The Plodcast

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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.ourmediashop.com/bbc-countryfile-magazine-wmonx25

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676 episodes
Updated Friday

Episodes676

Newest first

Dec 7, 2021 · 1 hr 1 min
128. Hear the ancient stories of Britain with historian Amy Jeffs on the Avalon Marshes
Come for a wander through the Somerset marshes in late autumn with author and historian Amy Jeffs. Amy has written Storyland, a retelling of the ancient and medieval myths and legends of the British Isles. Here she retells some of them against the wild...
Dec 3, 2021 · 11 min
Sound Escape 41: the magical music of a mountain stream
Be calmed by the relaxing giggle of a stream tumbling off Sugar Loaf mountain in the Brecon Beacons near Abergavenny. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a gentle postcard from the British countryside each week that allows you a soothing ...
Nov 30, 2021 · 1 hr 2 min
127. Foraging for fungi and other mysteries in Dorset with John Wright
Learn about the magic and mystery of fungi with expert mushroom hunter John Wright. He joins our own Kevin Parr for a ramble in a hidden corner of Dorset. John's book A Spotters Guide to Countryside Mysteries is out now. Later in the plodcast, the...
Nov 26, 2021 · 11 min
Sound Escape 40: the delicious sound of feet crunching on fallen leaves in an ancient woodland
Enjoy an autumn dog walk through a beech and oak woodland and listen to feet crunching on leaves while the wind seethes through the canopy. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a weekly audio postcard from the countryside giving you a tast...
Nov 23, 2021 · 53 min
126. The big issues facing the English countryside – a discussion with Tony Juniper at Wicken Fen – PART 2
Hear about the big issues facing the English countryside from and Chair of Natural England, Tony Juniper. The conservationist and environmental campaigner reveals the actions being taken to protect our landscapes and wildlife – and some of the challeng...
Nov 19, 2021 · 7 min
Sound Escape 39: Relax to the rhythm of the sea swirling on a rocky shore
Slow down the pace of your day with this short audio postcard from the countryside – waves swooshing and swirling around rocky outcrops of a rugged Gower coastline. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes give you a chance to relax to the sounds ...
Nov 16, 2021 · 41 min
125. Talking with Tony Juniper, the Chair of Natural England, at Wicken Fen – PART ONE
A plodcast special – in two parts. Rob Yorke meets conservationist, environmental compaigner and now Chair of Natural England Tony Juniper at Wicken Fen in Cambridgeshire to talk about how England's wildlife and landscape can be better protected a...
Nov 12, 2021 · 7 min
Sound Escape 38: the eerie and dramatic fallow deer rut on a dark Dorset night
It's 3am on an autumn night in West Dorset and an oily blackness beneath a moonless sky. There's a hush in the cold still air but the atmosphere is thick with testosterone. A fallow buck is staking his claim, warning off rivals and guarding h...
Nov 9, 2021 · 1 hr 1 min
124. Strange tales of family and folklore from the wilds of Dartmoor with author Tom Cox
Take a wander through the wild tors and misty valleys of Dartmoor in the company of Tom Cox. Tom has gathered dozens of stories of folklore and the supernatural and he shares some of them with our own Annabel Ross in a hugely entertaining walks across ...
Nov 5, 2021 · 9 min
Sound Escape 37: be soothed with a riverside walk in South Wales
In this brief adventure in the countryside, you're walking along a stretch of shingle beside the River Usk in South Wales – the water has risen after recent rain and will son cover this little beach. Just upstream, rapids gurgle and swirl hungrily...
Nov 2, 2021 · 50 min
123. Looking for historical artefacts on the River Thames with London mudlarker Lara Maiklem
The London Mudlark – Lara Maiklem – spends her free time combing the River Thames foreshore for fascinating objects that each have a story to tell. From buttons and beads to shoes and coins, her finds help build a picture of the people who have lived a...
Oct 29, 2021 · 9 min
Sound Escape 36: Peace and birdsong in a Gloucestershire churchyard
Take a moment to enjoy the gentle chorus of wild birds and foraging insects on a still autumn day. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a short postcard from the British countryside for you to relax to wherever you are.
Oct 26, 2021 · 59 min
122. Giant vegetables and other rural delights at the Malvern Autumn Show
Join the Plodcast team as they explore the magical Malvern Autumn Show and meet world record giant vegetables, noisy steam engines, champion bulls, chuckling chickens, the National Rabbit Council and a host of great country characters. A wonderful cele...
Oct 22, 2021 · 8 min
Sound Escape 35: cheerful sparrows singing through a rainstorm
Enjoy the drama of an autumn storm hitting a Dorset cottage while the garden sparrows – and a robin – bravely sing through the tempest. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a short postcard from the British countryside for you to relax to ...
Oct 19, 2021 · 58 min
121. Uncovering the secrets of a graveyard in Gloucestershire
Sitting on a small hill above the River Severn, St Arilda's Church has a magical churchyard full of old gravestones – and each one tells a curious tale. We meet with Sarah Williams of Who Do You Think You Are magazine to decipher some of the stori...
Oct 15, 2021 · 6 min
Sound Escape 34: gentle and relaxing sounds of waves on a pebble beach
Be charmed and soothed by the ebb and flow of waves on a pebble shore. It's an overcast autumn day at Pwll Du on Gower – a hidden smugglers' cove where you can find deep peace. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes offer you a chance ...
Oct 12, 2021 · 58 min
120. Tales of nature and protest in the North Wessex Downs with writer Nicola Chester
Roam Gallows Down on the Witshire, Hampshire, Berkshire border and hear tales of ancient and modern history – as well as the battles to defend the precious natural wonders of the area from new roads, American air bases and nuclear missiles. Author and ...
Oct 8, 2021 · 9 min
Sound Escape 33: Relax to robins singing in autumn beside the swish and swirl of the River Usk
Ease yourself into the day with the song of robins from a riverside woodland in South Wales. Enjoy the background swirl of the River Usk in the latest calming Sound Escape from BBC Countryfile Magazine. Recorded by Fergus Collins
Oct 5, 2021 · 43 min
119. Join a music festival on the River Wye and meet the folk trying to save the "Queen of Rivers"
Enjoy wonderful folk music beside the River Wye and listen to the story of campaigners "Walking with the Wye" to raise awareness of the river's sad plight due to pollution. Recorded by Maria Hodson. With thanks to the Plump Hill Band, Tr...
Oct 1, 2021 · 8 min
Sound Escape 32: listening to cries of terns from a bird hide at Hodbarrow, Cumbria
Shelter from autumn rain in a wooden bird hide and listen to the exotic cries of terns at RSPB Hodbarrow nature reserve in Cumbria. BBC Countryfile Magazine's Sound Escapes are a postcard from the countryside every week, offering your a chance to ...