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

Feb 19, 2021 · 8 min
Sound Escape 1: calming birdsong in a Welsh woodland
Welcome to the first Sound Escape from BBC Countryfile Magazine – five minutes' blissful peace in the countryside as we wind down for the weekend. Every week, we'll upload some beautiful and relaxing sounds of nature. We will capture the spir...
Feb 16, 2021 · 46 min
90. Adventuring in floods and ice along the River Usk in Monmouthshire
After the heavy rain and floods of mid January, we head out on a cold, clear morning into the waterlogged woods and farmland along the River Usk in Monmouthshire to discover how the landscape has changed and how the wildlife and livestock are coping. L...
Feb 9, 2021 · 38 min
89. Wild waters and whirlpools of the Western Isles with poet and story teller Kenneth Steven
We return to the island of Seil in the Inner Hebrides to spend a day with poet Kenneth Steven exploring the wildlife and wild waters that swirl around his island home. He tells of terrifying power of the nearby Corryvreckan whirlpool and recounts the t...
Feb 2, 2021 · 47 min
88. A cold and beautiful winter's day by a Dorset lake in search of peace – and perch
Join angler and writer Kevin Parr as he spends a day at a local lake in Dorset explaining the joys and frustrations of angling. His quarry is the predatory perch, a fish that become more solitary and elusive as it grows larger. Kevin also enjoys some g...
Jan 26, 2021 · 31 min
87. Spend a blissful, calming day by the river with a Somerset artist
Lucy Pendrick is an artist and nature lover who is a keen listener to the Countryfile Plodcast. In this episode, she takes us to her local river to explore how nature's calming power – especially moving water – can bring peace and mental clarity t...
Jan 19, 2021 · 48 min
86. Join the quest to find an ancient holy well deep in the Welsh hills
Holy wells are a magical feature of the Welsh landscape – places where people have found dependable clean water and made offerings since ancient times. But over time, many have been forgotten or overlooked in the modern landscape. So in this episode, w...
Jan 12, 2021 · 44 min
85. Encountering the surging Severn Bore on an atmospheric walk beside Britain's longest river
Meet the Severn Bore – a dramatic tidal wave that surges up the River Severn on rare occasions each year. Plodcast host Fergus joins local resident and naturalist James Fair for a wander along the river just before the Bore struck. A fantastic audio ad...
Jan 5, 2021 · 7 min
Explore rivers, lakes, ponds and streams in this special season of podcasts devoted to water
Explore rivers, lakes and canals in this special season of podcasts. From meeting the Severn Bore and climbing remote hills in search of holy wells to finding treasure in streams and reflecting on the healing power of water, we enjoy the magic of our w...
Dec 22, 2020 · 37 min
84. It's the Christmas special! Enjoy a virtual fireside chat with the team about nature and the countryside
Join the Countryfile Magazine plodcast team as we celebrate how the natural world has helped us – and you – through 2020. Plus, we reveal the podcast highlights of the year and what to look forward to in 2021. So pour yourself a warming drink, find a c...
Dec 15, 2020 · 43 min
83. Make your rural dream come true with Escape to the Country host Jules Hudson
Jules Hudson has been helping people find their rural dream for over 13 years as host of the BBC's show Escape to the Country. Now he's written a book full of practical advice on how anyone can make the leap from urban stress to country retre...
Dec 8, 2020 · 42 min
82. Mackenzie Crook on his new Worzel Gummidge film this Christmas – and why nature is the true star
Star of The Office, Detectorists and several blockbuster films, Mackenzie Crook has also written, directed and starred in a new adaptation of Worzel Gummidge. Christmas 2020 sees the third episode in the series and Mackenzie joins Maria Hodson to discu...
Dec 1, 2020 · 42 min
81. "We need greater freedom to roam in the countryside," argues Nick Hayes
Come with us to a narrowboat on the Kennet and Avon canal to talk to Nick Hayes, author of the The Book of Trespass, about how little of the English countryside is open to walkers, riders and canoeists. Learn how our landscapes came to be owned by so f...
Nov 24, 2020 · 46 min
80. Exploring the RSPB's Hope Farm in Cambridgeshire where agriculture and wildlife work together
20 years ago, the RSPB bought Hope Farm in Cambridgeshire to explore how best to farm sustainably and profitably while also creating a home for nature. Meet lapwings, linnets and wildflowers as we wander the farm in the company of manager Georgie Bray ...
Nov 17, 2020 · 31 min
79. Autumn foraging for free food and simple cures with a modern herbalist
Join Maria Fernandez-Garcia as she walks the riverbank and woodlands of Conham River Park on the edge of Bristol in search of autumn edibles. From ruby rosehips and hawthorn berries to lush lichens and nettle seeds, Maria discusses the many medicinal p...
Nov 10, 2020 · 42 min
78. A tranquil ramble with curlews and rare butterflies on the Menai Straits in North Wales
We escape back to summer in this podcast to explore a forgotten peninsula near the town of Caernarvon in North Wales. Enjoy beachcombing, plus a ramble over salt marshes and wildflower-filled sand dunes accompanied by curlews, oystercatchers and other ...
Nov 3, 2020 · 32 min
77. Wisdom, wizards and wise-cracks with Detectorists and Horrible Histories star Simon Farnaby
Horrible Histories, Ghosts and Detectorists star Simon Farnaby talks to Maria Hodson about his new book for children – where a Dark Age wizard turns up in the 2st-century countryside. Funny and thoughtful, Simon reveals his own rural childhood and his ...
Oct 27, 2020 · 36 min
76. Be thrilled and chilled with folk tales for Halloween on a dusk walk in Dorset
Storyteller Martin Maudsley takes a walk along Blood Lane and other ancient Dorset tracks telling tales old and new that celebrate the countryside and its people. Prepare to be thrilled and chilled as Martin explores the twilight world of spirits, stra...
Oct 20, 2020 · 57 min
75. Rewilding over breakfast in the Black Mountains with hunter-naturalist Rob Yorke
The Black Mountains are the northern, often overlooked corner of Brecon Beacons National Park in south-east Wales – a land of seldom visited peaks and hidden valleys full of tales. Editor Fergus Collins meets Black Mountains resident and rural commenta...
Oct 13, 2020 · 31 min
74. A friendly and fascinating chat with nature writer Helen Macdonald about her new book Vesper Flights
Nature writer Helen Macdonald is best known for her critically acclaimed book: H is for Hawk. While this award-winning tome focuses on Helen's efforts to train a goshawk, it struck a chord with many in the way it deals with family, belonging and g...
Oct 6, 2020 · 49 min
73. Meet the amazing Birdgirl – Mya-Rose Craig – for a birding adventure in Somerset
Mya-Rose Craig – aka Birdgirl – is rapidly become one of Britain's leading environmental campaigners and an eloquent and persuasive voice for nature and for young people. Having just finished school, she talks about her hopes for our wildlife whil...