important for wildlife and outlines the vital role they have to play in the ecosystem. Martha visits a hedge-laying course in Devon, where trainees are learning this ancient skill, and tries her hand at the craft using a billhook. She discovers that Devon has a hedge style all of its own.Producer: Emma Campbell

The Mourne Mountains in County Down are home to Northern Ireland’s highest and most dramatic peaks - a landscape often shrouded in cloud and rain. Yet in recent years thousands of fires have broken out across the range, the majority believed to have been started deliberately. Dry weather and hotter summers linked to climate change have made conditions even more hazardous, alongside the degradation of peat bogs and increased soil erosion.Martha Kearney visits County Down to hear how local people have been affected, including farmer Sam McConnell and mountain rescue volunteers Neville Watson and Alwynne Shannon. She also discovers what is being done to mitigate the devastation, meeting lead ranger James Fisher and wildfire recovery ranger Linus Voksepp from the National Trust to learn about their vital restoration work.Producer: Eliza Lomas

Tucked away in a wooded valley on the outskirts of Bristol is a magical woodland nature reserve, Snuff Mills. Helen Mark discovers what lies beneath the trees, a now peaceful place with a history of heavy industry, where milling and stone quarrying has left behind a stunning playground for walkers and climbers. Local residents John, Beryl and Margaret grew up next to the quarry and witnessed its transformation from their secret playground to a busy public park. Engineer Geoff Wallis helped to literally unearth a fascinating piece of industrial history, and Steve England shows Helen the natural secrets of the valley. Following the stones of the quarry Helen crosses the river and finds the grounds of what was once Bristol’s asylum and – Helen hears from volunteer Anwyl Cooper-Willis - a landscape carefully designed to be therapeutic for patients and speed their recovery. But where does the name Snuff Mills come from? Is it really one of the most haunted places in Bristol? And which Hollywood star has a connection with the Asylum's story?Presented by Helen Mark Produced by Beth Sagar-Fenton Assistant production by Ellie Richold Series Producer: Emma Campbell

Martha Kearney visits the Menai Strait - the stretch of water which separates Ynys Môn or Anglesey from mainland Wales. She learns about its treacherous tides and hears about the history of its two bridges, both built in the 19th century to improve travel between London and Ireland. The Menai Suspension Bridge was designed by Thomas Telford and will celebrate its 200th anniversary at the start of 2026. The newer Britannia Bridge had to be completely rebuilt after a disastrous fire in 1970. Martha meets an academic from Bangor University who explains how ocean physics make the waters of the Strait so dangerous. At low tide she braves the pouring rain to go rock-pooling with a wildlife expert, who explains why the Strait is such a special habitat for marine life. She also visits Church Island - a tiny island in the middle of the Strait which is home to an ancient church - and meets the people who look after it.Producer: Emma Campbell

Caz Graham tries out Miles without Stiles, a scheme which helps disabled people access the Lake District. She joins a group of people in a fleet of mobility vehicles on a route from Sizergh Castle near Kendal, and visits the Keswick to Threlkeld path which was rebuilt after Storm Desmond but attracted controversy when it was surfaced with tarmac. Will Clark explains how the scheme helps him continue to enjoy the countryside after a mountain biking accident left him paralysed from the neck down. He explores the lakes and fells using a power chair which he operates with his chin.Produced for BBC Audio Bristol by Sally Heaven