Countryfile

Hamza Yassin explores the wild and beautiful landscape of Loch Affric in the Scottish Highlands, where every creature has a role to play.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor explore the wintry landscapes of Northumberland, the perfect place for a New Year's reset. They meet volunteers and wildlife enthusiasts in the countryside.

Charlotte Smith and Adam Henson meet the communities working tirelessly to protect Devon's Exe Estuary.

John Craven, Charlotte Smith and Adam Henson reveal how the Menai Suspension Bridge (Pont Menai) has connected people, nature, farming and heritage through the generations.

John Craven & Margherita Taylor visit Blenheim Estate in Oxfordshire; where the 300-year-old Palace is undergoing a Once-in-a-Lifetime Conservation & Restoration project.

Joe Crowley and Anita Rani explore Strangford Lough, uncovering the species, traditions and legends that thrive in this remarkable refuge and the conservation efforts now needed to protect it.

Datshiane Navanayagam and Hamza Yassin visit Milford Haven, 30 years on from the Sea Empress oil spill, meeting those who led the emergency response and to learn how the area has recovered.

Hamza Yassin is on the west coast of Scotland, where hidden beneath the waves lives one of our rarest marine giants - the flapper skate.

With the new salmon-fishing season about to open on the River Tweed, Sammi Kinghorn and Matt Baker follow the final preparations before the first cast of the year.

John Craven visits Farmoor Reservoir in Oxfordshire, where many bird species find sanctuary in the cold winter months.

Sammi Kinghorn and Matt Baker explore the waterways of the Shropshire Hills, where the critically endangered Atlantic salmon makes its ancient journey upstream to its spawning grounds.

Anita Rani assists a team from the Devon Wildlife Trust as they try to locate one of the 15 pine martens released into the wilds of Dartmoor earlier in the year.

Adam Henson and Sean Fletcher explore the rich landscapes of the New Forest, where the animals that roam the heathland and woodlands play an essential role in shaping the landscape.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith head to Welney Wetland Centre in Norfolk for World Wetlands Day, uncovering the vital role these habitats play in supporting a host of bird species.

Our friends are in the north to explore the majestic county of Northumberland Matt Baker looks into the area's bloody past and Julia Bradbury learns about crayfish.

2025 marks the 50th anniversary of the reintroduction of white-tailed eagles to the UK. Hamza Yassin takes us on a sea eagle safari across the Sound of Mull to Tobermory.

Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith are at the Stirling Bull Sales, which attract thousands of buyers, sellers and enthusiasts, eager to see and bid on the country's finest livestock.

Matt, Anita and Adam discover the wonders of the Humber Estuary, a region famed for its bustling port and industry that is also home to diverse wildlife.

Matt Baker and new presenter Vick Hope explore England's largest forest – Kielder in Northumberland – where they meet the people protecting its ecosystems and preserving its future.

Matt Baker and Joe Crowley explore the slate landscape of north west Wales, a Unesco World Heritage site, which is being prepared for a new role in rural tourism after securing a grant.

It's ten years since the start of the River Otter Beaver Project – England's first official beaver reintroduction. John Craven is back in Devon to see how these creatures have been faring.

Matt Baker & Margherita Taylor commemorate 200 years since the birth of the railways with a journey on the Watercress Line in Alresford, Hampshire.

Adam Henson & Charlotte Smith are in the Cairngorms National Park, home to a quarter of the UK's rare and endangered species.

Charlotte Smith and John Craven explore the Stroudwater canal in Gloucestershire, where a major restoration project is bringing this historic waterway back to life.

John Craven & Vick Hope celebrate new life on the Wembury Coast, from high up on the clifftop to the bedrock of its natural harbour.

Margherita Taylor & Joe Crowley are in the Forest of Bowland for a sensory spring feast – soaking up the sights, sounds and flavours of the season.

We follow three of the show's presenters – Adam Henson, Sammi Kinghorn and Matt Baker – who each have their particular approach to lambing season for their own flocks of sheep.

John Craven & Sean Fletcher are in Mid-Wales around the Dyfi river, exploring the hidden stories of wildlife that flock to the area at this time of year - and the people ready to welcome them.

Charlotte Smith & Matt Baker are in Shropshire, where landscapes are being brought back to life - floodplains are being rewilded, meadows restored and ancient woodlands reimagined.

Vick Hope & Joe Crowley are in West Sussex to celebrate the revival of the white stork.

As the BBC celebrates this year's UK City of Culture, we explore how the countryside around Bradford shaped the city and its creative legacy. A story of grit and wool.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are in Herefordshire to explore some of the latest - and most surprising - innovations in agriculture.

At the northernmost edge of mainland Scotland, a spectacle unfolds – Orca Watch – a chance to catch a glimpse of one of our most awe-inspiring cetaceans. At survey sites dotted along the Caithness coast near John O'Groats, volunteers assemble for an annual nine-day survey to document these creatures, and this year, Hamza is joining them. While he scans the horizon for tell-tale dorsal fins, Hamza learns how citizen science is transforming what we know about one of the ocean's most intelligent and elusive predators. ‘People power' is the mantra of Orca Watch – and as Hamza makes his odyssey along the coast, he joins other people dedicating their lives to nature and the environment here: the teenager championing an endangered butterfly; the volunteers with a passion for their local beaches; and the man who created a haven for terns in his back garden

Matt Baker and Sammi Kinghorn are in and around the east Devon resort of Seaton, finding out how coastal life is shifting with the times.

Sean Fletcher and Anita Rani witness the return of the native oyster after an absence of 85 years to Spurn Point, a narrow three-mile ribbon of land at the mouth of the Humber Estuary.

Adam heads to Leicestershire to meet three generations of the Eggleston family, who have been producing milk for the local Stilton cheese dairy for over a century.

Adam Henson is in the Vale of Evesham to meet the Padda family – three generations running one of the UK's most vibrant soft fruit farms.

Adam Henson is in Somerset to meet the Baker family – 3 generations on a small, mixed farm, juggling cattle, crops and rare-breed pigs.

Adam Henson is in Wiltshire with 3 generations of the Lemon family. Their farm is a large, high-tech, arable operation that's currently going through a number of changes.

In a series of four special programmes, John Craven explores the heritage of North Yorkshire. As the nation marks 200 years of the railway, John heads to the Wensleydale Railway – a much-loved line brought back to life by volunteers after decades of dereliction. John also delves into the programme's archives for a nostalgic look at the many ways we've travelled across the UK over the years.

John Craven uncovers Yorkshire's rich heritage through traditional grains & age-old crafts, from the historic Holgate windmill, still grinding flour, to a solar-powered micro-distillery.

Knaresborough is a place steeped in history. But it's the River Nidd's story that flows through it all. John Craven explores the history shaped by the river before meeting those who care for it today.

John Craven tells the story of Ella Pontefract, Marie Hartley and Joan Ingilby, three women who dedicated their lives to recording the traditions, voices and skills of Yorkshire's rural communities.

Countryfile is in Bolton Abbey in North Yorkshire, where John Craven, Hamza Yassin and guest judge Dame Maggie Aderin-Pocock choose the final 12 images for the 2026 Countryfile Calendar.

Matt Baker and Sammi Kinghorn trace the paw prints of a river legend – Tarka the Otter – to explore how the people of North Devon have helped the Eurasian otter claw back from near-extinction.

This week, Countryfile heads to Inkberrow in Worcestershire; the village that provided inspiration for Britain's longest-running radio drama, The Archers.

Joe Crowley & Adam Henson explore the Solway Coast, where ancient traditions & fragile wildlife are being carefully nurtured by those who call this borderland home.

Matt Baker & Charlotte Smith are in Wrexham for the biggest date in the sheepdog trialling calendar - The Supreme. Show more

The Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need is back! And this year, for the very first time, Ramble HQ is based on a farm, on the Staffordshire-Shropshire border.

Charlotte Smith & Adam Henson are in Herefordshire, the UK's Cider capital, at the height of the Apple harvest.

Charlotte Smith, Matt Baker & Adam Henson are in Kent to explore the influence France had on the 'Garden of England'.

Anita Rani & Sean Fletcher explore the magnificent Chatsworth Estate in Derbyshire – 35,000 acres of farmland, woodland & meadows, with the River Derwent running through it's heart.

Charlotte Smith & John Craven, uncover from the forest floor to the canopy above the hidden magic that thrives in Wiltshire's woodlands in autumn.

After a scorching summer, 2025's harvest could be one of the worst in recent years. What could that mean for farmers, our food & for the future of British produce. ??

Hamza Yassin joins the team behind an ambitious conservation project to help release three wildcats into the Scottish Highlands.

Anita Rani and Joe Crowley are in the Somerset Levels, where autumn brings a time of transition – a chance to restore the landscape and prepare for winter.

John Craven and Vick Hope explore the stunning scenery of the Lake District, following in the footsteps of JMW Turner.

Matt Baker & Sammi Kinghorn are in Bannau Brycheiniog National Park, where the power of the water that runs through its valleys shapes the landscape both above & below ground.  Matt joins a local caving team who are protecting the UK's deepest cave system, while Sammi visits a 200-year-old mill still driven by the force of the water. From one of the wettest corners of the UK to one of the driest, Adam Henson is in Lincolnshire, where a farmer is taking a gamble on a classic Mediterranean crop that thrives in dry conditions; olives.

Joe Crowley and Vick Hope explore Stonehenge, Britain's most iconic prehistoric monument, and uncover fresh discoveries about its origins and role as a gathering place for ancient peoples.

The Cornish coast comes alive as Matt Baker, Anita Rani and Adam Henson uncover the magic of Cadgwith at Christmas. From tree deliveries to seasonal pasty making and a pub full of sea shanties.

Hamza Yassin heads to the Cromarty Lighthouse Field Station, where scientists are tracking Scotland's resident bottlenose dolphins in the UK's longest-running study of its kind.

Anita Rani and Matt Baker head to Blakeney National Nature Reserve, a four-mile-long shingle spit that offers protection and provides a perfect habitat for grey seals to come ashore and breed.

Charlotte Smith and Sammi Kinghorn visit the Tamara Coast-to-Coast Way, connecting the north and south of Cornwall's coastal paths for the very first time.

Sammi Kinghorn and Matt Baker witness one of nature's greatest displays – a starling murmuration – at the Newport Wetlands National Nature Reserve in south Wales.

Joe Crowley is in the Somerset Levels to experience the history, heritage and farming of this unique wetland environment. Up in the Cotswolds, Adam Henson is busy restoring his ancient orchard.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith learn how Bodmin Moor, a windswept terrain scarred by its industrial past, is gearing up to welcome back wildlife.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith visit Ashdown Forest in East Sussex, the inspiration for Winnie-the-Pooh's magical home, 100 Aker Wood, to learn more about this ancient woodland.

Joe Crowley and Anita Rani are at the Colesbourne estate in the Cotswolds, where its gardens at this time of year are home to millions of one hardy flower – the snowdrop.

Britain is home to over 4,000 castles. Charlotte Smith visits one of Wales's finest, Powis Castle, to explore the impressive grounds and grand rooms of this former medieval fortress.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith head to the UK's longest and highest aqueduct, the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct in north Wales, and Joe Crowley investigates claims of threats to Britain's historic waterways.

As the RNLI celebrates its 200th anniversary, Matt Baker and Sammi Kinghorn meet some of its volunteers at the charity's station in Minehead, Somerset.

Charlotte Smith and Sean Fletcher explore Marlborough Downs, which is home to one of the UK's newest nature reserves – Bay Meadows.

Anita Rani visits Hinton Ampner in Winchester, a medieval village and Georgian country estate that is also the site of both Neolithic and Bronze Age settlements and barrows.

Margherita Taylor and Matt Baker head to the Trent Valley, where over the past two centuries, industrialisation along the river Trent has taken its toll on the landscape.

Hamza Yassin and Charlotte Smith celebrate the arrival of spring at the majestic 600-acre National Arboretum at Westonbirt in Gloucestershire, home to a collection of 2,500 different tree species.

Buckle up as Anita Rani and Matt Baker are on a road trip along the Hardknott and Wrynose Passes in the heart of the Lake District.

From the blooming gardens of RHS Wisley in Surrey, Hamza Yassin and Sammi Kinghorn celebrate one of nature's heroes – the not-so-humble bee!

Sean Fletcher and Margherita Taylor travel to Rutland, historically the smallest county in England. Despite its size, it is home to the largest man-made body of water in the country – Rutland Water.

To wrap up this year's lambing season, Countryfile is at Adam Henson's farm in the Cotswolds to see what's next for his new spring additions.

Ahead of Mental Health Awareness Week, Sean Fletcher and Margherita Taylor travel to the Sharpham Trust, located in the beautiful wilds of south Devon.

Joe Crowley celebrates the 60th anniversary of the National Nature Reserve at Lindisfarne and joins the ranger team protecting nesting ringed plover on the shore.

Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith travel to north Cornwall to explore the history of the Camel Trail, encounter local wildlife and meet the people that live and work along its route.

Anita Rani and Charlotte Smith travel to Dorset, where 80 years ago, tens of thousands of troops amassed as the Allies' combined forces prepared for D-Day.

Charlotte Smith and Joe Crowley head to southwest Wales, where they help with a kelp harvest at Câr-y-Môr, Wales' first regenerative ocean farm.

Sammi Kinghorn and Sean Fletcher explore the natural riches and hidden treasures of Wanlockhead – the highest village in Scotland.

Joe Crowley joins the teams at the Horning Sailing Club as they get ready for the Three Rivers Race.

From the towering cliffs of RSPB Bempton on the coast to shallow, crystal-clear streams further inland, Charlotte Smith explores England's most northerly chalk outcrop.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor visits Montacute in Somerset, home to an impressive 400-year-old Elizabethan mansion and some of the rarest wildlife in the UK.

Charlotte Smith and Sean Fletcher are on Hengistbury Head in Dorset, where a large-scale engineering project is set to save huge swathes of this coastline from being lost to the sea.

Joe Crowley visits Chew Valley and learns about one of the UK's largest farming projects. He also discovers how the wider Chew Valley inspires those who work and live in the local area.

Anita and Matt are at the lowest point in the UK, the Fens, to explore the way wildlife and people coexist at and below sea level.

Joe Crowley is on the lookout for some of the UK's most elusive animals at Thursley National Nature Reserve in Surrey, one of the largest remaining areas of heathland.

With over 7,000 livestock being shown, and an expected turnout of 250,000 people, Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith are at one of the largest agricultural shows in Europe – the Royal Welsh

Sean Fletcher explores Borrowdale Oakwoods, England's largest remaining temperate rainforest and one of the rarest habitats on earth.

John Craven, Charlotte Smith and Vick Hope pick the final 12 images that will grace the 2025 Countryfile calendar in aid of BBC Children in Need.

Joe Crowley visits the Dorset coast to team up with a local fly fisherman as he takes on one of the UK's most difficult fish to catch – the mullet.

Sean Fletcher and Anita Rani explore the rugged hills and valleys of west Exmoor, where landscape-scale change is occurring with the introduction of large animals to aid nature restoration.

Charlotte and Matt have security clearance to enter Salisbury Plain, where they find out how the Ministry of Defence maintain a balance between military training, farming and conservation.

Joe Crowley and Anita Rani continue Countryfile's Wild Britain initiative, galvanising the nation into helping our beloved wildlife.

Charlotte Smith visits the Kelso Ram Sales on the Scottish Borders, one of the largest and oldest ram sales in Europe, with more than 3,500 sheep expected to be sold on the day.

Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith are in Biggar, South Lanarkshire, at the 2024 International Sheepdog Championship.

Joe Crowley visits Stranraer, on the west coast of Scotland, where people come together every year to celebrate a very special shellfish – the oyster!

Joe Crowley visits an Essex potato farm at the height of their harvest, only to discover that the recent rain isn't making it easy to lift the crop.

It's harvest time, but not as we know it. Charlotte Smith meets pioneering farmer David Mwanaka, who grows crops from his native Zimbabwe.

Presenters Matt Baker, Anita Rani, Sean Fletcher, Margherita Taylor and John Craven are celebrating the tenth anniversary of Countryfile Rambles for BBC Children in Need.

John Craven visits Westonbirt, The National Arboretum, in Gloucestershire, to see it in all its autumnal glory. At this time of year, 2,500 different species of trees burst into a mosaic of colour.

Sean Fletcher and Sammi Kinghorn are in the Yorkshire Dales with its expansive moors - but the landscape hasn't always looked like this. Sean discovers the Dales were once covered in trees.

Hamza Yassin finds out about the RSPB's work to safeguard the very rare roseate tern, and Charlotte Smith meets a biosecurity dog helping to protect precious seabird colonies from pests.

John Craven and Margherita Taylor explore Woodoaks Farm in Hertfordshire, where efforts are under way to restore nature's balance and reconnect people with farming.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are visiting Romney Marsh in Kent, known for its sweeping skies, marshland and shingle beaches, and at this time of year, home to tens of thousands of wintering birds.

Sammi Kinghorn and Matt Baker explore the Peak District, the first national park created by the transformative National Parks and Access to the Countryside Act of 1949.

It's Christmas, and Countryfile has received a very special invitation to visit Highgrove Gardens, which surround the private residence of Their Majesties King Charles III and Queen Camilla.

Charlotte heads out on one of Britain's most famous trails, the South West Coast Path, to get a breath of fresh air and discover the power of walking.

John Craven is at the National Hedgelaying Championships as competitors go chainsaw to chainsaw, billhook to billhook in a bid to claim the coveted title as they set about specific regional styles and work against the clock. John gets a lesson in the Midland Bullock style and finds out why hedgerows are so important to our countryside. He also discovers the Cornish hedge tradition reckoned to be as old as the pyramids, and he delves into the Countryfile archives to celebrate rural heritage skills, revisiting the time Anita Rani met a traditional cricket bat maker and when Matt Baker helped with the ancient craft of wheelwrighting.

Love it or hate it, shooting contributes around £2 billion to the rural economy. But it's a sporting industry under the cosh, as the UK is gripped by the worst ever outbreak of avian flu. Can game bird shoots survive the 21st century? Charlotte explores the 12,500-acre Rhug Estate in north Wales to see what it means to be a traditional shooting estate in the modern world and looks at how it contributes to local business.Sean is in Perthshire on the 1,300-acre Bamff Estate, which has eschewed shooting for eco-tourism, including a colony of beavers. Tom is in Wiltshire to investigate the threat posed by avian flu to the industry, and in the Cotswolds, Adam puts his new sheepdog Gwen through her paces. Will she pass muster?

John Craven and Charlotte Smith are at Audley End House in Essex, one of the finest Jacobean houses in the UK. They may arrive in grand style but are quickly despatched to the servants' entrance to roll up their sleeves and muck in with winter cleaning and maintenance. As well as discovering the provenance of some of the house's eclectic collection of thousands of artefacts, John discovers the intricacies of cleaning delicate seashells while Charlotte finds out why skimmed milk works a treat on flagstone flooring. There's an ancient vine to tame as well as Charlotte's fear of horses as she takes on groom duties in the stables. Adam Henson is busy making sure his animals are in the finest of fettle to get through a cold winter, and Charlotte reveals the trials and tribulations of the rural midwife.

It's 60 years since the Big Freeze, one of the coldest winters on record, when even the sea froze over, and rural communities were cut off by blizzards and towering snowdrifts. Anita Rani and Joe Crowley are in Flash, the UK's highest village, to see how the community coped then and how they brace for winter now. They also find out what sort of weather can be expected in future winters.Anita unlocks the secrets of Flash's history, from special buttons to a booming business in counterfeit money, while Joe discovers the secrets of seaweed in the village brewery. Adam Henson reveals a new insulating product for chimney flues, and Tom Heap is on the Isle of Eigg, where islanders aren't waiting for government to help them level up but are doing it for themselves.

Charlotte Smith and Steve Brown are visiting first-time famers around the country to discover the trials and tribulations of trying to break into the industry.Steve is in Hampshire finding out what made a former marine and a recruitment worker decide to enter the notoriously tough dairy industry. Charlotte is in Worcestershire to discover what made a successful hairdresser ditch the salon to rear a Valais sheep and Wagyu cattle.In West Wales, Charlotte meets a pair of duck famers who quit the rat race in London and put all their eggs in one basket. On the Isle of Wight, Adam Henson is visiting Medina College which has started a new GCSE course in agriculture, joining the pupils as they get hands-on experience looking after livestock. Charlotte also finds out why farm tenancies are few and far between.

Sean Fletcher is in Cornwall, but he's not here to explore its fabulous 300-mile coastline. Instead, he will be going underground to unearth the legacy of the county's renowned tin and copper mining industries. Sean encounters an endangered mammal that has set up home in disused mine shafts at Prideaux Wood, and at Penwith we delve underground to discover the history and geology of a 500-year-old tin mine that contains some of the deepest seams in the country.Meanwhile, Adam Henson is in search of a super fertiliser hidden deep under the North York Moors, and Tom Heap finds out if mining Cornish lithium could herald a new gold rush.

Joe Crowley and Steve Brown are on the North Yorkshire coast in the beautiful village of Staithes to find out how the traditional fishing community is adapting for the future. Where once there was a fishing fleet of 80, now there is just one fisherman left. Joe goes out to sea to discover how one skipper has swapped nets for wildlife tourism, while Steve takes a look at Staithes's art heritage and tastes some locally smoked goodies. Adam Henson finds out about the challenges facing a sheep dairy, and Charlotte Smith investigates the latest developments behind one of Britain's biggest ecological marine disasters.

Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith are in Derbyshire at Bakewell Livestock Market as hundreds of sheep and cattle are auctioned. Among the farmers looking to make a penny or two is Keith Harrop, who is hoping to get top dollar for one of his beef cattle. But is business brisk enough today? As well as following a busy market day, Charlotte discovers the history of markets and how Bakewell is adapting for the future with pop-up shops and also a pop-in health clinic. Joe Crowley is in East Anglia, where a proposed new multibillion-pound power grid has been met with stiff opposition.

Celebrating the seventieth anniversary of the first recorded summit of the highest point on earth, Mount Everest, Ellie Harrison is in Kettering at one of the world's most advanced materials research facilities to put outdoor gear – and herself – to the test. As well as getting to grips with a pair of expedition boots that made it to the top of the world, how will Ellie bear up in a cold chamber where the mercury can hit -40 Celsius? The UK may not be able to match the dizzying heights of Everest, but we do have our own extreme landscapes, so how can we best be braced to deal with them?Ellie also dips into the Countryfile archive to remind us of some pretty bracing encounters with the worst the weather can hurl at us.

John Craven and Matt Baker are on the east coast of England to find out how storms are devouring the coastline, putting homes and livelihoods at threat. Tom Heap is in East Anglia, investigating the threat to Britain's breadbasket, while Adam Henson looks into the impact of new farm payments. In the first of a four-part strand, Adrian Chiles is in North Wales, finding out just what it takes to be a hill farmer.

Our national parks are beautiful wild spaces that are free for us all to explore and enjoy. But what does the future hold in light of funding cutbacks and the recent wild camping ruling on Dartmoor? Charlotte Smith discovers how cuts are affecting management of wild landscapes and finds out how political parties are squaring up to the right to camp debate. She also catches up with author Guy Shrubsole to discover a rare rainforest here on Dartmoor, while Matt Baker helps budding conservationists with a bird survey and takes to the airwaves of Skylark FM.With the Cheltenham Festival around the corner, Adam Henson visits an equine rehab centre to find out what it takes to keep racehorses in peak condition. Paralympian Sammi Kinghorn meets the volunteers opening up Dartmoor for everyone in Miles without Stiles, and in the second of a four-part strand, Adrian Chiles discovers what it takes to be a hill farmer in Wales.

The Wye is one of the most spectacular rivers in Britain, winding through stunning countryside, the muse of writers and artists, and a Site of Special Scientific Interest and conservation. With that sort of reputation, you'd expect the river to have a pristine bill of a health. But like so many of our waterways, the Wye's waters are in trouble. Suffocated by pollution, it is slowly dying. But all is not lost. Matt Baker and Anita Rani meet the volunteers going to the rescue of the Wye, from the cider maker turned citizen science champion, whose findings may have forced the farming industry to own up to its role in putting the river into its death throes, to the volunteers creating a 30-acre wetland to harbour some of our most cherished wildlife.Adam Henson meets the farmer trying to do his bit to save the river, while Tom Heap investigates why the Wye has been allowed to decline almost to the point of being declared ecologically dead. Meanwhile, Adrian Chiles is in north Wales, discovering what it takes to be a hill farmer.

Joe Crowley is in Aberystwyth to meet scientists behind some of the biggest new developments in farming and food security, from insect brownies to the revival of historic crops and why some South American visitors could be the saviours of upland farming.Charlotte Smith is in the Lea Valley, home to 3,500 acres of glasshouses providing 75 per cent of the UK's home-grown salads, to investigate why what's known as London's salad bowl is on the brink of collapse. Adam Henson finds out why the shift towards sustainable farming could mean boom time for native breeds, while Adrian Chiles discovers what the future of sheep farming could be in his final report from the Welsh mountains.

Margherita Taylor and Joe Crowley are in Sherwood Forest to unravel some hidden histories as they discover how much more there is to this nature reserve and site of special scientific interest than Robin Hood.Margherita finds out the role Sherwood played as a training ground in the First World War and catches up with 94-year-old Kevin Topham, who shares the story of how the discovery of black gold in the forest helped to shape victory during WWII. Joe discovers why Sherwood has a missing generation of oaks and how premature ageing is helping to fill the gap. We meet 17-year-old ornithologist Indy Greene, who is on the trail of the forest's woodpeckers, including the rarest and most secretive: the lesser spotted. And we find out why the new deal for Northern Ireland hasn't included veterinary medicine, with potentially devastating consequences for animal and human health.

Modern medicine has transformed our lives and wellbeing, but some ancient remedies still have a place in our hi-tech hospitals. Sean Fletcher is in Hendy, south Wales, visiting Europe's most productive leech farm, which supplies 70 per cent of medicinal leeches worldwide. He joins for feeding time and discovers how these often-reviled three-jawed creatures are making a comeback, helping patients recover from trauma or severe infections. Leeches aren't the only creepy crawlies with a place in modern medicine. In Swansea, Sean discovers how maggots are working their magic for a patient recovering from a major infection. And we meet Dr Christina Lee, who is taking a fresh look at remedies going back 1,000 years.Sean also dips into the Countryfile archive to explore nature's medicine cabinet in our countryside, and he looks into warnings that veterinary medicine in Northern Ireland is being overlooked, posing serious consequences for animal welfare and the economy.

Picking up the baton from Sir David Attenborough's Wild Isles, Countryfile launches 'Wild Britain', an ambitious 12-month initiative to galvanize us all to help and save our precious wildlife.Ellie Harrison and Hamza Yassin are lending a hand on the Lincolnshire Fens, as a group of local volunteers and school children begin the transformation of an old playing field into a wildlife haven by building a bog, a dead hedge and a bug hotel. Hamza also takes the children on a wildlife safari at a nearby nature reserve to show what nature their playing field could attract in a few years' time.Twenty years after his first visit, John Craven heads to Chester Zoo to discover how our smallest rodent, the harvest mouse, is getting on and takes a trip on the Macclesfield Canal to find out how we can all create our own wildlife haven, no matter what size of space you have. Tom Heap looks at the UK's track record for protecting nature, and if a new bill currently going through Parliament could undermine it. There will also be special appearances from nature lovers Dame Judi Dench and Deborah Meaden.

Charlotte Smith and Hamza Yassin travel to Dumfries House, a showcase for the King's passion for rural life.Charlotte meets schoolchildren at the estate's education farm and garden to find out about the King's ambition to create the next generation of nature-loving food producers. Charlotte also looks into the King's mission to reinvigorate traditional crafts.Hamza discovers how the 2,000-acre estate has been transformed to help wildlife and welcomes the newest residents to the walled garden – hedgehogs. And organic farmer Elizabeth Buchanan, who was agriculture and environment advisor to Charles III, reveals how she travelled across the country with the King as he experienced for himself working rural life, supporting small family farms and helping to protect countryside communities.Meanwhile, Joe and Hazel Relph talk about how they came to host Charles III in their farmhouse after the foot and mouth crisis of 2001.

There is no surer sign that spring is here than millions of lambs being born across the UK. Charlotte Smith visits the Outer Hebrides to meet teenage farmer Archie, who despite only being 17, already runs a 600-acre farm on the island of North Uist.Paralympian Sammi Kinghorn is back home lambing on her family farm in the Scottish Borders. She grew up there, developing a love of animals and farming, but it's also where she suffered the accident that left her paralysed; something that's never stopped her helping with lambing.Veterinary student Olivia Linares is fulfilling a lifelong dream as she embarks on her first ever lambing season in Hampshire. And, in north Wales, there is a look at how wool fleeces might be helping to make the UK's next great wine.

Ten months on from their first visit, Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are back in the New Forest in Hampshire to catch up with the community and families who have come together to help Ukrainian refugees. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, nearly 170,000 people have arrived in the UK, with rural communities across the country giving them a warm welcome.Margherita catches up with a mother and daughter who fled the war to find out how life has been since arriving in rural Hampshire over a year ago. Matt revisits a group of volunteers collecting and packing humanitarian aid for Ukraine and Poland to find out how their operation has changed over the past year.We also spend time with Ukrainians working on our farms and look at the change in seasonal worker recruitment after the war cut off much of this vital workforce. Adam reconnects with a farmer in Ukraine to find out the impact the war has had on its agriculture since they last spoke 10 months ago.

Ahead of Mental Health Awareness Week, Charlotte Smith travels to the Roseland Peninsula in Cornwall to visit Chaos Farm, which stands for Community Helping All of Society. Charlotte meets the farm's founder, Babs Rounsevell MBE, to see how their support programmes, based on agriculture and the great outdoors, help people with both their mental and physical wellbeing.Elsewhere on the farm, Charlotte meets equine therapist Penny Tempest to discover how the gentle presence of horses can help with mental health, and then joins the farm's ‘Men Outside' group, which offers peer-to-peer support for men struggling with their mental wellbeing.Charlotte also travels to the north Cornwall coast to see how surfing can help young people cope with stress and anxiety. Marathon runner and champion for diversity and inclusion in the countryside, Haroon Mota, is hiking in Snowdonia, exploring why the great outdoors is so important to him and his mental wellbeing.Datshiane Navanayagam investigates the impact that debt is having on our farmers, and Adam looks at how women in agriculture are facing up to the mental health challenges of rural isolation.

For the first of three visits this year, Sammi Kinghorn is on a hill farm in Cumbria, as she catches up with a passionate young farmer, 16-year-old Katie. From dawn to dusk it's all go, as Katie and Sammi get stuck into all the daily chores and a surprise birth. But it's not just the farm keeping Katie busy this year – it's also GCSE year! Sammi finds out how this determined young lady is not fazed as she juggles her studies with caring for her animals.Adam Henson looks into the dangers facing sheep and lambs from an increase in dog attacks this year, Charlotte Smith investigates fears a 40-year-old chemical dump is threatening a village in Wales, and in a new strand, we meet four young farmers from around the country as we follow their trials and tribulations over the next few months.

Charlotte Smith and Matt Baker travel to Upper Teesdale in the Durham Dales to celebrate one remarkable lady who has made it her life's work to look after one of the most important botanical sites in the UK, and to meet the people helping to protect the important species that call this area home.Charlotte meets 97-year-old botanist Dr Margaret Bradshaw on Widdy Bank Fell, who for the last 70 years has been at the forefront of classifying, surveying and protecting the rare Arctic and alpine flora that make up the exceptional Teesdale assemblage. Charlotte hears how in the 1960s Margaret campaigned to stop the building of a reservoir on the site of these special wildflowers. Although unsuccessful, Margaret was inspired to set up the Teesdale Special Flora Trust, which is still responsible for looking after this precious habitat. Charlotte joins the trust as they survey such botanical gems as the spring gentian and lady's mantle.Matt joins the Durham Wildlife Trust as they survey endangered ground-nesting wading birds by using sound monitoring posts that can remarkably distinguish calls from individual species and calculate how many birds are in the area. On another site, Matt joins the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust as they monitor threatened birds, using remote camera traps to capture predator activity.Adam is embracing a new venture as he diversifies into farming wildflower meadows, and Tom investigates the possible impacts of calls to ban one billion fast-bred chickens from being produced in the UK each year.

Charlotte Smith and Matt Baker are at Lower Hampen Farm in the Cotswolds to meet Lydia and Clive Handy, who have turned back the clock to adopt a more traditional approach to farming. Matt weaves a yarn, using wool from the farm's rare breed sheep, whilst Charlotte lifts the lid on soil microbiology and how it could impact the way we grow our food in the future. Adam looks at how the discovery of a major food fraud has impacted an already beleaguered British pig industry, and Tom investigates how food price inflation could impact the nation's health.

There are 151 hope spots around the world, including the Galapagos Islands and the Great Barrier Reef. They are areas identified as critical to the health of the oceans, championed by their local communities.Hamza Yassin visits the only one in the UK – the Argyll Coast and Islands. Hamza meets marine biologist Chris Rickard and discovers that the area was designated hope spot status in 2019 because it's home to the only known nursery in the world of the critically endangered flapper skate. Hamza joins Chris as he conducts research, searching for more nursery sites in the hope of a better understanding of these mysterious creatures of the deep.Hamza also meets RSPB Officer Dave Sexton in Oban to witness the highly unusual sight of black guillemots, which usually live far out at sea, residing in the harbourside alongside the townspeople. We also meet the team behind sea wilding, a community-driven native oyster and seagrass restoration project using a groundbreaking technique never seen before in the UK.Adam Henson looks at the robots and artificial intelligence being developed that promise to revolutionise UK agriculture. And John Craven is at the Wilder Blean project in Kent, where he is on the lookout for ancient animal species such as long-horned cattle and bison, introduced to rewild a former commercial pine plantation. Cameras at the ready as John launches this year's photo competition in aid of Children in Need.

We're in Porthcawl, Bridgend County, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Welsh Surfing Federation. John Craven meets Linda Sharp, the UK's first female European champion, who helped shape Welsh surfing culture in the 1970s, and further along the coast, John joins Swansea's Surfers Against Sewage at one of their monthly beach cleans to help combat the never-ending battle against beach litter.Margherita Taylor discovers the magical landscape of the Kenfig sand dune system, which is home to a wealth of flora and fauna, including one of the UK's rarest wild flowers – the fen orchid. Joe Crowley explores how nature could be threatened by the UK's growing demand for water, and Adam catches up with our young farmers to discuss the highs and lows of starting out in agriculture.

This year is the 50th anniversary of the Rare Breed Survival Trust, a charity founded by Adam's father, Joe Henson, to reverse the decline of rare breed numbers in the UK. To mark this date, we visit Adam's farm to see how he's taken on the mantle.With summer temperatures rising, Adam welcomes a shearing gang on site to remove the coats of his commercial sheep, before learning more about their ancient cousins. We catch up with an Exmoor pony stallion, Willow Warbler, to find out if he has been welcomed by the mares on the farm and sired any foals. Lexi, a Suffolk punch horse, goes for a pregnancy scan. A Gloucester bull is prepared for a day at a country show with a thorough head-to-tail wash, and Adam is visited by the chief executive of the British Pig Association for a very special moment.

John Craven and Margherita Taylor travel to the village of Charsfield in the heart of Suffolk to celebrate one of our most respected rural writers, Ronald Blythe, who passed away this year at the age of 100. Charsfield and the area around it provided him with inspiration for his bestsellers, including his classic, Akenfield. John and Margherita embrace Blythe's world by visiting key locations in his work, exploring old rural professions and meeting those who still embrace the way of life portrayed in his books.Margherita talks to nature writer Melissa Harrison, who moved to Suffolk, having been moved by Blythe's works. She explains the importance of Blythe's life and the magical rural world he created. Margherita heads up onto a thatch roof to see how this traditional craft is kept alive today by Nick Walker, one of only 20 master thatchers left in the UK.John meets blacksmith Paul Stoddart, and the pair create a Suffolk latch. John also meets Charlie Haylock, a proud Suffolk speaker, who explains how the dialect evolved and its subtle difference to the Norfolk accent.We also explore how a pioneering project in Cornwall and a new generation of engineers could be vital in the UK's drive for green energy. And Adam Henson catches up with young farmers Ioan and Emily to hear about the highs and lows of starting out in agriculture.

Joe Crowley and Charlotte Smith are in Spalding, south Lincolnshire – the historic hub of Britain's bulb and flower farming industry – to explore its rich heritage, learn about the economic changes growers have faced, and discover how a new generation of farmers is shaping the future of the UK's flower industry.Charlotte meets James Lacey at his family farm to see how a UK favourite, the sunflower, is produced, picked and packed. James shares his love of high-tech harvesting explaining how it's changing the way he farms, and Charlotte gets hands-on making a bouquet.Joe joins Hannah Benson, a young grower, as she delivers hand-cut blooms to the UK's oldest flower auction, and he meets Nicholas Watts, who stumbled into bird seed farming through his love of flowers and protecting wild birds.Tom Heap exclusively reveals a groundbreaking study using flower chemicals in feed that could dramatically reduce livestock methane emissions and help save the planet, while Adam Henson discovers how planting trees in arable fields can revolutionise a small farm's income while improving soil health and the area's biodiversity.

Joe Crowley and Sammi Kinghorn are in the Lake District finding out how cycling is still one of the top outdoor pursuits in the UK and how electric bikes are opening up the countryside like never before.Joe joins a group of electric bike riders called the Electric Cranks, who have all suffered from heart attacks, leading to them being fitted with life-saving devices called LVADS. It wasn't until the recent boom in electric bikes that this group could leave the house, let alone go for a ride across the country. As the miles rack up on their journey, the group tackle a 1,300-foot climb to the Tan Hill Inn, the highest pub in Britain.Sammi meets Dom Ferris, founder of Trash Free Trails, an organisation at the forefront of combating litter and plastic pollution in the UK's outdoor spaces. Joining a trail clean, Sammi speaks to local ambassadors Lauren and Chloe, and other Trash Free Trails volunteers, to hear why they feel it is so important to care for this part of the natural environment. Meanwhile, Adam Henson has a close shave as he talks to farmers taking part in a sheep-shearing competition called the Golden Shears.Tom Heap explores free-running snares, which are used to trap foxes, and looks at what impact a ban could have on farming, game shooting and the protection of vulnerable species.

In the aftermath of one of the biggest fires to ever engulf the UK countryside, Joe Crowley and John Craven explore the impact of increasing wildfires.Joe is in the Scottish Highlands, scouring the ashes around Cannich for signs of life as he meets those who have been tackling a wildfire that has been burning since May, and he wades into the Forsinard Flows, a prospective World Heritage Site and peat bog, that survived a fire to now thrive and is key to combatting climate change.John rolls up his sleeves to help nature bounce back at Chobham in Surrey after a fire in 2020 destroyed 30 acres of the common, and learns how we can adapt nature reserves to stop fire in its tracks. He then steps into the past to delve into a 3,000 year old treasure trove preserved by wildfire in Cambridgeshire, that's helped to re-shape our understanding of ancient life in Britain.We also spend time in Hampshire with young farmer Flavian Obiero, who's introducing sheep and goats to his pig farm, while Adam looks at fire safety on his farm, and visits a local fire station to see how they tackle fires on farms.

Charlotte Smith and Adam Henson discover what makes hay, one of our oldest crops, so special. And Tom Heap investigates how heatwaves are threatening the sea life that lives around our coastline.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith return to Dumfries House where the summer activities are in full swing.

John and Hamza judge this year's entries to the Countryfile photographic competition with the help of photography enthusiast and DJ Edith Bowman.

Anita Rani heads to Somerset to meet sheep farmers Andy and Jen, and their sons, as they prepare to transform Fernhill Farm for an annual festival.

Sean Fletcher and Matt Baker find about the changes being made in the management of the national park of Bannau Brycheiniog, formerly referred to as the Brecon Beacons.

In a special episode, Dame Judi Dench reveals her love of the countryside – and Scotland in particular. She's joined by her grandson Sam to check in on a tartan that's being created for her.

Sammi Kinghorn returns to Cumbria to find out how young shepherdess Katie is doing now that she's finished school for the year.

From the Goodwood Estate in West Sussex, four of the UK's top sheepdog handlers go head-to-head, aiming to claim 2023's One Man and His Dog trophy.

Adam Henson and Sean Fletcher join the Martin family on their Cambridgeshire arable farm at harvest, a time that can be financial 'make or break' for many UK farmers.

Adam Henson and Sean Fletcher are back in the ‘breadbasket' of East Anglia as farmer Tom Martin learns if this year's harvest has been a success.

Hamza Yassin fulfils a long-standing ambition by taking a trip to Royal Deeside to attend the Braemar Highland Gathering.

Joe Crowley and Charlotte Smith head to the Wash in Norfolk to see one of the greatest wildlife events in the UK, the Snettisham Spectacular.

Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith are in Cambridgeshire at Cheffins' famous agricultural machinery auction, the ultimate trading floor for farm equipment.

It's time for presenters Matt Baker, Charlotte Smith, Margherita Taylor, Joe Crowley and John Craven to pull on their bobble hats and get rambling in aid of Children in Need 2023.

As part of Countryfile's Wild Britain initiative, Ellie Harrison and Hamza Yassin visit Wytham Woods in Oxfordshire.

John Craven and Sammi Kinghorn visit the South Downs to see how the past is inspiring residents to preserve the future of this diverse landscape.

Countryfile returns to Dumfries House as autumn is in full swing and the first year of teaching gets underway at the new rural skills centre recently opened by the King.

Ellie Harrison and Anita Rani are at Poole Harbour for the conclusion of a three-year environmental study, and thety celebrate Ellie's last Countryfile episode with a trip down memory lane.

Charlotte Smith and Matt Baker head to Elan Valley, nestled in the heart of the Cambrian Mountains, where the Welsh natural world is getting ready for the onset of winter.

The team meet with experts to learn about nature and the behaviour of wildlife in the winter, and what folk wisdom across the centuries can teach us about the season.

The team return to the Cumbrian fells to learn of 16-year-old shepherdess Katie and her family's Christmas traditions on their upland farm.

Margherita Taylor goes for a wintry walk alongside the River Lea, meeting historian Dr Jim Lewis, who describes its history from the ice ages to the present day.

John Craven pays tribute to inspirational young people who are doing their bit for farming and the countryside, including volunteers, rangers and a 14-year-old shepherdess.

Sean Fletcher is in the snowy Cairngorms as we mark the centenary of the death of the great explorer Ernest Shackleton. In this mesmerising yet unforgiving landscape, Sean meets adventurer Mollie Hughes, who solo-crossed the Antarctic following in Shackleton's footsteps, and discovers just how tough it is to train and trek in some of the harshest conditions in the UK. Sean also meets two scouts who are preparing to go on a Shackleton expedition, and learns some vital survival tricks. We also catch up with young naturalist Xander, who is on a mission to help save the northern damselfly, while Adam Henson discovers the damage growing numbers of deer are causing to farmers, and Tom Heap investigates the cost of renewable energy to our rural homes.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith visit the last traditional farm in the Bristol postcode to meet a farmer fighting to keep her farm and her connection with the local community she feeds. Matt helps out with a spot of animal husbandry and some porcine romance while Charlotte discovers how the farmland provides the city with a 'green lung' and a wildlife haven. On his Cotswolds farm, Adam Henson is keeping the peace between two testosterone-fuelled rams, and Charlotte also investigates whether cuts to rural youth work are putting youngsters at risk of criminal exploitation.

On the 50th anniversary of the miners' strikes, Matt Baker and Anita Rani are in County Durham on the Heritage Coast to discover how this area has risen from the ashes and reinvented itself after pit closures. Matt finds out how a colliery has become a nature reserve, and Anita discovers how one pit is now enjoying a new lease of life as a source for cutting-edge clean, green energy. Also, Tom Heap investigates the hidden threat facing countryside communities living in the shadow of our mining past, and Adam Henson sees how the avian flu crisis is threatening the livelihood of free range egg farmers.

Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison visit the largest privately owned estate in Devon, which has been in the same family for more than 700 years, to discover how the 25,000 acres are shaping up to the future. Matt joins the calving team at Clinton Devon Estates and sets the wheels in motion at a 900-year-old watermill, while Ellie checks out a mammoth project where the sea will be more than welcome to flood the land. Then, she meets the organic farming duo who also juggle part-time jobs as a lecturer and a GP. Adam's getting ready for spring on his farm, and Charlotte investigates what the new environmental land management schemes will mean for the future of food production.

Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison are at the Allerton Project in Leicestershire, where cutting-edge research by farmers for farmers enables agriculture to keep ahead of the challenges facing the industry. Matt finds out how sheep urine is contributing to climate change, Ellie discovers the miracles of the humble hedge, and binoculars at the ready, both do their bit for the Big Farmland Bird Count. Also, Tom Heap investigates what's being done to keep antibiotic-resistant superbugs out of the food chain, and Adam Henson is busy with winter checks on his livestock.

Matt Baker and Joe Crowley get their walking boots on as they visit Snowdonia National Park. Home to Wales's largest natural lake and its highest mountain, Mount Snowdon, the park shot to the top of the staycation list last summer as more Brits than ever holidayed on home turf. But Snowdonia is paying the price for its popularity, as the heavy influx of tourists is taking its toll on the landscape. Matt finds out about the invisible scourge of micro-plastics plaguing the scenic landscape, while Joe mucks in with a mountain makeover as he helps repair the footpaths. Tom Heap investigates the growing problem of vandalism and anti-social behaviour in our National Parks, and Adam Henson visits a farm in Wiltshire where cow dung is being used to generate electricity.

This week we're visiting the Holkham Estate in Norfolk. Joe Crowley witnesses the awesome spectacle of thousands of overwintering pink footed geese leaving their roost. Matt Baker unearths the remarkable life buried deep in long-abandoned ponds and discovers which exotic creatures have a penchant for a certain type of oak. Charlotte investigates why the UK's sugar beet farmers are facing an uncertain future, and it's a visit to the vet for Adam's trusty sheepdog Peg. Could her working days be numbered?

John Craven is at Wrest Park in Bedfordshire to help with an ambitious 20-year restoration project. He also delves into the archives, revisiting other Countryfile renovation stories.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith head to the High Weald on the border of Sussex and Kent, where Matt meets a visionary architect and Charlotte visits a family preserving the art of blacksmithing.

Charlotte Smith and Tom Heap are on the River Severn to find out how living with the constant threat of floods is affecting rural communities and how climate change could make things worse.

To mark British Pie Week, Countryfile is in the birthplace of the pork pie – Melton Mowbray in Leicestershire. Margherita Taylor visits the cathedral of pies, home of the British Pie Awards, to find out what makes for pie perfection. Matt Baker discovers Melton Mowbray's other mouthwatering delight, stilton cheese, and Matt and Margherita both put their tastebuds to the test as they try the art of pairing food and beer. Adam is on the trail of Somerset strawberries grown all year round, and who will be top dog when comedians Tim Vine and Kiri Pritchard-McLean go head-to-head in a special Red Nose sheepdog trial for Comic Relief?

Like so many farmers across the UK, Adam Henson is facing a dilemma. In the face of pressure to go green, how can you change your farming habits and still pay the bills? Adam catches up with his neighbor, David Wilson, who is a regenerative farmer, to find out more about one of the big new trends in agriculture and to see what ideas might work on Adam's farm.Charlotte Smith checks out the soil on both farms and investigates 'greenwashing'. As big companies start buying up land for carbon off-setting, are they putting the UK's food production at risk?

Anita Rani and Sean Fletcher explore the beautiful south west corner of Wales as they celebrate the 70th anniversary of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park. Anita faces her fears as she abseils 100 feet down a sea cliff to discover how best to protect the nesting spots of the thousands of sea birds that flock here. Sean meets the artist behind the coveted annual fish licence and heads to Angel Bay to discover how to farm oysters. Adam's Exmoor ponies are in for a treat when a farrier gives them a pedicure and they meet a new stallion. and in a special investigation, BBC News's rural affairs correspondent Claire Marshall meets the farmers with Parkinson's Disease who fear their condition could be linked to years of using a toxic herbicide.

Countryfile's Plant Britain by the Sea special shines the spotlight on the incredible coastline of our island and how we can all do our bit to help combat climate change, revive the fortunes of our wildlife and boost our own mental wellbeing. Matt Baker launches Countryfile's Coastal Clean Up initiative while Ellie Harrison helps to sew meadows out at sea and discovers the miracle properties of seagrass. Charlotte Smith goes on the hunt for rare dune plants saved from the brink of extinction, John Craven finds out how helping our coast to be in the best of health is also remedying young people's eco anxiety, and Tom Heap investigates the importance of protecting our sand dunes.

John Craven visits two villages in Herefordshire to find out about ancient rural Easter customs and traditions from field blessings to grave dressing and the pax biscuit, which, 500 years on, is still eaten at this time of year as a token of peace and good neighbourliness. Stained glass artist Tamsin Abbot creates a special piece to celebrate Easter and spring, inspired by the beautiful countryside around her. And John delves into the Easter archives for some treats, including the time Matt made a very special delivery to the Isles of Scilly and when Sean discovered the significance of wild daffodils.

It's springtime in County Down, where Anita Rani and Joe Crowley meet the Mackies of Mahee Island during the first of four seasonal visits this year. Anita gets a tour of the family's very own arboretum and is introduced to the art of a well-known friend, while Joe lends a hand on the farm as the cattle head to the fields for spring. He also hears from the family's conservationist about how they created their own wetland – one of Northern Ireland's wildlife treasures. Also, Tom Heap investigates how the war in Ukraine has sparked a surge in the cost of fertiliser which could affect the price of the food on our plates.

Nothing says spring quite like lambing, and Adam Henson is in his lambing shed getting ready for the last of his new arrivals. Anita Rani meets 15-year-old shepherd Katie on her family farm in Cumbria. Anita has never lambed before but soon finds herself at the sharp end of an emotional rollercoaster in the battle to save lives. Adam is also joined by Pip Jenkins from top knitwear company John Smedley and designer and Great British Sewing Bee judge Patrick Grant to decide the winner of Countryfile's bobble competition for Children in Need. And with the cost of living on the rise, we rediscover forgotten cheap lamb cuts which are enjoying a revival.

Countryfile this week visits the breathtaking coastline of Mount's Bay in Cornwall and explores the magical St Michael's Mount. Matt Baker is in for some extreme gardening as he abseils on the island's craggy cliffs, while Margherita Taylor takes to the water to meet the team of female gig boat rowers who are going for gold in the world championships.Charlotte Smith investigates how the UK's shortage of farm vets is threatening not just animal health but also our own. Adam's getting ready for the arrival of some very special calves. And, in the first of a series of five films, Adrian Chiles explores some of the fascinating customs from around the British Isles. Today, he's just along the coast in Mousehole and discovers an intriguing Cornish tradition or two.

Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison explore the grounds of the beautiful Blenheim Palace estate, meeting the people who make this place tick. Matt catches up with young apprentices who are learning the tools of their trades. As well as lending a hand with lambing, Matt is also kept busy with essential maintenance. Ellie makes a beeline for the ancient woodland and finds herself swinging from one of their prized oaks in search of a rare bee. Adrian Chiles is in Dorking to meet the creator of a weird and wonderful take on the traditional horse-drawn carriage, while Adam Henson catches up with students on a new initiative to introduce young people from the city to careers in agriculture. And Tom Heap investigates claims that by 2050 the UK could run out of water.

In Ystradgynlais in south Wales, Joe Crowley visits a local rugby club where mental health is every bit as important a physical fitness. Anita Rani gets knitting with a group of grandmothers whose woolly wonders have given them a new lease of life. Tom Heap discovers what new rules around gene editing could mean for the future of our food. Nigel Owens, former international rugby referee turned farmer and current president of the National Federation of Young Farmers' Clubs, explains how he has dealt with mental health, and Adam Henson catches up with a young Welsh farmer to find out what can be done to combat loneliness in agriculture. Adrian Chiles is in Dorking in Surrey to explore more weird and wonderful goings-on in our countryside.

As cycling booms, Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison jump on their bikes to explore a new greenway in Warwickshire. It's the latest National Cycle Route to open in the UK. Matt hops off to discover the secrets of Britain's mini-dinosaur, the great crested newt, and meets the people moving heaven and earth to protect them. Ellie goes in search of the water vole, one of the UK's rarest water mammals, and meets a walking group who are mapping and reviewing thousands of accessible walkways in a whole new way.Adrian Chiles has a go at a local tradition in the village of Upperthong in Yorkshire, while Adam is in for a surprise when he welcomes Lexi the Suffolk Punch's new foal. And Tom Heap investigates the increase in cycling deaths on our rural roads.

The team visit Flat Holm, an island perched in the middle of the Bristol Channel. Tiny as it is, it packs a punch, as Matt Baker discovers the fascinating history of the place, from pirates and queens to the birthplace of radio. Ellie Harrison ducks for cover from divebombing gulls, while Joe Crowley investigates the water companies still dumping sewage into our rivers. Adrian Chiles coracles off the west coast of Wales as he discovers more fascinating tales from across our countryside, and to celebrate the platinum jubilee weekend, Adam finds out more about the Queen's passion for a special pony.

John Craven visits the Mardale Valley in Cumbria. The Lake District is one of the best-recognised landscapes in Britain, but in this neck of the woods, it's all set to change.At Haweswater Reservoir, John meets the people behind the new radical thinking to boost biodiversity. John also enjoys a very special breakfast with one of our rarest mammals, the red squirrel, and he meets wildlife film-maker and photographer Hamza Yassin to launch this year's Countryfile photographic competition with two new categories for children and young people. Adrian Chiles lifts the lid on Manx customs on the Isle of Man, Adam sells one of his prized Gloucester bulls, and Charlotte Smith investigates the recent poisoning of sea eagles in Southern England.

Sean Fletcher visits Whitby. Isolated between the North York Moors National Park and the sombre North Sea, it's not a place you stumble upon; it's a destination. This North Yorkshire seaside town has been attracting people with its architectural, geological and literary charms for generations. This May marks the 125th year since the publication of Bram Stoker's Dracula, a novel that was influenced by Whitby's folkloric past and continues to shape this maritime outpost. To celebrate the occasion, Sean is in town visiting the people of Whitby who work and protect its coastline today, providing a springboard for a deep dive into our archives of coastal Britain.

Charlotte Smith is back in the Cotswolds on Adam's farm to find out how he's getting on with his plan to try out regenerative farming, the big new trend in British agriculture. As well as catching up with his farmer neighbour David Wilson, who is showing him the ropes, Adam also meets a robot that could one day eliminate the need for pesticides. Charlotte visits an innovator in Wiltshire who is recycling waste into fertiliser that could help farmers battling sky-high prices. But how realistic is the shift to regen farming for farmers like Adam, and with the war in Ukraine, is this the right time to try it?

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith pay the first of two visits to Jersey, where they find out about the agile frog that is capable of leaping up to two metres but is on the brink of extinction on this Channel Island.Matt mucks in on an organic farm producing exotic fruit and vegetables for the Durrell Wildlife Conservation Trust, with a little help from what comes naturally, while Charlotte explores how the brutal landmarks of German occupation are being repurposed to boost the local economy. Meanwhile, Adam is in search of a new sheepdog pup to take over from his faithful companion Peg, who is nearing retirement, and Tom investigates the potential impact on rural communities of plans to double nuclear capacity within 30 years.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are in the New Forest in Hampshire, as the community comes together to help Ukrainian refugees. Since Russia invaded Ukraine in February, more than 50,000 people have arrived in the UK, and rural communities across the country are giving them a warm welcome. Margherita meets a mother and daughter who have fled the war and found sanctuary in the Hampshire countryside, while Matt lends a hand to a group of volunteers collecting and packing Humanitarian Aid to send to Ukraine. Tom Heap spends time with Ukrainian farm workers who have escaped the war and are providing a vital rural workforce for the UK, and Adam Henson chats to a farmer in Ukraine and finds out what impact the war is having on agriculture there.

It's summer, and Margherita Taylor is on Mahee Island in County Down to meet the Mackie family for the second of three Countryfile visits to the island. Margherita joins Julie to go through the family archives, which reveal what life was like during World War II when they hosted evacuees from Belfast and Europe. Young naturalist Dara McAnulty reveals how the great outdoors helped with exam nerves, while Charlotte investigates what the Northern Ireland protocol means for farmers, and Adam finds out how avian flu might affect the Christmas turkey market.

Charlotte Smith and Matt Baker are back on Jersey for a second visit to the sunny channel island. After a dramatic entrance via the sea, they discover how people power stopped development on Jersey's sensitive coastline and why the battle is on to save the island's puffins, which are on the brink of extinction. Matt discovers the healing powers of surfing, and we meet the rugby-playing mates who decided to try making their own sea salt after running out of the stuff at a beach barbecue. We also catch up with the Power Rangers, young environmentalists doing their bit for the island. Adam Henson takes some pigs to school, and Tom Heap investigates how the UK's worst ever avian flu outbreak is devastating some of our most precious seabird colonies and could pull the shutters down on British poultry farmers once again.

John Craven and Margherita Taylor are in Blairgowrie, also known as Berry Town, in the east of Scotland, to celebrate the town's passion for producing what are said to be among the finest raspberries in the world.John steps back in time to discover how this town would come alive in the summer months as people flocked from the cities of Scotland for picking holidays to make a penny or two, and he finds out why this neck of the woods is so perfect for growing these luscious summer fruits. Margherita reveals the secrets of the world's tallest hedge and tries her hand at the dying craft of hand-making kilts.Adam Henson has a busy day on the farm, including welcoming some new arrivals. And Charlotte Smith investigates if our farmers can still feed us all despite big targets to free up land for nature.

Matt and Charlotte visit the world-famous Hadrian's Wall as it celebrates its astonishing 1900th anniversary to uncover some hidden histories of the area.Charlotte makes an amazing discovery at the Roman fort of Vindolanda, an archaeological excavation site where they are unearthing the lives of women and children of our past, and meets the chemist trying to chart the changes beneath the surface. Matt finds out about the rich multicultural history of the soldiers that manned the wall - from Syrian archers to Iraqi bargemen on the Tyne - and meets the artist who's brightly coloured art installation has brought a Roman fort's history to life.Meanwhile, Adam is also in Northumberland, learning how one farming family is turbo-charging birds, and Tom Heap investigates why the aging, government-owned Scottish island ferry service is leaving locals feeling cast adrift.

Ellie Harrison is at Oxfordshire Wildlife Rescue to help care for injured creatures great and small, from orphaned fledglings to deer and hedgehogs. Ellie finds out why rescue centres across the UK become increasingly busy during the summer months and why this Oxfordshire centre is under so much pressure that it has had to temporarily close its doors. In just six months, it has taken in the number of wild animals it would normally help in a year.Ellie also delves into the Countryfile archives to revisit films by some of Britain's finest wildlife film-makers about the wonders of our natural world. Richard Taylor Jones revealed the wooing techniques of a kestrel desperate to impress a potential mate, Tom Hartwell took us up close with the mason bee, Hamza Yassin went in search of red deer fawns, and Jack Perks revealed the wealth of wildlife living in his garden pond.

Just a few miles from London, Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith revel in the serenity and beauty of the Surrey Hills - a landscape that was home to one of Britain's best-loved composers, Ralph Vaughan Williams. This year marks the 150th anniversary of his birth, and world-renowned violinist Pekka Kuusisto treats us to a very special performance of The Lark Ascending. Charlotte finds out how farmers could help to reverse the fortunes of the skylark, one of our favourites songbirds, while Matt sniffs out some fabulous local produce including a cheese called Dirty Vicar. We meet 3D embroiderer Amanda Cobbett, who creates incredibly lifelike masterpieces of local nature. Tom Heap investigates why saving our trees could mean declaring war on grey squirrels, and Adam Henson meets Pat Quinn, one of the driving forces behind saving longhorn cattle and Cotswold sheep, who swapped a life of rally racing for farming. Now in her nineties, she's hanging up her wellies.

As the heat bakes the British countryside into crisis, Adam Henson and John Craven meet those on the front line: the farmer who is double sewing and trying a new crop; the wildlife champions battling to save chalk streams, some of the most vital but fragile habitats in the world; and the firefighters and scientists contending with the wildfires ravaging swathes of our landscape.John also meets the winemakers who, thanks to the scorching summer, could have a vintage harvest, and finds out how the heatwave has revealed some hidden historic secrets. Lastly, he teams up with Wildlife Trust ambassador and much-loved actress Alison Steadman and wildlife film-maker Hamza Yassin to decide which photographs will grace 2023's Countryfile calendar for Children in Need.

As the BBC marks its centenary, Adam Henson and Margherita Taylor step back in time at Cogges Farm in Oxfordshire to look at farming 100 years ago and to chart the radical changes which have shaped our countryside – from the appearance of the first tractor to the changing role of women in agriculture.Adam gets behind some serious horse power to tend the land while Margherita tries her hand at pickles and preserves and discovers how women made their mark beyond the farmhouse kitchen. Farmer Helen Browning, Chief Executive of The Soil Association, reveals the heroines who inspired her while 90-year-old author and retired farmer Bryan Edgley reminisces on how farming has changed in his lifetime.We also meet 10-year-old Isabella in the first of Countryfile's Ramble appeal films whose life has been transformed thanks to her remarkable specially-trained assistance dog Storm, who's helping her with her autism. And Charlotte Smith investigates if trade deals with the likes of Australia could undermine the UK's drive to be carbon neutral.

Margherita Taylor is in the Quantock Hills to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, one of the leading lights of the Romantic movement that took its inspiration from the beauty of the British landscape. The Quantocks were a huge influence on Coleridge, who was an inveterate walker in the area when he was living here in Somerset, and Margherita joins some young people to put quill to paper.Margherita also visits the Somerset Levels, which this year is becoming the UK's second 'super' national nature reserve. She comes face to face with some of the wetlands' tiniest residents and discovers a legend or two. Adam introduces the Irish and English rivals who will do battle in this year's One Man and His Dog competition, while Tom examines the crisis facing pig farmers. And, as we prepare to ramble in aid of BBC Children in Need, we meet remarkable 13-year-old Saul, who refuses to let dwarfism stand in the way of adventure.

Joe Crowley is on the south Devon coast, the stunning English Riviera where disco scallops are the talk of the town. A chance discovery that they react to lights could revolutionise scallop fishing. Joe also discovers how new technology can reveal some watery wonders without having to put a toe in the sea, and we meet the farming brothers who've turned to aquaponics. Adam Henson meets the two final contenders going for glory in One Man and His Dog. For Scotland, it's veteran Sandy and his dog Sam, while Dewi and Jock run for Wales. John Craven catches up with the winner of Countryfile's 2023 Calendar in aid of Children in Need, and we meet young Riley, who doesn't let a rare lung condition stand in his way of conquering the world.

For some, it's been the earliest harvest ever in the UK. We join Adam Henson on his farm to find out if he's being persuaded by pioneering neighbour David Wilson to give regenerative farming a go. It's the big new buzzword in agriculture, but how do Adam's conventional crops compare to David's heritage breeds? And who comes out on top in terms of profit and for soil health?As energy costs rocket, Charlotte Smith finds out whether methane might be fuelling our tractors in the future and also if a giant grass could help to heat our homes. Tom Heap investigates why British farmers need to grow more protein, and we meet the Norfolk whisky maker who reckons he can give the Scots and the Irish a run for their money.

Anita Rani is in a green pocket of Blackburn to catch up with fashion designer and Great British Sewing Bee judge Patrick Grant to find out about the growing field-to-fashion movement. Patrick is behind a movement to revive the flax industry, once a mainstay of British agriculture, to create home-grown linen. Anita also tries her hand at spinning and finds out about growing woad to dye locally produced cloth. And she raids the Countryfile archives to celebrate British field-to-fashion artisans from tanners to sock makers, including the time Charlotte gave an angora rabbit a hair cut.

In a small field in north Wales, four of the UK's top handlers and their sheepdogs go head-to-head, aiming to claim this year's One Man and His Dog trophy. Overlooked by the famous Offa's Dyke, the course at Bodfari is small and simple, leaving our competing teams nowhere to hide from the expert eye of the judge, Mike Northwood. Can English outsider Jessica Saukkonen and her dog Gannon or Scottish veteran Sandy McCulloch and his dog Sam outdo the reigning International Supreme Champions, Wales's Dewi Jenkins and Jock? Dewi took the title from Ireland's Tom O'Sullivan, who is looking for revenge with his sheepdog Tess, so there's everything to play for. And we meet 15-year-old Claudia Patterson and her faithful companion Jean. She got the sheepdog trialling bug when she was just five years old, and in a showcase round demonstrates why she's one to look out for the future.

Matt Baker introduces a special episode that comes from all four corners of the UK. Ben Nevis, Slieve Donard, Yr Wyddfa and Scafell Pike – the highest peaks of our four nations are the breathtaking backdrop for a massive art installation. Hundreds of volunteers, or 'lumenators', with specially designed bespoke lights, head for the peaks for this ambitious project celebrating access to and custodianship of the countryside. With a presenter on each of the mountains, we go behind the scenes to discover the vision behind the project, hear the stories of the volunteers and find out how the lighting and drone teams tackled some testing challenges. It all culminates with a 15-minute spectacle marking the finale of the Green Space, Dark Skies project.

It's the big ramble for BBC Children in Need as our presenters step out to meet some inspirational young people and to discover how they have been helped by the charity.Matt Baker is in Northern Ireland with Saul, aged 12, who has a rare form of dwarfism and an unquenchable thirst for adventure, enabled by CiN support. From canoeing to abseiling in the worst of weathers, nothing deters Saul, and there's a surprise or two to keep him going.Anita Rani is in Wales on a testing ramble up Pumlumon - the highest peak of the Cambrian Mountains - with 11-year-old Riley, who has a rare lung condition. In North Yorkshire, Charlotte Smith joins Isabella, aged 10, and her special assistance dog, Storm, for a walk and a day on the farm. Isabella is autistic, and Storm has helped to change her life.In Scotland, Margherita Taylor is with 13-year-old Megan and her brother Euan, aged 15, to discover how they were helped to cope with the tragic death of their best friend who took his own life. And ramble master John Craven is at Sudeley Castle in Gloucestershire - one of his favourite walking spots - to catch up with ramblers from all over the UK to find out their favourite haunts and how they're helping to support Children in Need.

Margherita Taylor visits Mount Edgecumbe Country Park in Cornwall to mark Remembrance Sunday. She discovers how ex-servicemen and women are being helped to heal old wounds and develop new skills for the future. For many veterans, the transition from military to civilian life can be tough, but dedicated charities and initiatives can help to give them a new start in life – from solace and healing in nature to training in cutting-edge technology in the battle against poaching and deforestation across the globe. Charlotte Smith meets farmers dealing with eye-watering energy costs, Adam Henson reveals who will be crowned Countryfile Young Countryside Champion of the Year at the BBC Food & Farming awards, and chef and food writer Romy Gill meets some inspiring young countryside cooks.

As Countryfile's Plant Britain initiative to plant three quarters of a million trees across the UK reaches its climax, John Craven and Ellie Harrison are at the Countryfile wood in Cheshire. Planting here began just two years ago, but John and Ellie discover how the saplings are already helping nature. Ellie also checks out the positive impact trees have on the planet, from seed to deadwood. Charlotte Smith finds out how community gardens are changing lives and discovers the fascinating underground system that enables trees to talk to each other. Tom Heap visits the high-security government labs working to protect trees from climate change and disease. And finally, after two years of Countryfile viewers so magnificently pulling together, John and Ellie reveal an exciting update.

Matt Baker and Sean Fletcher roll up their sleeves to help out on a remarkable smallholding in Bedfordshire. Farmer Mike Duxbury lost his sight at the age of six due to glaucoma, but that didn't stop him from achieving his dream to farm. Touch and sound enable him to navigate the farm and take on anything that needs doing, from checking livestock to wielding power tools to build animal enclosures. And Mike is determined to inspire young people with disabilities to get into agriculture by running practical courses.Meanwhile, Joe Crowley investigates if enough is being done to combat wildlife crime, and Adam Henson catches up with a farmer who nearly lost his livelihood due to injury.

Anita Rani is at the world-famous Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust in Slimbridge, a centre of research and conservation founded by Sir Peter Scott in 1946, to discover some wonderful winter sights. Anita waits for one of the most magical moments in the Slimbridge calendar, the arrival of Bewick's swans. Having flown all the way from Russia, these rarest and smallest of swans land here to spend the winter in warmer climes – a phenomenon known to locals as ‘swanfall'. Anita meets Mary, one of the original ‘swan girls', who explains how she used to spend long hours silently observing the Bewick's. Anita also spends time with Slimbridge reserve manager Dave Paynter as he reveals the changes he's made during his 40 years working at the site. Anita also embraces the coming winter as she raids the Countryfile archives, reminding us of Ellie's wildlife safari in Scotland where she spotted wild mountain hares, and the time John walked with wolves.

Rural households are more vulnerable to the current energy crisis and fuel poverty due to lower wages, poorly insulated buildings and a heavy reliance on cars. However, there are some communities that are finding ways to take power into their own hands - literally.Ellie Harrison heads to Bethesda, a village in rural north west Wales built around former slate quarries and the River Ogwen that is now home to a growing community of energy self-sufficiency. With hydro pumps, solar panels, e-transport, energy wardens and repurposed buildings, this local community has found a way not only to try and survive this crisis but ultimately thrive. Ellie visits a community warm space in the Ogwen Valley where locals are reducing their fuel bills through communal dining and shared transport. It's a model village for renewable and sustainable energy alternatives, run by and for the locals, that could potentially be rolled out across rural Britain.Tom Heap investigates whether the UK is bankrolling climate change. The energy crisis and a war in Europe has renewed the debate on the UK's energy security, with the government now incentivising energy companies to invest in new fossil fuel projects in the North Sea - despite the fact that the UK is supposed to be reducing its carbon emissions and moving over to clean energy. Adam Henson provides an update on how the avian flu epidemic is impacting poultry farmers. Chef Romy Gill meets a 10-year-old in north Wales who is passionate about baking with home-grown produce.

John Craven and Anita Rani get into the Christmas spirit at Rockingham Castle, which is celebrating its 950th anniversary. Anita discovers that Charles Dickens was a regular visitor during the festive season, and would perform plays not only for the Lords and Ladies but also the servants.Anita forages for greenery to make a Christmas wreath, and John joins a wildlife survey to discover what is making their Christmas home in the castle's famous elephant yew hedge.Chef and food writer Romy Gill is hard at work in Rockingham's kitchen to create Christmas treats with the four young cooks she's met on her travels, while Adam Henson is on the trail of rogue mistletoe. Tom Heap looks at social eating and how it might be the answer to food poverty, social isolation and food waste, while Charlotte Smith finds out how our farmers are getting a raw deal for the produce they put on our plates.

Margherita Taylor is in Auchindrain, a fascinating and perfectly preserved example of a Scottish Highland farm township to discover the roots and traditions surrounding New Year and Burns' Night. She discovers how tough life was and why Christmas was once illegal in Scotland. And she delves into the Countryfile archive to celebrate other seasonal customs, revisiting the time Ellie Harrison embraced Coorie and when John Craven learned about the ancient tradition of Gaelic psalm singing.

Sean Fletcher looks back at 2020 – a difficult year for all of us as we faced a pandemic but a year when the countryside became a lifeline for unprecedented numbers; when wildlife came out to play and also made their homes in curious places during lockdown. Sean also catches up with some of the inspiring young people at the forefront of the battle to protect the environment, and there's a timely reminder of how we can all do our bit to safeguard our countryside.

After the turmoil of 2020 and as a new year gets underway, how do we plan to make the countryside a bigger part of our lives? Matt Baker wants to get fitter and tries his hand at canicross, Anita Rani straps on her walking boots, Margherita Taylor heads for the woods, Helen Skelton wants to buy local, Tom Heap discovers the joys of 'blue' therapy, and Adam Henson gets creative with clay.

Ellie Harrison and Tom Heap are in the Mendips looking at how this stunning but fragile area is being protected from the invasion of visitors. Ellie scales Cheddar Gorge and discovers the damage cars are wreaking on narrow, winding roads. She also learns how white-clawed freshwater crayfish are being saved from voracious invaders. Tom finds out how the countryside can help transform lives and investigates if the government's new green subsidy scheme can really deliver for farmers and the environment. Meanwhile, Adam meets one of his heroes, international rugby ref turned farmer Nigel Owens, who is facing his herd's first TB test.

Matt Baker is staying close to home, exploring the Chilterns landscape and the people and skills that have shaped this Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. He discovers some hidden historical gems revealed by a revolutionary new mapping technique, heads deep into the woods to learn about the ancient art of bodging and rolls his sleeves up to help clean up ponds which are so desperately needed by wildlife. Joe Crowley investigates if large-scale schemes such as HS2 tally with the government's pledge to go green, and on the farm, Adam calls in a horse whisperer to help with a nervous Exmoor pony.

Ellie Harrison is in Gloucestershire, finding out how communities on her home turf are pulling together to support each other in these tough times. She meets the producers on a mission to get everyone eating local and healthy meals at affordable prices, finds out why gardening is on prescription and helps out with Britain's favourite mammal, the hedgehog, which is facing a precarious future. Wildlife film-maker Jack Perks gets up close to dippers, Adam sizes up a new boar for his pigs, and Charlotte investigates what future trade deals could mean for the food on our plates.

Helen Skelton is on Crompton Moor in the Pennines, braving all weathers to discover what makes this site of biological interest such a special place. Battered by rain, wind and snow, she helps install ‘leaky dams,' discovers how a plant with superpowers is helping to restore these uplands and meets the community coming together to bring wildlife back to the hills. Adam Henson tries out a new app to show how contented his animals are, wildlife film-maker Richard Taylor-Jones shows you how to spot wonderful wildlife on your doorstep, and Tom Heap investigates the rural mental health crisis.

Whilst visiting Kentish Town City Farm to lend a helping hand, Margherita Taylor takes a look back through the Countryfile archives to celebrate some winter heroes - the farmers toughing it out in all weathers; wildlife rescue volunteers risking their lives to save one of our most majestic animals; and the community working together to save the heart of their village. Margherita also catches up with one of her childhood winter heroes, Eddie the Eagle. And we couldn't forget our Children in Need ramblers, as we reveal the astonishing amount our viewers have raised.

Tom Heap explores Northamptonshire's Nene Valley, discovering how a farmer fighting flooding has embraced wetland wildlife to make his land pay. Tom also meets a sheepdog turned search-and-rescue hero and gets hands-on with a project that has unearthed evidence of riverside residents dating back to Neolithic times. Adam is hoping for good news from his ewes as, thanks to scanning, he discovers how many are in lamb. Charlotte Smith investigates whether Brexit is delivering all it promised for the UK's fishing industry, and ecologist Josh Styles reveals the secret world inside a prehistoric plant.

This week Anita Rani is on her home turf in London, showing that you don't need to go far for a healthy dose of green.Anita is taken on an enchanting tour of one of London's 'magnificent seven' cemeteries, as she discovers a trove of treasures right on her doorstep and sets out to crack the mystery of a non-native bird.Adam Henson shows us how he concocts a super-meal for his animals during the winter months, and Tom Heap investigates a controversial decision that allows UK farmers to use a banned pesticide on their fields.

Charlotte Smith visits the Colne Valley Regional Park, a landscape of forest, fields and waterways on the edge of west London. She does battle with an invasive species, gets up close with tiny creatures that show the health of the park's rivers, meets a savvy septuagenarian saving her farm from development, and helps secure a future for one of our most endangered mammals, the water vole. Tom Heap asks whether eco-education should be at the heart of our school system, Adam Henson introduces new boar George II to his sows, and wildlife cameraman Jack Perks gets up close with otters.

In this special episode, Ellie joins Adam and his team for 48 hours of hectic lambing action. She may be the rookie in Adam's lambing shed, but Ellie quickly gets to grips with multiple births, touch-and-go adoptions and the emotions of the life-or-death decisions faced each day during this busiest of spring seasons on the farm. Tom Heap finds out why mountains of wool, historically the nation's most valuable sheep product, are now piling up in warehouses across the country. In Cumbria, Hannah Jackson – the Red Shepherdess - meets young upland farmers bringing new ideas to this traditional form of sheep farming. Plus how to count sheep using an almost forgotten Celtic language system.

Ellie Harrison celebrates the arrival of spring on her home turf in the Cotswolds. From the millions of snowdrops in Painswick's Rococo Gardens to discovering some old folklore, finding out about a scheme to enable wheelchair users to enjoy tougher terrain in the great outdoors and meeting the cattle that encourage wildflowers, Ellie also raids the Countryfile archive. There's the time she went on dolphin watch in Cardigan Bay, Matt Baker's visit to tulip fields in Lincolnshire and the day Adam Henson went to North Yorkshire to catch his supper.

Joe Crowley discovers how science is helping better understand nature on Bedfordshire's Greensand Ridge. He gets up close with avian giants, finding out how the world's longest-running bird survey helps monitor heron numbers. He gets on his bike to help map the amount of plastics polluting our rural landscape, and is out on toad patrol, helping create a new national DNA database to discover why these amphibians are in trouble. As spring appears, Adam finds out if his farming gambles are paying off, Tom investigates whether the UK's environmental ambitions will change the face of our national parks and areas of outstanding natural beauty, and naturalist Dan Rouse captures the seasonal spectacle of thousands of oystercatchers on the Gower Peninsula.

Ellie Harrison visits the 'golden triangle' in Gloucestershire to find out why the area is so famous for the wild daffodil. She takes a trip down memory lane with villagers who recall picking the daffs as children and how the flowers were sent by rail on the daffodil line to cities across the country. She discovers the difference between wild and cultivated daffodils and witnesses some of the finest medieval wall paintings in England. We also meet the Meanwells - a mother and son fulfilling their dreams of farming in the Cumbrian hills - and Charlotte Smith investigates the challenges facing our rural churches and the communities they serve.

Tom Heap and Margherita Taylor look at the impact of canals on the past, present and future of our countryside.In the Midlands, Tom is on the UK's longest canal – the Grand Union - discovering the engineering triumphs that helped traverse our rugged landscape and how they could now play their part in a 21st-century green tech revolution.Meanwhile, Margherita celebrates the 200th anniversary of the Regent's Canal, finding out how this once commercial route now brings a slice of countryside to the city, benefitting both residents and wildlife. Tom also investigates what's going into our public sector meals, wildlife film-maker Jack Perks dons his wetsuit to get up close to some frisky frogs, and we pay our first visit to Brookvale Farm in Northern Ireland, where we will be following the fortunes of a family staking their future on the success of hi-tech farming.

Sean Fletcher goes wild in the Hambleden Valley in Buckinghamshire with a whistlestop trike tour of a chocolate box landscape that has been the beautiful backdrop for many TV dramas and films. But how can we breathe new life into the area? Sean finds out how the old cottage industry of lace-making is poised for a comeback, and he saddles up to meet a couple opening up their farm to enable safer riding in this corner of the countryside. Adam Henson is busy with some new arrivals, and as picking season dawns, Charlotte Smith investigates whether UK farmers can cover any shortfall in the number of seasonal farm workers needed to gather their harvests.

Helen Skelton is in the Nidderdale Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in North Yorkshire, helping prepare for the return of both animals and visitors to the hills. She joins a team keeping track of adders emerging from hibernation, to find out why numbers are falling. She also joins in with efforts to help save essential woodland and its wildlife, and discovers hidden wonders as she heads into the depths of How Stean Gorge. On his Cotswold farm, Adam Henson is struggling with the unpredictable spring weather. Tom Heap investigates how a rise in pet ownership is fuelling dog thefts and wildlife film-maker Jack Perks celebrates one of our most colourful but overlooked freshwater fish – the grayling.

As John Craven celebrates 50 years as a BBC presenter, on this – his 1,250th episode for Countryfile - he opens up a treasure trove of memories of some of his favourite parts of Britain. Each location evokes aspects of his life, his career and his passions: discovering a hidden treasure he never knew existed on his childhood doorstep in Yorkshire; indulging his love of verse with a trip to Cambridgeshire to find out more about John Clare, the peasant poet; and revealing his love of history on an ancient Scottish battlefield. And he has never forgotten the time he was roped up to the heady heights of the dark hedges in Northern Ireland.

Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison uncover the wonders past and present of Cranborne Chase.Matt unravels a puzzling piece of the area's past as he explores a 900-year-old mediaeval ‘miz maze' hidden in the woods, before crossing the Chase to help tend to Britain's biggest modern day maze on the Longleat Estate. Ellie joins the UK's only ‘supercluster' of farmers working together to encourage wildlife on their land. She also heads to the River Ebble to disccover what makes this chalk stream so special and how it's helping to give rural teenagers a sense of purpose. Steve Brown is in for some special stargazing in the Chase - the UK's first designated dark sky reserve. Tom Heap investigates plans to launch a new space race from the heart of our countryside – but at what cost to the environment? And Adam Henson has a nervous wait on his hands as his rare-breed Suffolk Punch Lexi goes to the maternity unit.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith head to the Peak District to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the UK's first National Park.Matt joins a pioneering scheme to restore ruined farm buildings and meets 'legend' of the Peak District Gordon Miller, one of the area's early rangers and a last link to those who brought about the National Park. Charlotte channels her inner artist to help create a giant anniversary art mural and records the special sounds of the park's waterways. Sean Fletcher meets a 'tyre runner' using the Peak District's hills to help his mental health. Meanwhile, as some of his traditional crops fail, Adam takes a glimpse at what the farming of tomorrow might look like and Joe Crowley investigates new pollution laws causing controversy in the countryside.

Plant Britain is all about encouraging community gardens and planting wildflowers in a two-year initiative to help combat climate change, help wildlife and pollinators and transform our own wellbeing. Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor help Bristol locals to create a community garden, and Charlotte Smith visits a project in Glasgow that is blooming. Sean Fletcher is in Northern Ireland with primary school children to find out about their field-to-fork project. Helen Skelton is with a young botanist who is on a mission to save our native wildflowers, while Joe Crowley discovers the secret life hidden in a special meadow in north Wales. The Natural History Museum do some cutting-edge soil and pond DNA forensics, and John Craven finds out how to do your bit no matter how small a space you have - from a pot on a windowsill to a balcony planter. Also, look out for special messages from some well-known faces.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor visit the stunning Llyn Peninsula in north Wales, known as 'Snowdonia's arm'. Margherita finds out about plans for a major blue energy project that involves harnessing the power of the tide. This may tackle energy issues, but what do residents make of it and what will be the impact on wildlife and fishing?Matt dons his wetsuit, wading into the sea to help check the health of a critical crop of carbon-capturing sea grass, and also helps launch new research into mountain goats. Joe Crowley is hoping for a close encounter with angel sharks to find out why they are appearing more frequently in Welsh waters. Adam Henson celebrates the success of the rare breeds revival, and Tom Heap investigates planning loopholes that could see park holiday homes become permanent residences and threaten some of the most beautiful parts of our countryside.

It's a tale of transformations as Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith head to the Norfolk-Suffolk border. Matt gets his fingers dirty gardening and feels the heat of the forge at a social enterprise that is harnessing the healing power of the rural landscape and training homeless people in traditional skills to give them a fresh start. Charlotte heads into the surrounding countryside to meet farmers making Britain's only raw brie, and she sets sail with a lady fisherman who swapped a job in logistics for lobsters and whelks. Adam Henson looks at how science is using biobanks to secure the future of rare breeds.

Matt Baker and Anita Rani head to County Down in Northern Ireland to catch up with the dairy farming Lilburn family and their quest to diversify. Matt jumps into a tractor to help cut grass to feed the cows, and he discovers how ‘zero grazing' works. Anita helps check the calves' health with a cattle nutritionist, before seeing how the farm's milk is being turned into ice cream ready for the summer months ahead. Elsewhere, Adam Henson discovers how science is helping to save rare breeds, Charlotte Smith investigates a ‘shadow pandemic' of rural domestic violence, and John Craven launches the thirtieth Countryfile Photographic Competition.

Ellie Harrison is in Gloucestershire at Nature in Art, the world's first museum and art gallery dedicated to art inspired by nature, as she goes in search of her inner muse. Under the expert eye of award-winning wildlife artist Jackie Cox, Ellie picks up some top tips including how old make-up can do just as good a job as fancy pencils. Ellie also takes a look through the archives to find out how the countryside has been an abiding influence, from early man to modern-day artists braving the extremes to capture a landscape or using wildlife itself to create a picture.

Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith are in the stunning Cumbrian Hills as we catch up with the formidable mother and son farming duo Andrea and Hector Meanwell. We first met them in early Spring, but Adam is rolling up his sleeves to discover what life is like on the farm as summer beckons. We also see how the Meanwells are diversifying to make ends meet.Charlotte meets their neighbours to find out how they are working to protect this beautiful landscape and the animals which call it home. We also head to Northern Ireland to catch up with award-winning author Dara - one of Countryfile's young naturalists - as he takes a group of young eco warriors out on a nature adventure.Meanwhile, Joe Crowley investigates the worrying rise in attacks on livestock by dogs off the leash.

Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison explore Wimbledon Common to celebrate its 150th anniversary. Matt saddles up with one of the UK's only mounted rangers, finding out how horseback patrols have been enforcing the common's 57 bylaws for the past seven decades. Ellie goes on the hunt for miraculous but often maligned moths, discovering how these winged wonders can be creatures of beauty and are more prolific pollinators than bees. And Matt and Ellie join together to celebrate the common's most famous ‘residents', the Wombles, meeting the daughter of their creator and seeing how these original eco warriors are still inspiring others today.Elsewhere, Adam Henson has a busy day on the farm as some new bulls are introduced to the herd; Tom Heap investigates whether efforts to protect the world's oceans are delivering for UK waters; and, in the first of a four part series, explorer Dwayne Fields leads four youngsters at a crossroads in their lives on an expedition into the Welsh wilderness.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are in Dorset, on the stunning Isle of Purbeck, looking at the importance of its diverse landscape and the changes the coastline has gone through over the centuries. Matt goes on safari to look at the wildlife that call this habitat home, and Margherita discovers what used to live along these shores millions of years ago. We catch up with Dwayne Fields and his gallant team of explorers on the second part of their Snowdonia adventure, and Tom Heap investigates the damage that is being caused to the countryside and coast by an influx of visitors and holidaymakers.

Anita Rani and Tom Heap head to Yorkshire's Flamborough Head. Anita visits England's largest onshore seabird colony at Bempton Cliffs, where she helps to track breeding numbers and witnesses a very special arrival as a rare albatross pays a visit. Below the cliffs, Tom explores some of the coast's chalk caves, discovering the rare life they support, and Tom and Anita are joined by local youngsters as they go on a rockpool safari to take stock of the marine life washed up at low tide.Charlotte Smith investigates the environmental impact that increases in offshore windfarms are having both on land and at sea. Adam Henson visits an project that gives teenagers a step on to the farming ladder, and in the third of our four-part series with explorer Dwyane Fields, our four youngsters overcome their fear of heights, getting to grips with climbing a rockface - but things take an unexpected turn when one of the team has to leave the challenge early.

As more and more of us yearn for a life in the country, Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith roll up their sleeves on a community farm in Herefordshire. Matt helps to save a bee colony and harvests fruits from their walled garden. Charlotte hand milks Snowdrop, one of the community's dairy cows, before making her own butter. It's the final challenge for Dwayne Fields and his gallant team of adventurers as they set out to climb Wales's biggest mountain, Snowdon. Tom Heap investigates why some plant-based products on supermarket shelves may not be as good for us as we might think.

Joe Crowley meets chef Romy Gill to celebrate the glories of seasonal food at Chew Magna Community Farm. From pickles and preserves to a feast making the most of fabulous produce, Joe also delves into the world of no-dig farming and rolls up his sleeves to help pack orders with a thriving veg box business. He calls into Hartcliffe Community Garden, which Countryfile helped to establish as part of our Plant Britain initiative, to check in on the venture and join school children as they harvest vegetables they have grown in the garden. He also delves into the archives to celebrate the best of British food and drink, like the time Anita met a highland beef farmer, Matt visited a 200-year-old cider orchard, and Steve found out how surplus produce can be ‘gleaned' to reduce food waste.

Joe Crowley and Charlotte Smith are in the Highlands, visiting a 100-acre rewilding site near Loch Ness known as the Natural Capital Laboratory. But this is no ordinary lab, and there's not a white coat in sight. Instead - and with the help of the latest technology - scientists here are mapping, tracking and quantifying the changes to the landscape and the life in it. Charlotte looks at hi-tech devices that track animals and create a virtual vision of what the site will look like in 100 years' time. Joe digs in, discovering how efforts to restore neglected peat bogs could pay dividends for the environment. Tom Heap investigates the impact that reintroducing long-lost species could have on our countryside and its people, and wildlife film-maker Tom Hartwell take us on a journey into the beautiful and brutal life of the cinnabar moth.

Charlotte Smith and Steve Brown are on Yew Tree Farm in Coniston, which sits in the stunning landscape of the Lake District National Park.Steve meets first-generation farmers to find out how they are diversifying and tries a bit of therapy with some of their woolly residents. Charlotte discovers how the landscape surrounding the farm is one of their driving inspirations, Sean Fletcher visits a farm in Monmouthshire that has branched out into music and some of the biggest names in rock and roll, and Tom Heap investigates if plans for a greener, more environmentally friendly economic recovery can really bring benefits for the UK's wildlife and its habitats.

Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison are on the border of England and Wales to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Offa's Dyke Path and to explore the fascinating history and treasures that lie along this 1,200-year-old man-made monument. Matt kicks off conservation efforts to help to preserve the dyke and the surrounding landscape for future generations to enjoy, while Ellie abseils to measure and record one of the UK's rarest trees. She also discovers the engineering skills of nature's very own master builders. Adam Henson has got the experts in to calculate the carbon footprint of his farm, and in its 30th year, it's decision time in Countryfile's photographic competition. Which of the thousands of entries will make it into the top 12?

Sean Fletcher and Steve Brown are in Staffordshire at the Manifold Valley Agricultural Show, where the focus is on encouraging young people to get into the countryside, agriculture and the show ring with their prize livestock. After weeks of preparation, will it be a red rosette for eight-year-old Owen and his Limousin calf, and how will 12-year-old Myles and his Clydesdale fare? Adam Henson finds out what he needs to do to go green on his farm, and Tom Heap investigates a toxic threat to dolphins, porpoises and killer whales.

Joe Crowley is on Isle Martin, a dot of an island off the west coast of Scotland, which is getting ready to host Scotland's very first seaweed festival. Joe meets the island's sole occupant, explores the magical qualities of seaweed and sees how it is at the forefront of the battle against climate change. Joe also delves into the Countryfile archives to revisit some island jewels around the UK, including the time Anita Rani visited the Hebridean island where all the farmers are women, Ellie Harrison's trip to Church Island in Northern Ireland, and Margherita Taylor surveying seals off Looe Island. And we catch up with Mari Huws on Bardsey Island, just off north Wales's Llyn Peninsula.

Charlotte Smith is in County Down, Northern Ireland, catching up with the dairy farming Lilburn family after our last visit in June.The pressure is on for them – Richard is up against the weather to get his harvest done. Will the rain scupper his plans for his pea crop? Charlotte also hits the road with Pamela to meet local suppliers providing for the new farm shop, and there's some taste-testing to do on bakes – good news for the three Lilburn children.We also meet the first two teams, England and Wales, vying for glory in this year's One Man and His Dog competition, while Adam Henson starts his quest to find Countryfile's young countryside champion of the year when he visits a teenager carrying on the family farm after his father's untimely death. And get ready to ramble as Matt Baker meets brother and sister Ailsa and Finn, who are working to inspire everyone to get outdoors and raise money for Children in Need in this year's Countryfile ramble.

Anita Rani is in Herefordshire to discover the secrets behind the great hop revival, from pest-eating predators to new flavours to help pack a punch in our pints. She also meets one of the last pickers who harvested hops by hand.Adam Henson chats with another inspiring contender to be Countryfile's Young Countryside Champion, and he meets the final two teams of shepherds and their dogs going for glory in this year's One Man and His Dog competition.As the countdown continues to the Children in Need Countryfile Ramble, we discover what a difference we can all make to young lives.

Matt Baker and Helen Skelton are at the helm of this year's One Man and His Dog sheepdog trial competition as competitors from all four nations compete to clinch the coveted trophy. And there couldn't be a better backdrop than Penryhn Castle in Gwynedd, set between the waters of the Menai Straight and the dramatic mountains of Snowdonia National Park. The best young talent from England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales are paired up with top senior shepherds from each home nation. The youngsters will compete with one dog while the seniors take on sheepdog trialling's toughest discipline - ‘the brace' - where they must work two dogs at the same time. Who has got what it takes to lift the trophy? Away from the action, Helen also discovers how the surrounding landscape supports a wealth of wildlife and investigates what it takes to keep the Olympians of sheepdog world in top condition.

Sean Fletcher and Charlotte Smith catch up with mother-and-son farming duo Andrea and Hector Meanwell in Cumbria. Countryfile has been following them throughout the year, and they have some big challenges ahead - not least the results of TB tests. Will Hector's cattle be clear?Get ready to ramble as we meet 14-year-old Alfie, who is determined to live life to the full, no matter what. Adam meets the third and final contender in our Young Countryside Champion Awards, and John has a big surprise for an unsuspecting photographer when the winner of this year's Countryfile Photographic Competition is revealed.In an exclusive Countryfile investigation, Charlotte uncovers fears that the UK's farm labour shortage has left the foreign workers who bring in our harvest at greater risk of exploitation than ever before.

It's harvest time on Adam's farm. The old reliables are back - wheat, barley and oilseed rape - and the combines, tractors, trailers and balers are hard at work. But how much longer will farmers be working like this? Big changes are on the horizon for British agriculture, and harvests of the future will be very different to what we're used to. But how exactly? In this harvest special, Countryfile turns its eyes to the future and meets the machines and robots that could be the farmers of the future.

Steve Brown is on the Isle of Mull in the hope of realising a lifetime ambition: to see white-tailed eagles in the wild. They are Britain's largest bird of prey, and not the only wild wonders he might encounter. Steve also delves into the Countryfile archives to celebrate wild Britain, including the memorable moments when Anita visited Northern Ireland's Causeway Coast, Margherita explored how nature has taken over ancient mines in the Forest of Dean, and Charlotte investigated wild flavours for chocolate-making in Scotland.

In this 75-minute special, the Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need heads out on a tour of the UK in the company of some truly inspirational youngsters. Matt Baker takes on a challenge in the Lake District with Alfie and his family, all of whom were helped by Hope House Children's Hospice after Alfie had his leg amputated following cancer treatment. Steve Brown heads to the Mendips with sports-mad eight-year-old liver transplant patient Violet on a ramble with a high-octane finish; Margherita Taylor walks the vast open sands of the Norfolk coast with 17-year-old Chloe, who shares how therapy sessions have helped her with anxiety and other issues; Ellie Harrison is in County Down, hearing how the Children in Need-funded charity Women's Aid helps children caught up in domestic abuse; and, for her first Countryfile Ramble, Charlotte Smith is on a memory-filled stroll along Scotland's stunning east coast with brother and sister Finn and Ailsa, whose dad passed away during lockdown. At the same time as our presenters are rambling, hundreds of viewers are putting on their own sponsored rambles across the length and breadth of the UK, and John Craven is on hand to catch up virtually with some of them.

Joe Crowley and Ellie Harrison are in Cornwall, exploring the fishing port of Newlyn and its remarkable secret history. Joe also discovers the fishy equivalent of ‘nose to tail' eating, while Ellie finds out how the area is reeling from the 2021 staycation invasion. As global climate change talks get underway, Tom Heap investigates the threat posed by rising sea levels here in the UK. And on his farm, Adam Henson has some new arrivals - but will they all be delivered safely?

Countryfile's Plant Britain autumn special celebrates the magic of trees and hedgerows in combatting climate change, boosting wildlife and our own wellbeing. We also look at the future guardians of our planet as Charlotte Smith finds out about green careers and Matt Baker meets a six-year-old environmentalist with big ambitions. Tom Heap joins the front line in the fight against tree disease, John Craven is at Westonbirt Arboretum to discover what our future forests could look like, and Joe Crowley is busy learning how to collect and sow seeds. Margherita Taylor pops into a Bristol community garden to help them get ready for winter, and there are some special messages from well-known faces to encourage us all to plant Britain.

For Remembrance Sunday, Ellie Harrison visits the National Memorial Arboretum in Staffordshire to help the Royal British Legion mark their centenary and to explore the diverse ways nature can offer healing and recovery. She also treks with llamas and discovers how an old pair of jeans are key to converting old Second World War pillboxes into new des res for bats. Adam Henson discovers why military veterans are armed with just the right skills to be the farmers of tomorrow, and Charlotte Smith investigates the true cost of protecting the countryside's most historic landmarks and landscapes.

John Craven revisits the Gloucestershire village of Hillesley 50 years after he first reported on the local newspaper. He meets Hollywood screenwriter William Nicholson, who cut his teeth on the paper, catches up with today's editor, meets three generations of farmers and pops into the pub that was saved by the community to discover what's at the heart of village life. And he delves into the Countryfile archives for some of his favourite autumn moments across the years.

Ellie Harrison and Joe Crowley are at the Compton Verney estate in Warwickshire to mark 300 years since the death of Britain's greatest master carver, Grinling Gibbons. Known as the Michelangelo of wood, Gibbons was influenced by nature, and Joe discovers how his legacy lives on today. Ellie explores Compton Verney's 120 acres of parkland, shaped by 18th-century landscape architect Capability Brown, and finds out why it is now a haven for local wildlife, including orphaned badgers. Tom Heap investigates the crisis facing UK pig farmers, and Adam Henson is on Exmoor to help with the annual round-up of one of the UK's rarest native pony breeds.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith are in Kielder in Northumberland to explore some of the 250 square miles of England's largest forest. Charlotte discovers how this man-made landscape supplies a quarter of England's timber - from the joists in your house to the chair you sit on - and heads to a ‘rock festival' as Northumberland Wildlife Trust celebrates its 50th anniversary by revealing secrets going back millions of years that are hidden in the stones that shape this landscape. Matt finds out how the forest is managed for its wildlife, helping a team clean out osprey nests 65 feet high up and foraging for fungi that help the forest thrive. Adam Henson gets to grips with the latest entrants into the milk market - camels - and Joe Crowley investigates whether schemes to reduce the impact of big building projects on wildlife are working.

Matt Baker and Anita Rani explore the beauty of the Malvern Hills and discover how this area inspired writers such as JRR Tolkien and CS Lewis and composer Edward Elgar. Anita visits Malvern College, where Lewis studied and was visited by his friend Tolkien, and up on the hills she meets a group of young writers hoping to follow in the great masters' footsteps. She also steps into Narnia as she meets the world's only female gas light engineer, who repairs and maintains the famous lights that influenced CS Lewis. Matt is on the musical trail of Elgar and meets cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason for a special Countryfile recital. Adam Henson welcomes a very festive new arrival to his farm, and Tom Heap investigates the toxic risks being served up in our winter game.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith head to Christmas Common in Oxfordshire, home to one of the biggest Christmas tree farms in the country, to celebrate the festive season. Matt finds out why a dairy-farming family swapped cows for Christmas trees and how seasonal farming is a year-round business. Charlotte channels her inner elf, heading to the local market town of Watlington to help a butcher, a baker and a candlestick maker prepare their festive treats. The cattle are lowing as Adam Henson visits a Christmas cattle market in Rutland and also launches a cracker of a competition to design a bobble hat for Children in Need. Tom Heap gets gift wrapping with the countryside communities preparing a rural welcome for refugees. John Craven gets a Christmas present to remember as he meets the descendants of red kites he helped release nearly three decades ago, and wildlife cameraman Richard Taylor Jones goes on a white Christmas wildlife walk.

Charlotte Smith takes a look at some of our Christmas traditions. She visits historic Lacock Abbey in Wiltshire - the birthplace of photography in Britain - to discover how the Fox Talbot family celebrated the festive season in the run-up to New Year. She also finds out how to make the most of Christmas leftovers, learns about some intriguing, age-old cures to relieve festive overindulgence, and delves into the archives to revisit some special Countryfile Christmas moments from across the UK.

A compilation programme championing cottage industries, with Ellie Harrison meeting a Herefordshire woman who sells hand-crafted products all revolving around fire.

The team visits Welney Wildlife Reserve in Norfolk, where Charlotte Smith helps out with a swan census and Steve Brown is on the trail of the elusive cranes.

The team visit Ballycastle, a coastal community on the north eastern tip of Ireland that's quickly becoming known for its local crafts and artisan food and drink.

This week, Countryfile is in the heart of the Peak District, where the pub is most definitely the hub! Anita Rani hears how the locals here saved Bamford's village pub.

With the country still in lockdown, Matt Baker is on his home patch, building a pond, meeting a peregrine that lacks the confidence to hunt, and getting crafty with the paintbrushes in his back garden. Wildlife film-maker Jack Perks reveals the world beneath the water of his garden pond, Adam Henson has a lot a lot of hungry mouths to feed on his farm, and Kate Humble takes viewers round her home village to find out how the community is pulling together in these challenging times.

Joe Crowley is on his home patch in north London as he explores the Lea Valley, paying a visit to one of the UK's biggest salad growers to see what impact coronavirus is having. On International Dawn Chorus Day, bird expert Adrian Thomas reveals what to listen out for, shepherdess Hannah Jackson talks about how she's coping with the lockdown, and Adam Henson goes flat out to get his spring barley in.

Helen Skelton is on her home patch in West Yorkshire, visiting Harewood House to learn more about its conservation projects and dropping in to her local donkey sanctuary. Olympic medal-winning triathletes Jonny and Alistair Brownlee demonstrate how to keep fit under lockdown, Tom Heap discovers how school closures have hit vital outdoor education, and Adam Henson steps in to help a nanny goat in distress.

Ellie Harrison is on her home turf in Gloucestershire, where she helps with important conservation work at Slimbridge Wetland Centre, gets a ringside seat to watch some kingfisher parents busy feeding their young and explores the treasures of an ancient bluebell wood. Adam Henson reveals how his horses are helping to create a wildlife haven and Tom Heap investigates how fly-tipping is blighting the countryside more than ever.

Sean Fletcher heads Hampton Court, not far from his west London home, to see how the team there keep the gardens and grounds in prime condition, taking the reins of shire horses as they pull and harrow the ground for the summer ahead. Kate Humble reports from her Wye Valley home patch on how local food producers are rallying round during the crisis, and Adam Henson turns out a new Gloucester calf onto spring pasture.

John Craven is at home in his garden, where he gives us tips on what butterflies to look out for and how to get involved in a nationwide survey. He also catches up with NHS fundraiser Tom Moore to discover what role the countryside has played in his life. Shepherdess Hannah Jackson puts her two new collie pups through their first paces as working dogs, and Adam Henson turns teacher as he takes his piglets to the country's home -schooled children.

Steve Brown explores Elmley Nature Reserve on the Isle of Sheppey, where swallows and swifts are gathering in their hordes, heralding the arrival of summer. Margherita Taylor is on the hunt for an invasive species of moth that threatens not just the oaks on London's Hampstead Heath, but walkers too. On his farm, Adam Henson's horses get their hooves checked and he catches up with trainer Jonjo O'Neill to see how his racehorses are coping with life off the track.

As well as tending to his crops, much of Adam Henson's time on his Cotswold farm is devoted to caring for his animals. Each and every one of them is important to him, from his commercial flock of sheep to his chickens, and from his pigs to his ponies, with many of them having become much-loved characters to the show's viewers. This special edition of Countryfile takes a journey into the archives to revisit and rediscover some of Adam's highs and lows with his marvellous menagerie of creatures.

Anita Rani visits Epping Forest to find out about its past, its wildlife and to meet some of the people who look after it. She also discovers the art of `cattle whispering" when she meets the herd of longhorns that help to conserve the Forest and, at dusk, she's on the trail of one of the UK's rarest creatures. Wildlife film-maker Hamza Yassin gets up close to a much-loved seabird, the puffin, near his home on the west coast of Scotland, while Gareth Wyn Jonesoffers a glimpse into his life as a hill farmer in Wales. Down on his own farm, Adam Hensonhas a shearing dilemma to solve.

As organisations like the National Trust open up to visitors again, Ellie Harrison heads to Charlecote Park in Warwickshire, one of the great estates of the Elizabethan era. She's rolling up her sleeves to help with Britain's oldest managed flock of Jacob sheep, and visits a working Georgian water mill that's busier than ever, supplying the lockdown baking boom. Dwayne Fields investigates the challenges facing members of the BAME community living in the countryside, and Adam Henson is judging entrants in an online livestock show.

Matt Baker explores the stretch of the Grand Union Canal that runs close to his home in the Chilterns - meeting those who live and work on the waterway and also getting to grips with an engineering marvel that keeps the whole system flowing. Elsewhere, Tom Heap investigates how farmers are adjusting to the challenges posed by climate change, and John Craven launches this year's Countryfile photography competition with the help of singer and broadcaster Cerys Matthews and wildlife expert Simon King.

Anita Rani and Matt Baker visit the Blean, an ancient woodland in the heart of Kent where they get an exclusive look at a unique wilding project. There is a report from Gloucestershire on the elusive pine marten, while one of the driest springs on record is causing big problems at Adam Henson's farm.

Ellie Harrison and Tom Heap visit the Shropshire Hills to find out about an ambitious project to create a nature corridor between two peaks.

Matt Baker and Anita Rani visit Chichester Harbour, the only Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty in the UK that's managed by a harbour authority.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor visit Wisley and Ockham Common, a heathland habitat that is home to rare species such as the sand lizard and the nightjar.

Ellie Harrison is in the Cotswolds to visit the eccentric folly Broadway Tower. Also, a look back through the Countryfile archive to encounters with unusual events in the countryside.

Matt Baker and Anita Rani visit the ancient village of Bamburgh in Northumberland. Adam Henson and Robert Llewellyn find out how green farming machines measure up to traditional diesel.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor visit the Somerleyton Estate in Suffolk to find out about an ambitious project to turn East Anglia into a giant nature reserve.

Special guest Mary Berry reveals how farming and the countryside have influenced her life and career – and still do. Matt Baker is by her side to discover what inspired her during her childhood on her parents' smallholding and the rural issues she holds dear today. Mary is a champion of small producers and local produce, but she loves her pigs too. Adam Henson is despatched to investigate the state of British pig farming, while Anita visits a school with a field-to-fork ethos. This is music to Mary's ears, and something she would love to see rolled out across more schools across the country. And how will Matt fare when he has to cook for the UK's queen of the kitchen?

Anita Rani goes back to her Yorkshire roots, exploring the lesser-known River Burn, and Adam Henson meets this year's One Man and His Dog competitors.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are in Stoke-on-Trent to learn about an ambitious scheme to bring the countryside into the heart of the city, including moving a stretch of the River Trent.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith are with four of the UK's top shepherds and their sheepdogs for this year's Countryfile One Man and His Dog competition, taking place at Hardwick Hall, Derbyshire.

Ellie Harrison and Joe Crowley are in the Lake District to celebrate the 250th anniversary of William Wordsworth's birth.

Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison visit Devon, once the cider capital of England, to discover how orchards are being revived. Ellie also finds out why one of our rarest bats is so at home in this region.

Adam Henson takes us through the toughest harvest of his career on his Gloucestershire farm, and Charlotte Smith picks grapes from sun-ripened Welsh vines.

Joe Crowley visits Box Hill in Surrey to take on its infamous zigzag cycle route, and the team look back at some of the best thrills and spills from the Countryfile archives.

Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison visit conservation projects at Lake Vyrnwy in Wales, and Charlotte Smith investigates the UK's environmental watchdogs.

The Countryfile team head out on a series of one-to-one rambles with inspiring young people from around the UK, all in aid of this year's Children in Need.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith visit Falmouth for the start of the oyster season, and Adam Henson finds out why British turkey farmers could be in for tough time this Christmas.

Ellie Harrison discovers how our countryside can provide the perfect tonic in troubled times, and we look through the archives to rediscover the restorative potential of our green spaces.

Anita Rani and Joe Crowley visit the historic South Ormsby estate, and Tom Heap asks whether it's time to ditch the greenbelt.

Countryfile launches Plant Britain, an ambitious two-year challenge to get us all planting to help combat climate change and at the same time, boost our wellbeing and wildlife.

Ellie Harrison and Sean Fletcher visit the Black Mountains on the border between Wales and England, and Joe Sugg competes in a hedge-laying competition.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor reveal the unsung heroes of the Stour estuary in Essex, and Tom Heap investigates a tale of two rural high streets in lockdown.

Countryfile celebrates Christmas on the stunning Auchlyne estate in Scotland. Charlotte and Emma help monitor beavers on the estate, and Anita joins Adam to help out on his farm.

Ellie Harrison meets wildlife photographer and friend of Countryfile, Simon King, to get a crash course in how to photograph wildlife.

Adam Henson looks at the harsh reality of being a rural vet in the depths of winter - a job that's often a matter of life and death. He also looks back at the trials and tribulations of one the country's largest practices - seeing first-hand the challenges they face treating all creatures great and small.

Matt Baker is exploring the magnificent Leeds Castle as it celebrates its 900th anniversary. He tries his hand at a spot of falconry with the castle's resident birds of prey.

Matt Baker discovers the incredible work of a care farm in Wiltshire which is changing children's lives. Anita Rani tastes a local cheese with a long heritage.

Turner Prize-winning artist Rachel Whiteread shows us her sculpture, commissioned to mark the Forestry Commission's centenary.

Winter is a tough time for wildlife, but at Lower Moss Wood nature reserve in Cheshire they pull out all the stops to help. Steve Brown meets the volunteers and the inspirational head of the reserve Ray Jackson, who was awarded an MBE for his services to wildlife. Steve is shown the specialist hospital unit where volunteers are busy tending to some poorly hedgehogs. Ray also helps injured bats build up their strength ahead of release in the spring. Steve gets to meet some of the reserve's permanent residents, including foxes tame enough to feed by hand and the owls who wouldn't survive in the wild.Adam Henson launches this year's search for Countryfile's farming hero.

The team head out across the UK to reveal how the countryside is full of life even in the coldest of months. Matt Baker travels to the Norfolk Broads, lending a hand in one of the area's most ambitious environmental schemes, transforming water into new land for the area's plantlife. He then helps restore one of the Broads' historic drainage mills which used to maintain the landscape in years gone by, before joining in a project taking a snapshot of Norfolk's winter wildlife. Ellie Harrison explores the Scottish lifestyle concept of coorie, where getting in touch with the season involves a winter dip in a freshwater loch before sampling the taste of the Scottish landscape, courtesy of Michelin-starred chef Tom Kitchin. Steve Brown heads to Devon to discover the challenges faced by barn owls in making it through this harshest of seasons. Adam Henson leaves the mainland for the Isles of Scilly, where in winter the main economy turns from tourism to farming as islanders gather in the narcissi harvest. And John Craven has a heartwarming experience when he visits the village of Lover in Wiltshire, where residents are using their romantic name to regenerate their rural community with a Valentine's postal service.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor explore Devon in the snow, discovering the work of a local photographer and a scheme to provide winter fuel to those in need.

Matt and Helen are in Gloucestershire where Matt pays a visit to the world-famous Slimbridge wetland reserve to see how a massive multi-million-pound refurbishment is going.

Matt and Ellie explore Cheshire and a wildlife haven in the Wirral, and Hannah Cockroft travels to beautiful North Uist in the Outer Hebrides.

Matt Baker and Helen Skelton are in Somerset, and in a special film for Comic Relief, Sir Tony Robinson visits a charity that's making a real difference to people's lives.

In north west Wales, Joe Crowley visits a sheep farm and meets its striking new arrivals. Margherita Taylor discovers the Welsh names for the local flora and fauna.

Sean is in Oxfordshire meeting farmers with a passion for our more unusual produce, from picklers to cheesemakers.

Countryfile is exploring Surrey, where Matt Baker meets the women who have inspired generations of conservationists and Helen Skelton visits a biodynamic vineyard.

Matt Baker, John Craven and Margherita Taylor mark the 70th anniversary of the creation of our national parks.

Matt meets the farmer using a no-till method of raising crops to help save our soils, while Ellie is on the trail of Shropshire's Clun sheep.

Matt is in Panshanger Park in Hertfordshire, seeing how an old quarry has become one of the best places for wildlife in the county.

Matt Baker is at Morecambe Bay to meet caravan enthusiasts celebrating 100 years of caravanning history, while John Craven tries his hand at sheep shearing.

With sea levels rising and ferocious waves battering our coasts, Ellie Harrison finds out what it's like living on the edge of land and sea all year round.

Anita Rani is in Aberdeenshire meeting a family with a passion for Highland cattle, and Joe Crowley investigates the rapidly falling number of wild Atlantic salmon.

This month marks 200 years since Queen Victoria's birth, so Countryfile is exploring the Victorian fascination with nature and the great outdoors.

The team are in Derbyshire. Matt Baker joins a group who have been restoring Chesterfield's canals, Anita Rani visits Tissington and Steve Brown learns how we can help pollinators.

Matt Baker learns about a scheme to create new structures from the fabric of the land, while Tom Heap asks whether our countryside has become a tax haven for the super-rich.

Anita and Matt are in Hampshire celebrating our chalk streams, while Adam and Charlotte meet the last of the three contenders for our Farming Hero Award.

Matt Baker visits the beautiful Hardcastle Crags near Hebden Bridge, and John Craven launches this year's photographic competition.

In Lincolnshire, Ellie kicks back in a bar where it's not drinks on the menu but clouds! Meanwhile, Adam looks at what Brexit could mean for our farmers.

Anita Rani visits the Welsh town of Machynlleth, which has declared a climate emergency. She discovers how members of the community are coming together to protect the environment, visiting a repair cafe that finds new uses for items that would otherwise be discarded, picking vegetables at various help yourself plots, and cooking in a solar-powered oven at the Centre for Alternative Technology.

The team are at the Royal Highland Show celebrating the best that rural Scotland has to offer, including the Arbroath smokie and an award-winning Scottish gin.

John Craven visits the secluded Luton Hoo estate, once a training ground for land girls, and Tom Heap looks at new forms of environmental campaigning.

Anita Rani visits the Antony Estate on the Rame Peninsula, John Craven visits an off-grid camp in Truro, and Tom Heap meets farmers caught up in the bovine TB outbreak.

The team is in Gloucestershire to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Riding for the Disabled Association. Interviewed, Princess Anne talks of her long association with the RDA.

John and Margherita are in Norfolk, where John is up at the crack of dawn to help with a release back into the wild of one of our rarest birds, the corncrake.

Countryfile visits Perthshire, where Matt visits Cultybraggan, a former prisoner of war camp that is now a thriving community of artisans and food producers.

Sean is in the Lake District taking a look at some of the jobs working animals do, and we take another look at working animals we've featured in the past.

Matt Baker marks the centenary of the death of Joseph Arch, a farm labourer who founded the first national farm workers' union and later became an MP.

In this special programme, Steve Brown retraces his grandmother Rose's evacuation from Croydon to Cornwall. We also have a special film with former evacuee, and patron of the British Evacuee Association, Michael Aspel OBE. Sean Fletcher experiences life as an evacuee with some schoolchildren at Acton Scott Historic Farm, Margherita Taylor meets some evacuees who were relocated to Chatsworth House for safety during the war, Adam takes Gerry Emsley back to the farm in rural Shropshire that he was evacuated to as a ten-year-old, and Tom looks at how the UK countryside is still providing sanctuary to refugees of modern-day conflict.

This week the team are in Northumberland. Helen Skelton visits the Blyth Tall Ship scheme, where students from disadvantaged areas are taught traditional boat-building skills.

In this edition, Matt Baker is in the stunning Gisburn Forest, where he meets the people who make the most of what nature has to offer here. Anita Rani is on a farm with its roots in the past, but which is looking to the future. She also meets the refugees who are discovering how to farm in the snow. Adam Henson meets the stallions playing a special part in securing the future of rare breeds. And Tom Heap looks into an argument between gun owners and doctors over new Home Office rules on gun licensing.

The programme visits the Somerset Levels, where Matt Baker is on the hunt for the common crane, a bird that has been brought back from the brink. It now thrives in this area, thanks to an unlikely union. Anita Rani meets the farmer who is turning apples into a tempting drink. Adam Henson takes stock on his farm as winter arrives. And in the first part of a new feature, the programme discovers the highs and lows of life as a rural vet. Plus Charlotte Smith finds out why people who swim in the sea are unwittingly exposing themselves to dangerous bacteria.

Anita Rani joins some budding 'citizen scientists' taking in the New Year Plant Hunt. Leicestershire has more than 300 rare species of plant, but they're being lost at a rapid rate. Anita visits Leicester University's herbarium to investigate the city's plants past, present and future. John Craven is at Rutland Water which is a hotspot for birding, with more hides than any other reserve in the country, where every year at least one hide is rebuilt. John joins in with 'raising' the new building which forms part of the trainee reserve officers training for the year. Steve Brown gets to know some of Rutland Water's winter visitors better and looks forward to the Big Garden Birdwatch, as well as meeting the young birdwatchers taking part and revealing how to take part in this years' event. Tom Heap looks at the problems faced by rural fire services.

In this edition, Matt Baker is on the Dorset coastline to meet a man who is championing local, winter produce. Anita Rani finds out how making jewellery inspired by nature can improve the winter blues, while in the Highlands, Steve Brown mushes with a pack of huskies. The programme catches up with Eddie the Eagle, 30 years after his appearance at the Winter Olympics, and meets the artist who loves painting mountains. Joe Crowley meets the man with a lifelong passion for deer, while Ellie Harrison finds out about the UK's long fascination with foxes. And Adam Henson is on a farm where gathering in the sheep is a risky business.

Ellie Harrison and Matt Baker are in Cambridgeshire, where Matt looks at a huge project to turn a quarry into the UK's biggest reed bed. Thousands of tons of sand and gravel are being shifted at Ouse Fen to create the perfect habitat for wildlife, including one of the UK's rarest birds, the bittern. Matt is also on hand to help release some fish into specially-created pools. Ellie is with a team from Cambridge University whose work is throwing new light on the secret life of truffles. She also takes a walk in the woods with botanical artist Caroline Henricksen, who reveals a world of wonder beneath Ellie's feet. Wildlife cameraman Richard Taylor Jones witnesses a wildlife spectacle of a lifetime, Adam Henson meets a young farmer making a go of it in the New Forest, plus the latest instalment from the young vets. Tom Heap has an exclusive interview with Bill Gates about why he's making the most of British agricultural expertise.

Matt Baker and Anita Rani are in Anglesey, where Matt is on the lookout for harbour porpoises. He meets scientist Peter Evans to find out why the waters round Anglesey are so good for a whole variety of marine mammals. He also meets the schoolchildren who've made it their mission to keep the islands beaches clear of plastic. Anita meets 'squirrel whisperer' David Lacey, a man who has red squirrels literally eating out of his hands. Anita then heads out with fisherman John Jones to find out what's behind the boom in Menai mussels. Tom is looking at faux fur and asks how do we know it isn't real. And Adam finds out how the latest facial recognition technology is helping farmers spot problems early with their livestock. When is faux fur not fake? Well, more often than you'd think. Helen Skelton is investigating how real fur is making it into our shops and our wardrobes without us realising.

Matt Baker and Helen Skelton are in Derbyshire where Matt is exploring the boom in farming alpacas. He meets Ingrid Rushton, one of the first people in the UK to own them and visits a blood transfusion drop-in for alpacas where owners have come from all over the region bringing their animals to donate blood which could save baby alpaca's lives. Helen tries her hand at 'weaselling', the latest craze to sweep the Peaks. It's a kind of potholing that happens above ground and joins a party of schoolchildren who squeeze in and out of the rocky tors that dot the landscape. She also meets countryside champion Yvonne Witter who has made it her mission to get more people from ethnic backgrounds into our countryside. Tom Heap looks at illegal abattoirs and asks if the meat on our plates is what we think it is, and Adam is in North Wales meeting the farmer using a special type of working dog to manage his livestock.

Water is our most precious natural resource. There is not a plant or animal on earth that can do without it. Our landscape is shaped by it; livelihoods depend on it. Water provides homes for wildlife and is a source of inspiration and a place for recreation. Helen Skelton is at Kielder Water in Northumberland, exploring the ways in which the wet stuff shapes our lives. There is also a meander through the archives, dipping a toe into previous watery worlds to which Countryfile has been.

Steve Brown is on the trail of an elusive and endangered Scottish creature - the mud snail. They may not be one of nature's glamour species, but these tiny molluscs play an important role in the ecosystem. Anita Rani cycles along the sands of the East Lothian coast on a 'fat bike'. With larger than normal tyres they leave virtually no trace in the sand, having as little impact on the natural habitat as possible. Matt Baker visits St Abbs - a community who refused to let their lifeboat service go under. When threatened with closure they independently took on the community lifeboat, saving 104 years of history. There are ten million cattle farmed in the UK, and it is a well-known fact that livestock like cows produce a lot of methane, which contributes to global warming. Adam Henson is in Edinburgh at an agricultural college where they are working on a solution. Tom Heap looks at companies buying up swathes of countryside and selling it on with planning permission for houses.

Ellie Harrison is in Pembrokeshire looking at the effect of recent storms on the coastline. Adam Henson visits Scotland's Rural College, where they are researching ways to reduce farming's impact on global warming. Tom Heap looks at the problems faced by the UK's sheep farmers and asks why people have fallen out of love with lamb.

As the birthplace of the industrial revolution, this is a landscape rich in coal and iron. But the legacy of one of the ancient coal shafts is a river that is colourful for all the wrong reasons - it runs bright orange with iron-rich ochre from the rocks below. Matt Baker immerses himself in Shropshire Wildlife Trust's Love Your Rivers project. It's a huge conservation operation, involving 12 organisations and an army of volunteers inspired to give their landscape some TLC. Ellie Harrison accompanies sniffer-dog Lunar in a search for pine martens. She also meets James Sherwin - a man who set himself a 12-month mission - to cook for a whole year only using ingredients farmed and grown in Shropshire. Steve Brown spends the day with Becky Haywood, an artist who combines her love of nature with molten glass. Adam Henson has a round-up of life on the farm as spring sets in. As the numbers of one the UK's favourite mammals plummets, Tom Heap asks where have all our hedgehogs gone?

Matt, Anita and Joe Crowley are in West Yorkshire where Matt meets Dr Ryad Alsous, a refugee from Syria whose love of bees has helped him forge a new life here. Matt also meets some of the refugees and locals Ryad is inspiring with his love of bees. Matt gets to try his hand at making a beehive and samples a delicious Syrian dessert made with the honey he helps Ryad harvest. Anita is on the moors looking for the Easter Bunny - or should that be Easter hare? She's on the hunt for the elusive mountain hare in its most northerly English habitat. Anita also meets Susan Sroka, a one woman hare rescue service who's been nursing a baby leveret back to health. Joe Crowley explores Emily Bronte's passion for wildlife and finds out that she had her very own Merlin hawk. Tom Heap looks at the reasons for the decline in our hedgehogs and Adam buys some of the rarest native breed cattle there are, Blue Albions.

Sean Fletcher and Naomi Wilkinson are in the wilds around Loch Ness. Sean is on the Erchless Estate, where they are busy tapping birch trees for the next big culinary thing - birch sap. He also meets the sporran maker putting a twist on this traditional item of Scottish clothing. Naomi spends the day with seventh-generation crofter Iain McLeod and his daughter Chloe to get a taste of crofting life. It is lambing time so there is plenty to keep Naomi busy. She then meets Michelle Anderson Carrol, a vegetarian who rears rare breed pigs for meat. Then it is off to Glenurquhart, the home of shinty, where Naomi and Sean take sides and go head to head in this ancient Scottish game. Tom Heap takes a look at the rise in popularity of a vegan diet, and Adam Henson is on the Welsh estate where they keep bison.

Matt Baker and Anita Rani are in West Cumbria. Matt walks along the England Coast Path.

Anita Rani is in Norfolk meeting the people keeping some of the UK's vanishing trades alive. Her first stop is Horsey Windpump which has been restored to full working glory by Tim Whiting, one of the last millwrights in the country. Next she joins the reed cutters making a living on the Norfolk Broads, where she gets to try her hand at cutting. Then she joins Nigel Ford, a man on a mission to restore all of Norfolk's ancient milestones. Finally, she meets David Wolstenholme who makes cricket bats by hand, a skill that's listed by the Heritage Crafts Association as being critically endangered, before she takes her place at the crease to put the bat to the test.

Anita Rani is in Rothbury, being put through her paces with the mountain rescue team and hearing how new technologies are helping search-and-rescue operations. Anita then goes to Amble. She visits the lobster hatchery that is giving the area's shellfish stocks a helping hand. She sees how the baby lobsters are reared before being released back into the waters. Matt is on Coquet Island, the only place in the UK with a breeding population of roseate terns. As peak breeding season approaches they need to make sure everything is in place. Matt gets busy constructing nest boxes for the terns, preparing the shingle (which they like to bed into) and rigging up the nest cams. Steve Brown takes in the wildlife at Hauxley Nature Reserve. He meets James Common, whose wildlife blogging has earned him a place in the finals of this year's UK Blog Awards. Tom Heap looks into the export of live animals for slaughter from the UK and the calls for it to be banned after Brexit.

The team are in Hampshire, where Matt Baker hears about a project championing the use of local wood, as more people using locally sourced timber leads to better-managed woodlands, and that means more biodiversity. John Craven hears how oysters are being reintroduced to the Solent in a bid to revive stocks. The Solent Fishery was once the largest in Europe, but oyster fishing was banned five years ago when annual harvests plummeted from 200 to 20 tonnes in five years. On the shoreline around the Solent, Ellie Harrison hears about an innovative project to study coastal erosion. She meets Sasha, who uses radio trackers placed into stones on the beach to follow their movements. Tom Heap looks at how new technology and smart machinery could put UK farmers at greater risk of cyberattack. Adam Henson and Charlotte Smith travel to the Shetland Islands to meet the third and last finalists for the Countryfile Farming Hero Award 2018.

Matt Baker is whipping up a Welsh spring treat with baker Beca Lyne-Pirkis. Ellie Harrison meets the designer who's creating a celebratory 30th anniversary Countryfile garden for the Hampton Court Flower Show. Anita Rani's in Dorset living life on the edge, in the hope of spotting migrating birds. Steve Brown discovers how a Somerset artist gets an unusual view of our fresh new landscape. In the Norfolk Broads John Craven explores the legacy of the Edwardian naturalist and photographer Emma Turner. We meet the Buckinghamshire farmer who's becoming an internet sensation and the metalworker who's capturing spring in miniature. Adam Henson is getting fit for spring, with a little help from some farm friends.

To celebrate 65 years since Her Majesty's coronation, Countryfile, also celebrating its 30th anniversary, has been given unprecedented access to the Queen's Windsor estate. Matt Baker is at Windsor Great Park finding out about the Queen's countryside retreat and how it was as a young princess that Her Majesty first fell in love with the park. Adam Henson explores the farming history at Windsor as well as looking at the Queen's current farming methods. She has a number of breeds of livestock on the farm. Anita Rani looks at the Queen's love of horses and her passion for native British breeds. Anita meets a farmer who breeds Cleveland Bays, a breed rescued from the brink of extinction by HM the Queen. Sean Fletcher is at the Royal Welsh Show. It's a country show Princess Elizabeth first visited in 1947. John Craven meets the man in charge of a huge new planting scheme across the Great Park instigated by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh.

To celebrate 65 years since HM the Queen's coronation, Countryfile has been given unprecedented access to the Queen's Balmoral estate. Matt Baker is at Glamis Castle, the family home of Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon, the Queen Mother, where the Queen spent many happy childhood holidays. Ellie Harrison is exploring the woodland on the Balmoral estate and seeing how conservation projects introduced by the Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh are encouraging wildlife. Anita Rani is on the Western Isles where the royal family would travel on board the Royal Yacht Britannia. Anita alights on the Isle of Ghiga where the Queen once made an unannounced visit which the locals still remember today. Adam is back on the Balmoral estate meeting the stockman who looks after the Queen's herd of Highland Cattle and checks out one of the Queen's favourite bulls; Smurf.

To celebrate 65 years since Her Majesty's coronation, Countryfile, also celebrating its 30th anniversary, has been given unprecedented access to the Queen's Sandringham estate. Matt Baker discovers that the Queen's love of her most private rural hideaway comes through her father's side of the family. Adam Henson looks into the farming history of Sandringham which has run as a mixed farm of nearly 6000 acres for many years. Ellie Harrison is at the Royal Stud just half a mile from the main house. It was here that the young princess would accompany both her grandfather and father to spend time with the thoroughbreds. John Craven looks at the great flood of 1953 and meets the local people who were affected in the Sandringham area to hear their stories. Matt Baker also visits the Royal Pigeon Loft and discovers that the birds are a real passion of the Queen. Finally, Anita Rani learns about Her Majesty's love of gun dogs.

Sean Fletcher, Margherita Taylor and Steve Brown are in Northern Ireland. Sean is at the beautiful Lower Lough Erne meeting the two boat-building brothers reviving the traditional clinker boat. He sees the intricate way they are made and gets to sail in one - the first time a wooden clinker boat has set sail on the Lough in decades. Margherita explores the boom in pine marten numbers in Fermanagh and finds that, while it is good news for the local red squirrel population, it is bad news for smallholders. And Steve Brown heads to Killeter, where the local churches are putting on a very special display to mark the 200th anniversary of the birth of Cecil Frances Alexander, writer of All Things Bright and Beautiful.

Matt, Ellie and Steve are in West Sussex, where Matt explores the phenomenon of 'champing' - where people pay to stay in churches. He also meets the man who listens to trees and discovers the surprising world beneath their bark. Ellie meets Maya Leonard, a self-proclaimed insect activist, to hear how beetles are just as important at pollinating plants as bees. Steve is with the volunteers, calling themselves gleaners, who hope to put an end to food waste. Plus Tom looks at the problem of untreated sewage being dumped in rivers, and Adam and Charlotte announce the winner of Countryfile's Farming Hero Award.

Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor are in Dorset, where Matt spends time at Lorton Meadows, a nature reserve renowned for its birds of prey. He meets Sam Dallimore, who shows him some of the nest boxes, before meeting up with Jason Fathers, who is installing web cameras. And the stars of the show are the polygamous kestrels - one male with two females, a rare occurrence in the raptor world. Thanks to the webcams, Matt gets a close-up view of the chicks too. Margherita dons her oilskins and tests her sea legs out with the couple who turned their passion for sea fishing into a thriving business. The programme also features Kieran Peree, who gave up his training as an engineer to dive for scallops off the Dorset coast. Adam visits a care farm that is helping people rebuild their lives. Tom discovers how low pupil numbers and a lack of funds mean many rural schools are facing a fight to survive. And Anita meets the first of the contenders in Countryfile's search for a young presenter.

Ellie Harrison and Sean Fletcher explore the grounds and surrounds of Hampton Court Palace. It is home to the last stable of working shire horses in London, and Sean hears how they offer a natural alternative to modern machinery. While Sean is at the house, Ellie is in the garden, at the Hampton Court Palace Flower Show, revealing the finished design of the Countryfile Wildlife Garden. Anita Rani and Adam Henson meet the next two Young Presenter finalists. Adam also hears how lupins are being used as an alternative to soya in livestock feed. Tom Heap finds out whether a US free-trade deal after Brexit would mean boom or bust for UK farmers.

Sean Fletcher spells out what it is he loves so much about Wales, with his 'seven wonders of Wales' - the mountains, hill farming, heritage, wildlife, castles, food and the coastline. This final wonder is a particular favourite of Sean's, and he's not the only one to think that. So to celebrate its shoreline, Wales has chosen 2018 as its Year of the Sea. From the 870 miles of pathway that run the whole length of the coastline, many Welsh wonders can be seen. Sean journeys along Pembrokeshire's stretch of the Welsh Coastal Path. On the way he flexes his Welsh language skills as he meets people who live and work on the path with tales to tell.

To celebrate Countryfile's 30th anniversary, John Craven takes us through 30 of the most memorable moments from the programme from the past three decades. Matt Baker meets local legend Joss Naylor, who has been running over Cumbria his whole life and is known as the king of the fells. There's a look back over some of the big news stories covered by the programme, including foot and mouth. Tom meets a farmer featured at the height of the outbreak to see how he's coped. There's also a look at some favourite wildlife encounters and Ellie meets the students who could become the future of wildlife film-making. We revisit some of the quirkier events in the rural calendar, such as the world nettle eating championships and the world tin bath racing event. Steve Brown is on Ullswater meeting those on a quest for the Holy Grail of the boating world. Countryfile has often travelled abroad to see what we can learn from our farming neighbours and Adam is in France hearing how ancient methods of farming could be the future.

The team travel to Exmoor. Matt Baker meets a group of youngsters on the National Citizen Service scheme, a residential course that uses outdoor activities to help children from all backgrounds to build skills for work and life. Exmoor is one of only a handful of places in the country where the UK's most endangered butterfly - the high brown fritillary - can be spotted, and Margherita Taylor meets those doing all they can to restore its habitat in a bid to increase its numbers. This involves using a remote-controlled mini-tractor that breaks down bracken to create runnels that the butterflies can travel though. It also encourages the underlying violets to grow that the caterpillars feed on. Adam Henson meets the Sikh family of strawberry-growers that are uniting farmers around Worcestershire, who have started the Growers United Football Charity. It not only brings local farmers and growers together and raises money, but also promotes agriculture as a key sector of the economy. Tom looks at what is being done to fight lyme disease, a debilitating illness that affects up to 3,000 people a year and is often transmitted through a single bite from an infected tick. Joe finds out how moorland communities are dealing with the impact of this summer's wildfires, looking at how the continuing dry spell is forcing farmers to use up vital supplies of winter fodder to make up for the lack of grazing in the parched countryside. The Young Presenter Talent Search reaches its climax, as Anita is joined by fellow presenters Nick Baker and JB Gill to decide the winners in each age category.

John, Margherita and Steve are in East Yorkshire where John takes a trip down memory lane to the seaside holidays of his youth. He returns to Bridlington where he meets the enthusiasts keeping the traditional coble boats afloat, and is lucky enough to set out in one under sail. Margherita discovers a secret arts trail in the Wolds and meets poet Ian MacMillan to hear about his love of the area. Steve is a few miles inland meeting a farmer who grows hemp and discovers how versatile a plant it is. And to prove this he helps build a wall made of hemp bricks. Charlotte looks at how tourism is having a negative impact on some of best loved beauty spots, and Adam meets the farmer taking to the internet to get his message about farming out.

Matt, Ellie and Steve are in Nottinghamshire where Matt reports on the plight of the original Bramley apple tree. He joins the scientists working to preserve as much genetic material from it in an effort to unlock the secrets of its long life. There's a double hit of wildlife from Ellie as she goes on a night time hunt for one of Britain's rarest bats - the barbastelle. It's appearance this far north is creating a stir amongst conservationists. Then she joins the husband and wife team behind one of the country's most successful barn owl projects, and gets up close to their latest clutch of chicks. Steve heads for the woods to see how nature is helping some of the county's most vulnerable people. Also in this programme Charlotte looks at the threat to our country parks from council funding cuts and Adam's on his farm counting the cost of the continuing dry spell.

The team are at Countryfile Live, set in the stunning grounds of Blenheim Palace. Matt Baker tries his hand scurry racing, where it takes skill to handle the horses and make the scurry take corners at speed. Ellie Harrison meets the artist whose skill is taxidermy without the animals. John Craven takes along his dachshund Dora and explores Churchill's love of dogs. Steve Brown goes backstage at the first ever British charcuterie awards and meets the producers putting British meats on the map. Adam Henson finds out how to manage a flock of 1,500 sheep. Tom Heap looks at the impact plastics are having on the environment. Anita Rani is joined by the winners of the Young Presenter Talent search. Anita and ten-year-old Matilda get hands-on with hedgehogs and discover why, despite being endangered nationally, their numbers are on the rise in the grounds of the Blenheim estate. Thirteen-year-old Archie teams up with Anita to find out why fishing has increased among under-16s.

Matt and Margherita are in North Wales where Matt discovers how miniature technology could tell us more about the habits of one of our best-loved insects. He's shown how tiny antennae are strapped to individual bees which are then tracked by drones. Matt also meets the entrepreneurial young beekeeper already farming her own bees and selling the honey to businesses nearby. Margherita takes a ride on the famous Blaenau Ffestiniog railway along with people living with dementia and their carers. The trip is the brainchild of Emma Jayne Quaeck who saw how being out in nature helped her own mother's condition. Margherita also heads underground to see how old slate mines are being used to help age prize-winning local cheese. John is joined by fellow judges Cerys Matthews and Simon King to announce the final 12 in this year's Countryfile Photographic Competition, and Adam comes face to face with a cattle breed that is shaking up smallholding.

Steve Brown goes on a whistlestop tour of the place he calls home - the Isle of Sheppey. A flat landscape typified by saltmarsh, sea and big skies, this is a wilderness full of wildlife. The programme spends the day immersed in nature at Elmley Marshes on the north Kent coast. It's the country's only family-run farm that is also a designated national nature reserve.With waders within the wetlands, livestock on the saltmarsh that snakes down to the sea and raptors soaring high in the enormous skies, Steve gives viewers an insight into the landscape he loves. The programme also looks back at some of Countryfile's favourite forays on to marshland, on the seas and in the sky.

Anita Rani and John Craven are in Essex, where there is so much more going on beside the seaside than just sandcastles and seagulls stealing chips. Anita hears how tough old timber that has travelled half way around the world from the tropics to the UK is being up-cycled and repurposed to find new life in the Essex landscape.John visits a farm which is a leader in the field when it comes to growing niche crops. Peter Fairs was one of the first farmers to grow quinoa back in the 1970s, and an increase in plant-based diets means that Peter's unusual crops are becoming more mainstream. John gets a taste of their latest superfood crops - borage and chia.In a couple of weeks Countryfile celebrates Britain's best shepherding talent, playing host to the One Man and His Dog sheepdog trial competition. As the competitors and their collies get ready, Adam Henson heads out to meet teams Scotland and Ireland.Tom Heap looks at why the government has finally given fracking the go ahead.

Harvest is one of the busiest times of the farming year, but this year many farmers are bearing the brunt of the winter storms and summer drought. Helen Skelton visits a farm in York to hear how carrots are in crisis. The extremes of weather have lead to the lowest yields for decades and the highest levels of imports.Steve Brown is in Cornwall looking at a much smaller harvest. He meets Seth Pascoe, a man who wants to bring the nutritional benefits of sea berries to the wider public. But it is a delicate fruit with many sharp thorns to bypass.Adam Henson meets the Welsh and English contenders for this year's One Man and His Dog. Have they got what it takes to be crowned champion?Charlotte Smith investigates whether farmers can really trust their banks when it comes to their future financing.Matt Baker has all the information on how to take part in this year's Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need.

The British Isles' top shepherds and their collies descend on the small village of Llansteffan in south Wales as we host Countryfile's One Man and His Dog 2018. Teams from England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland are all competing for the coveted trophy, each team made up of a senior shepherd and the up-an-coming talent of a youngster. This year the seniors take on trailing's most difficult discipline, 'the brace' - working two dogs at the same time, and our youngsters have an average age of just 11 years. Whilst Matt Baker takes to the commentary box, Anita Rani explores the Llansteffan ferry, making its return after 60 years, and which for generations has connected two communities across the Tywi estuary. Anita also hunts for one of the area's richest natural resources - cockles.

This week we're in Herefordshire where Sean is at Bodenham Lake, site of a huge habitat creation project. When work is complete there will be new spaces for otters, water rail, bitterns and the lake's best known inhabitant, the grass snake. Sean joins Sophie Cowling, the warden here, and her volunteers as they seek out these slippery creatures as part of an ongoing survey. Margherita meanwhile is in a traditional orchard looking to turn its fortunes around with the help of a brew popular in medieval times - verjuice. Made from the juice of unripe apples, verjuice is proving a hit with foodies and top chefs alike. Adam is also in Herefordshire, helping to get another of the country's famous crops in - hops. Matt's getting ready for this year's Countryfile Ramble for Children in Need by meeting Josh, an inspirational 14-year-old whose ambition is to climb a mountain. John is here to announce the winner of this year's Countryfile photographic competition, and Tom is investigating how city-based drug gangs are targeting some of the countryside's most vulnerable children.

Ellie Harrison takes an unflinching look at the state of the country's wildlife - the pressures it is under, the challenges it faces and the prospects for some of the most vulnerable species. Ellie visits Devon to see the efforts being made to save one of the rarest insects, the narrow-headed ant. She also visits the Exmoor estate where water voles haven't been seen in 30 years. Matt Baker is in Cornwall to see how a project to rear lobsters sustainably could have benefits for other threatened sea species. Steve Brown visits a seabird sanctuary still dealing with the after-effects of the Torrey Canyon disaster 50 years ago. And Adam Henson is in Northern Ireland to see how farmers are working with the RSPB to bring back farmland birds.

Ellie Harrison is in Derbyshire to explore some of the things people can do on a different day out. Her first stop is Carsington Water, where she learns how to build a makeshift raft before taking to the water and racing it. Then she takes in an arts trail that features chainsaw sculptures, including a giant frame in which the landscape becomes the art. She heads to a limestone quarry to do some daytime moth-spotting and learns that this unusual habitat is the ideal home for some of the country's rarest moths. Finally, she takes part in the world-famous Bonsall Hen Racing Championships, meets the current world champion, eight-year-old Jack Alsop Smith, and gets some hen-racing tips before competing to see who will be crowned 2018 champion. Ellie also looks back through the Countryfile archives to come up with other ideas for a different day out.

Countryfile celebrates all things autumn. Matt Baker is on the Isle of Skye otter spotting. Anita Rani meets a potter on the Ards Peninsular who is capturing the essence of the season in her work. Steve Brown experiences the beauty of autumn leaves in miniature and all their mighty magnificence. In north Wales John Craven visits the kitchen garden where autumn produce is coming to a sticky end. Adam Henson meets a couple making the most of autumn's random apples. In South Yorkshire Margherita Taylor gets her hands dirty with a third-generation forager. The programme visits a pumpkin farmer at his busiest time of year, and beauty expert Liz Earle explains why autumn is her favourite season on the family farm.

The fourth annual Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need features the show's presenters leading rambles across the UK, joined by viewers and inspirational youngsters helped by the charity. Anita Rani heads to Northern Ireland's Mourne Mountains, Adam Henson takes in Scotland's Galloway Forest Park, Ellie Harrison leads a mass ramble of more than 1,000 round the cathedral city of Ely, John Craven and Steve Brown team up to take a group of ramblers through Padarn Country Park in north Wales, and Matt Baker heads to the Isle of Skye, hoping to fulfil a young boy's dream of scaling a mountain. Meanwhile, roving reporter Tom Heap catches up with some of the thousands of public rambles which took part across Britain in aid of the cause.

Countryfile visits Worcestershire, where Matt Baker finds out about plans to save Pershore Lock Island and encourage more wildlife to live there. He also meets a group of visually impaired children who are experiencing nature from the water. Anita Rani meets the couple who fell in love over their passion for Holstein cattle. She also uncovers the mysterious history of the county's black pear. John Craven discovers Ruskin Land and meets the architecture students getting hands-on with oak. Tom Heap looks at whether enough is being done to keep the great British oak tree safe from disease and parasitic pests, and Adam Henson meets the farmer whose chickens only lay white eggs.

Countryfile visits East Sussex, where Sean Fletcher meets the family with a passion for poultry. Ellie Harrison discovers the life and work of a little-known British landscape artist Eric Slater and she also meets the woman keeping the age-old craft of trug making alive. It is an emotional day for Adam Henson as he tests his cattle for TB, plus, on this very special Armistice Day, John Craven is in the village of Rotherfield honouring the parish's war dead, 100 years on. And Tom Heap investigates the outbreak of a mystery disease that could take the UK's hare population to the brink of extinction.

Countryfile visits Cambridgeshire, where Anita Rani is at the 40th annual hedge-laying competition and meets a painter that finds trees totally inspiring. Sean Fletcher meets two water buffalo helping in the battle against invasive pennywort. Margherita Taylor is bowled over by a group of woodworkers. And it's a big day for Adam Henson as he finds out if his cattle are TB free, and Charlotte investigates claims that hundreds of villages have been condemned to an early grave.

Countryfile is in Suffolk, where John Craven takes to the water to meet the Walberswick ferrywomen. He also finds out about the age-old craft of pargetting.

Countryfile is in County Durham, where Helen Skelton finds out about the traditional rapper dance of the region and Steve Brown finds out about fancy pigeon showing.

John Craven, Helen Skelton and Margherita Taylor are on the Isle of Wight, where John meets the amateur dinosaur hunter finding new prehistoric creatures along the coast. He also visits the miniature village where traditional building skills are being applied on a tiny scale. Margherita takes to the waves to see how artificial rock pools are throwing a lifeline to some of the islands most vulnerable sea species, and Helen hears about the challenges of farming in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. She also meets the young farmers who is also a wiz in the mountain-biking world. Tom Heap looks at the problem of hidden waste being revealed by coastal erosion and, with the recent legalising of cannabis for some medical use, Adam Henson visits one of the biggest growers in the country.

Matt Baker, Sean Fletcher and Margherita Taylor are in the Cairngorms, where Matt meets Tilly Smith and her herd of 150 reindeer. The reindeer roam wild and free and a team of scientists are studying their grazing habits to assess its impact on the environment. Sean spends the day with ten-year-old Xander Johnson, who is part of a big effort to save one of the UK's rarest insects - the pine hoverfly, found only in two places in the Cairngorms and under threat in both of them. Margherita learns all about mountain safety and why smartphones should not be trusted out in the wild. She also hears from Amanda Thomson, an academic who is on a mission to preserve disappearing Scots words and whose work has inspired Marina Dennis, a crofter keen to preserve old crofting traditions and the language used to describe them.

Matt Baker and the team are in the small village of Elsdon in Northumberland, where preparations are in full swing for a big Christmas bash. Matt helps get the Bird in Bush pub decked out for the party and meets some of the locals for whom the pub is more than merely a place for a quiet drink. Steve Brown picks sloes for a festive tipple with a difference. Anita Rani turns to blacksmithing for an unusual Christmas decoration. John Craven joins foragers looking for pine needles to give their cookies a seasonal twist. Ellie Harrison heads to Wallington Hall to see some red squirrels. Tom Heap joins the choir going from door to door in a bid to combat isolation among the more elderly in the community. And Adam Henson is in Worcestershire at the biggest mistletoe market in the country.

Anita Rani is in Yorkshire celebrating some of the many remarkable women who have been featured on the programme over the years. She revisits stories of courageous and determined women - from those who stepped into male shoes, working the land during the First and Second World Wars, to a female polar explorer with a big attitude. Anita also meets the women making their mark on the countryside today, from a champion tree climber to an ornithologist whose passion for birds has a long lineage. Plus the graffiti artist with big and bold ideas about flora and fauna, and farmers of the future.

Anita Rani travels to one of her favourite places in the British countryside, Malham Cove in the Yorkshire Dales. She learns more about this unique landscape and how it was formed thousands of years ago. She meets an artist whose passion, like her mother's and grandmother's before, is painting nearby Gordale Scar. In the village of Malham, Anita catches up with the latest incumbent of the local smithy, who used to be a tax accountant. Anita has been to Malham Cove many times but she's never climbed the walls of this famous limestone amphitheatre. She also looks back through the archives as we re-visit some famous faces who shared with us places in the British countryside that were particularly special to them. Like the time comedian Ed Byrne tried to bag a munro on there Isle of Skye; when England test cricket captain Alistair Cook invited us to the family sheep farm and when Olympic gold winning boxer Nicola Adams took Adam Henson through his paces in her training ground in Leeds.

Countryfile is in Shropshire, where Matt Baker is exploring the highs and lows of a landscape shaped by the miners who once called this place home. Anita Rani is discovering the most unlikely site for a nature reserve - a scrapyard. Chef Michael Caines heads out into the wilds of Dartmoor on a camping trip, and in the first part of a special series, Adam Henson is in New Zealand to find out how they farm on the other side of the world. Charlotte Smith investigates the growing problem of dementia in the countryside as a new report highlights the dangers, isolation and lack of services facing farmers living with the condition.

Countryfile is in Carmarthenshire, where Matt Baker explores the explosive history of the sand dunes. Helen Skelton visits the National Botanic Garden of Wales, discovering how they're mapping the DNA of every flower in the country and how they're preparing their bees for winter.Falklands veteran Simon Weston shows Countryfile around his beloved south Wales and, in the second part of a special series, Adam Henson is in New Zealand to find out how they farm on the other side of the world. What happens when a protected species recovers to the point it impacts rural businesses and other wildlife? Tom Heap reports on a new initiative aimed at saving fisheries from otters.

Countryfile is on the Jurassic Coast, where Matt Baker meets the man who's been digging for fossils for more than thirty years, with extraordinary results. Ellie Harrison visits the family who've been photographing their farming life for generations, with the captivating images making up an important part of promoting their business.In the third part of a series of special films from New Zealand, Adam Henson helps with a sheep muster on an impressive scale. Plus comedian Susan Calman voyages across the Firth of Clyde to the beautiful Isle of Arran, in search of an elusive creature.

Countryfile explores the Peak District. Matt Baker joins the team on a mission to restore the scarred moorland. Ellie Harrison meets the climber and photographer who are coming together in an unusual collaboration. And Adam Henson is in New Zealand for the final part of his journey, discovering how they farm on the other side of the world.DJ Edith Bowman returns home to the rugged coastline of the East Neuk of Fife where she shares her passion for photography. As more of our lives move online, Tom Heap looks at broadband in rural areas and meets those who feel they're being left behind - but could there be hope on the horizon?

In this programme the focus is on our feathered friends. Matt is up at the crack of dawn at the RSPB reserve at Snettisham on the north Norfolk coast. There he witnesses thousands of pink-footed geese taking flight and joins warden Jim Scott and scientist Dr Mark Eaton in a bird count. He also visits a school where the pupils are taking part in their own bird count.Helen is at the other end of the country in Cumbria, where she catches sight of perhaps the most stunning sight in the bird world, as tens of thousands starlings perform dizzying aerial acrobatics. Helen also meets artist Clare Brownlow, who paints stunning lifelike pictures of birds using feather quills.Tom Heap looks at the latest outbreak of bird flu to hit Britain, finds out what can be done to minimise the impact and asks how long this crisis might last. Adam is back on his farm taking stock of his animals and showing us what measures he is taking to combat the threat from avian flu.

Ellie Harrison is on a winter wildlife safari in the Cairngorms National Park in Scotland, hoping to spot the elusive mountain hare.

Ellie is helping to give Cheddar Gorge its annual clean-up.

Matt takes a trip back in time on the last horse-drawn tram in the world. He also gets to visit the farm where the magnificent Clydesdale and shire horses get to live out their dotage once their tram-pulling days are done. Ellie dwells among the haunting ruins of the Isle of Man's tholtans, the abandoned homes and farmsteads that tell the story of the island's agricultural past. She also gets to make and bake a loaf of traditional Manx bonnag bread under the expert eye of 11-year-old Tom Keig, the bonnag-baking world champion. Adam is putting his new working dog, Olive, through her paces. Tom Heap is in St Ives in Cornwall looking at a new ban on the building of second homes. But is it really the answer that many rural communities are looking for?

The team explore the magnificent South Downs. Matt Baker meets the pony who's blazing a trail across this landscape. Helen Skelton discovers why dark skies are so important for our wildlife. John Craven visits Charleston House, the rural retreat of the Bloomsbury Group. And Adam Henson looks at a new and novel way to stop cattle from roaming.A courgette crisis, a lack of lettuce and rationing on our supermarket shelves, just what is going on behind the scenes of Britain's veg crisis? Tom Heap heads to Spain to find out what's gone wrong and to discover what we can do keep our food supply secure.

Countryfile is in Snowdonia where, with the help of some recently unearthed BBC archive, Adam Henson is discovering how farming has changed in the past 60 years. He also looks back through Countryfile's own archive to the times the programme has explored farming then and now. From when Matt Baker put a Little Grey Fergie tractor to the test to when Adam discovered a space-age underground farm in the heart of London.

Matt Baker and Anita Rani are on the Hoo Peninsula. Matt hears how it's a landscape that's been shaped over the years by 'saltshepherds' and 'muddies', whilst Anita sees how fleece and feather work together to protect the huge numbers of birds that flock to the area. And there's a sense of spring in the air with lots of new arrivals down on Adam's Farm. Tom Heap looks at what leaving the EU could mean for the UK's agricultural migrant labour force and the farms that employ them.

Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison visit Denbighshire in north east Wales.

In this programme the focus is on forests. Matt is in the New Forest taking part in the biggest inventory of trees ever undertaken. He also takes to the heights with climbers from the Forestry Commission as they carry out a wildlife survey high in the treetops. Ellie in Inverness-shire seeing what industrial-scale timber production looks like. She also looks at new scientific research that shows the impact of forestry activities on native red squirrels. Sean is in Stirlingshire exploring the Scottish tradition of hutting, and he hears about the part these houses in the woods played during the Clydebank Blitz in World War II. John is in Kent looking at the revival of working with horses in forests. He also meets the artist whose magnificent woodcuts of forests capture perfectly the spirit of these magic places. And in a step away from the woodlands, Adam meets the farmer who has found a new market for his male goats due to the rising demand for goat meat.

Matt, Anita and John are in Holderness in the East Riding of Yorkshire. Matt is on Spurn Point, or rather Spurn Island - the country's newest, formed by the big storm surge of 2013. He meets the RNLI crew who had to relocate further up the coast as a result and then goes on manoeuvres with them as they look for safe passages around the point. Anita finds out how Spurn's wildlife has responded in the wake of the surge, and she meets the next generation of birdwatchers helping to spot the rare species on display. John, meanwhile, is on Sunk Island, an area of rich farmland attached to the mainland but which once stood cut off in the Humber. He is there with photographer Fiona Caley, who is recording this mysterious landscape and the farming communities who live there. Adam helps a friend choose some rare breed white park cattle.

Matt Baker learns about the Easter tradition of pace egg rolling in Lancashire.

Countryfile is in County Durham, and Matt is on his old home turf, showing us how to make panackelty, a traditional north eastern dish. He gets veg from prize-winning allotments and meat from a local farm and cooks it all up with the locals.Ellie is a few miles away in the heart of Weardale meeting the designer whose passion for rescuing sheep has spun out into a sideline making high-end felt goods. She also takes a trip along one of the most beautiful stretches of the River Tees, taking in the stunning High Force and Low Force waterfalls, discovering its wildlife and getting a drenching as she throws herself headlong into it.Sean is in Stockton, where he meets a Scout troop involved in all sorts of projects to encourage wildlife. And he witnesses them renewing their Scout vows - something traditionally done on St George's day.Tom asks if we are in the midst of a fly-tipping epidemic and what can be done to stamp it out.And at the start of British Beef Week, Adam is meeting the farmers raising their cattle on nothing but fresh grass all year round.

It is Hedgehog Awareness Week. Populations of wild British hedgehogs have declined rapidly since the turn of the century, and Ellie Harrison meets three schoolgirls who on a mission to keep the hedgehogs of Warwickshire safe from harm. She pays them a visit in their back garden hedgehog rehab centre!

Ellie Harrison reveals how the landscape has been shaped by rivers, meeting those who live, work and play on the banks of the Severn.

Matt Baker hears about plans the Suffolk Wildlife Trust are making for their biggest ever land purchase in the charity's 55 years. He'll also meet the dog ambassadors teaching good practice for owners and their four-legged friends when out in the countryside around wildlife and cattle. Ellie's on a farm run by the community and fuelled by waste! Dredgings from the bottom of a property developer's pond help fertilise the fields; hazel poles for the runner beans are scraps from a woodland project and the pigs get fed on left over barley from the local brewery. She'll also meet a craftsman making bread saws out of locally 'spalted' wood. To celebrate National Mills Weekend John Craven visits Bardwell, a fine example of the 500 or so windmills that once dotted throughout the county and meets the Wooster family and explores their love affair with their 'Forth Bridge' of windmills and see what work has gone into getting it - almost - up and running again.

Matt is in the Clyde valley in Lanarkshire, once known as the 'fruit basket of Scotland'. Also in HD. [S] Including Weather for the Week Ahead.

In a spring special edition of the programme Countryfile goes in search of the secret and often overlooked wonders of the season.

Matt and Ellie are in Essex where Matt jumps aboard the Pioneer, a fully restored Essex oyster boat. He learns about its maritime past whilst some rarely seen archive gives us a flavour of the county's oyster fishing heyday. Matt then meets a group of young people learning the skills to build racing gigs which are small fast rowing boats built for competition and Matt is put through his paces in one of these gigs out on the open sea. Ellie is at the country's only nature reserve managed specifically for dragonflies, where she gets up close to these highly coloured and fascinating insects. She then travels to Hamford Water, were the creeks and inlets are home to an unusual colony of common seals - they're bright red!

Ellie Harrison and Joe Crowley are in Northern Ireland, where Joe is up at the crack of dawn in woods just south of Belfast. He joins the RSPB team who are tagging swifts to find out where they feed, and he heads to the arts centre where the biggest swift colony in the city can be found to see how sensitive building benefits the birds. He also meets the locals doing their bit to help Belfast become 'swift city'. Joe then heads to the farm where you are as likely to find physalis, mustard flowers and Asian radish as you are spuds, carrots and caulis. Meanwhile, Ellie takes a canoe trip down the beautiful River Bann. It is a great place for wading birds, is steeped in history and is said to be the river St Patrick took before arriving at the island where he built a monastery. Ellie also visits Church Island and sees the sites associated with St Patrick, and she hears that it was also the poet Seamus Heaney's favourite place in the world.

Ellie Harrison and Sean Fletcher are at the Hay Festival, one of the UK's biggest literature and arts festivals.Ellie goes behind the scenes to meet some of the writers and artists, the organisers and many of the thousands of visitors who flock here each year. She then heads out to the country for a special wildlife safari inspired by one of the books on show. She also joins the team spotting and tagging adders using radio tracking devices.Sean is on a literary adventure of his own with a group drawing inspiration from the beautiful Wye Valley countryside. He also meets some local food producers at the festival, including one who's putting a whole new spin on ice cream.Adam Henson looks at how new technology can help in the fight against drought, and John Craven is here with new news of this year's Countryfile Photographic Competition.

Sean Fletcher is in Carmarthenshire in west Wales taking a look at working animals. He meets Dr Nick Fox, OBE, who is one of the world's leading experts on birds of prey. Nick breeds falcons and has a very special way of training them - using robots. Sean is shown round the workshop where these 'robofalcons' are made. These are precision engineered drones built to look like falcons which are used to train real live birds to hunt. Sean takes the remote controls and sees for himself just how realistic these decoy birds are. He also visits the breeding units and gets to handle fluffy little peregrine chicks. Elsewhere on the site Sean discovers that Nick has drafted in beavers to help manage his woodland. And there's a good chance Sean will be treated to the sight of some beaver kits.Also in this programme we'll be going back through the Countryfile archives to look again at times when we've featured working animals.

Ellie joins the Rollett family who have set up a traditional cottage industry producing natural elderflower cordials and presses.

Anita Rani's in the Nene Valley, where a pioneering project is just about to launch.

Our Scottish journey starts just off the mainland - on the Isle of May. It's home to the largest puffin colony on the east coast of Britain at this time of year. Ellie Harrison crosses the Firth of Forth to see the seasonal spectacle. With guillemots, kittiwakes and puffins all jostling for position on the islands ledges and perches, Ellie finds out from David the island manager about the work they do to make it a five-star stay for seabirds.Sean Fletcher discovers Fife's importance as a (soft) centre of excellence when it comes to fruit growing. He looks at the history of the connection between fruit and the east coast of Scotland. Sean then plays 'scientist' at the James Hutton Institute, a lab that has been creating a raspberry-breeding programme to produce new breeds for local growers. He visits the 'crumbly fruit house', checking that new breeds hold up to picking without crumbling, and then asks fruit breeder Nikki Jennings just how Fife can create raspberries with a fuller flavour and less sugar than its southern counterparts.Adam takes to the skies with Roger Nock from Ordnance Survey to map his field margins, and Tom Heap looks at the unseen side of TB - its effect on goats, asking why the disease isn't being dealt with the same rigour as it is in our cattle herds.

Wiltshire's Salisbury Plain is home to one of England's most successful conservation projects, the first new population of great bustards to be established anywhere in the world. John visits the project's HQ and wears a dehumanisation suit to help keep the birds' behaviour as wild as possible as he helps feed the latest batch of chicks as they prepare to fly the nest.Anita meets the contestants of the International Young Beekeepers competition at Marlborough College and visits the River Kennet, one of England's most important chalk streams and helps out the volunteers working hard to keep this valuable chalk stream flowing.Adam meets Simon Stott who runs a co-operative of farmers producing sheep's milk, which they turn into yoghurt and cheese.At the foot of Wiltshire's Marlborough Downs, artisanal flower grower Polly Nicholson is using the rich, fertile soils of the Calne valley to grow seasonal and old varieties of English flowers. This is farmland turned flower fields, and is part of a growing trend for traditional British blooms. Imported flowers are often grown intensively, non-organically and then flown half way around the world to British buyers, with most varieties available year-round. Polly has established a flower farm with environmental welfare at its heart providing species not usually seen in conventional bunches of flowers.

Anita Rani is in London at the Woodberry Wetlands, a wildlife haven just a stone's throw from the tower blocks of Stoke Newington.

Ellie Harrisontakes a look at the part flowers and plants play in people's everyday lives. She visits a herb garden in Bristol to find out about a commonplace plant that is on the front line in the fight against cancer. She heads to a high-end restaurant to hear about fermentation, the latest foodie trend, before meeting a dye maker who has turned her back on synthetic dyes and uses only natural plants and flower dyes to create her colours. Finally, Ellie visits the school where pupils cultivate some of the rarest orchids in the world.

Anita and Sean are in the rugged wilds of Dartmoor. Anita explores the Artisan Trail, a newly created route that links some of the area's best artists and craftspeople. She meets the blacksmith working out of atraditional forge, visits a community-supported farm providing locals with hearty seasonal veg and tries her hand spinning wool on an old-fashioned spinning jenny. We also meet the printmaker who works out in the wild in all weathers.Sean looks at native Dartmoor ponies and asks if there is a better alternative to culling unwanted foals at birth. He looks at two different options. One involves finding use for unwanted animals as therapy for people with learning difficulties, and the other, more controversially, suggests rearing the animals for meat.Tom finds out what happens to the male calves born into dairy herds and looks at what can be done to ensure they have a useful and decent life. And with harvest just around the corner, Adam is taking stock down on his farm.

The team head to the Blenheim Estate in the Oxfordshire countryside for a celebration of the best of rural Britain at Countryfile Live. Matt Baker explores the best of food, drink and farming on offer, Ellie Harrison meets an aspiring actress turned cow artist, Adam Henson brings the farmyard to the showground, Tom Heap finds out how the forests of the Blenheim estate help the local community, and John Craven gets a unique glimpse into one of Blenheim Palace's greatest secrets.

Ellie and Steve are on the Llyn Peninsula in north west Wales. Ellie goes snorkelling to explore the rich seagrass habitat beneath the waves, before joining the conservationists netting fish as part of a marine survey. She also meets 19-year-old Urien Davies-Hughes, a third-generation boat builder who uses his grandfather's tools to build traditional Aberdaron beach boats. Steve meets the dairy farmers who both produce and deliver their own milk. He also visits the farmers who have turned their hand to bespoke ice cream and comes up with a brand new flavour of his own. Adam takes part in a mulberry harvest, while John is joined by fellow judges Simon King and Deborah Meaden to reveal the final 12 photographs in this year's Countryfile photographic competition.

Countryfile looks at how food is harvested, from large-scale crops for supermarket shelves to smaller hand-picked harvests for local markets. John Craven is in Oxfordshire meeting the only distillers in the country to use an ancient strain of rye to create a new type of gin. Margherita Taylor is in Norfolk with a farmer keen to prove that the British radish is more than just a bit on the side. Margherita also visits Bardsley Farm. The family have been growing apples and pears since 1892 and have recently branched out into growing apricots. Adam Henson meets the first of the two nations competing to win the coveted title of One Man and His Dog 2017. Tom Heap discovers how little is known about wasps and asks for viewers' help to find out more.

Ellie Harrisonis on Cornwall's Rame Peninsula to visit Mount Edgcumbe, where the UK's first ever native dark honeybee reserve has just opened. Previously thought to be all but extinct in the UK, an almost pure and distinctive population has been identified here, and although they make up only 1% of the bee population, it is claimed they could hold the key to reversing colony collapse - Ellie finds out how. The programme also catches up with Malcolm Baker, the last traditional fisherman in the Rame Peninsula, who features in a film that captures the old traditions of fishing in the region with the idea of passing on dying skills to the next generation. And Tom Heap is on the hunt for traditional British craftsmen and women. With many heritage crafts dying out, Tom is keen to find out what can be done to save them.

Ellie visits the Lake District, the UK's first national park to be a Unesco World Heritage Site, and she explores the three factors that made it an area of international cultural significance - identity, inspiration and conservation. There is also a look back at some of Countryfile's own experiences in the fells and valleys - meeting the people who all play a part in protecting the countryside. Additionally, in the lead-up to the Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need, the programme visits the Highlands of Scotland to meet Logan and his dad Scott, who will be taking part. Logan lost his mum to cancer last year and is supported by Children in Need-funded charity Maggie's, who offer invaluable support to children like Logan. There is also news on how people can join in Ramble weekend by putting on their own sponsored rambles, walking through the beautiful British countryside and raising money to help some of the country's most vulnerable youngsters.

Matt Baker and Charlotte Smith present Countryfile's One Man and His Dog for 2017. The best shepherds and their dogs from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales go head to head for the coveted trophy. Each team is made up of two competitors - the 'singles' who compete with one dog and, the ultimate in sheepdog trialling, the 'brace', working two dogs at the same time. This year's competition is being held in Hampstead Heath, making it the first time that sheep have been on the Heath for 60 years.

Ellie is in South Yorkshire, right on the border of the Peak District, following in the footsteps of the Clarion Ramblers.

Anita and Matt are at Dumfries House in Ayrshire, a centre for training and education. Also in HD. [S] Including Weather for the Week Ahead.

Ellie visits Wakehurst Place to learn about the clear-up after the Great Storm of 1987.

John and Margherita are in Cornwall, where John attends a food festival with a difference. Over four nights local chefs will cook up 12 farm feasts for 1000 guests, all from one red devon animal. John meets the 1000 Mouths festival organiser Steve Chamberlain, to hear that every single bit of the animal will be used with nothing going to waste. Margehrita meets author Chrissie Gittins who's on a mission to stop wild words disappearing from children's vocabularies. She also visits a vineyard that came about by accident, when the owners discovered the ground was better for vines than for farming. We also profile Cornish artist David Hosking who returns to the farm of his birth for the first time since leaving 45 years ago. And Adam finds out if soya could be the crop of the future for British arable farmers. Tom's looking at calls to suspend public rights of way, because of the rising number of dog attacks on livestock, but how will it affect our right to roam?

A special programme celebrating the the Countryfile Ramble for Children in Need 2017. The presenters lead the way on rambles of their own through some of Britain's best landscapes, joined by viewers and some inspirational youngsters who have been helped by the charity. Matt Baker takes on an epic challenge on the hills of Dartmoor with Georgia, who has fought back from a life-changing operation to remove a brain tumour. Ellie Harrison heads to Wales's waterfall country with Amy, who was born deaf and is helped by a local charity thanks to Children in Need funding. Adam Henson leads a mass ramble of thousands through Bristol, joined by the Penn family. Anita Rani rambles along the white sands of Scotland's west coast withLogan, who lost his mum to cancer and is supported by the local Maggie's Centre. John Craven heads to Northern Ireland and the picturesque Castlewellan Forest Park, where he is joined by hundreds on his accessible-to-all ramble.

Matt Baker crunches through the leaves to find out about a new charter to protect woodlands, and Ellie Harrison meets Skomer's new seal pups.

Ellie Harrison finds out about the so-called 'Idle' women of the canals, who played a vital role in the Second World War. She also discovers how the great outdoors helps to heal servicemen and women. John Craven explores how wild plants became medicine during the Second World War. Plus Adam Henson visits a school where farming is helping to shape lives.

Countryfile is in Hertfordshire, where Charlotte Smith meets the man who's made it his sole mission to save the barbel in the Old River Lea. Sean Fletcher is building a home fit for a Kingfisher and foraging for a wild dinner. John Craven is returning to his days as a scout and cooking up a storm on a woodland fire. And Adam Henson is discovering the estate where rewilding and farming sit side-by-side. Now in its fifth year, what effect is culling badgers actually having on rates of TB in our cattle? Tom Heap's looking at the science behind this controversial practice.

The programme heads to the Cairngorms, where Joe Crowley is at Britain's largest national nature reserve, Mar Lodge. He is on the search for ptarmigan at the top of one of the tallest mountains in Britain. Helen Skelton meets one of Scotland's most extraordinary creatures - the golden eagle. And Adam Henson is already preparing for next year's new arrivals on his farm. Tom Heap is looking at Britain's favourite meat, chicken, and finding out what goes into supplying almost one billion chickens a year.

Helen and Sean are on the Cleveland Way in North Yorkshire. Helen meets the team of Scouts who have 'adopted' their own stretch of the 109-mile trail and are busy clearing gorse and doing some vitalmaintenance. She then joins the Hardmoors, a group of ultra marathon runners who have also adopted their own stretch, on a run through some spectacular countryside.Sean explores Yorkshire childhoods through an incredible oral history project, before joining wildlife photographer Glenn Kilpatrick as he attempts to photograph leaping salmon on the beautiful River Esk.Blacksmith and artist Katie Ventress takes Countryfile to her favourite stretch of coast. Tom has an exclusive look at a major new report into the effects of climate change on our bird populations, and Adam meets the young couple getting into farming despite not having a farm.

Ellie and Matt are in the Brecklands on the Norfolk-Suffolk border. Ellie finds out all about a major conservation effort to save two Brecks species at threat of extinction. She also hears how the Brecks rabbit is playing a key role in this effort. Later, Ellie meets the mum-and-daughter team helping to make Ipswich the most hedgehog-friendly city in the UK.Matt joins an arable farmer who is able to harvest veg all year round thanks to the Brecks' sandy soils and temperate climate. He also meets the pig farmer who swears by the soil for rearing his livestock.Margherita joins a shepherd turned artist for a lesson in watercolours out in the Brecks, and Adam has got his hands full with two alpacas who have an unusual job to do.Tom Heap looks at the animal diseases worrying farmers at this time of year and asks if there is a chink in our armour.

Ellie Harrison sees her home county of Gloucestershire as she has never seen it before. She also looks back through the archives to the time when some well-known faces were asked which part of the county's countryside is special to them. DJ Edith Bowman visits Fife, comedian Susan Calman takes a trip to the Isle of Arran and chef Michael Caines wonders at the wilds of Dartmoor. Plus singer David Essex returns to his beloved Kent, Falklands veteran Simon Weston spends time in south Wales and actress Nina Wadia explores the Highlands.

In this special Christmas programme, Matt, John and Anita are in Castleton in the Peak District, where the celebrated Christmas tree festival is in full swing. Matt helps get things ready for a big carol concert in the world-famous Peak Cavern.At the nearby Longshaw Estate, John looks for a Christmas tree at one of the biggest Christmas tree sales in the country. And Anita visits a farm that puts on its very own Nativity play, complete with newborn Christmas lambs.Meanwhile in Norfolk, Adam challenges Ellie to a race with a difference, her flock of geese racing against his flock of turkeys. And in Staffordshire, Tom meets the farmer who hands out food parcels containing his own produce to help those in need this Christmas.

This week on Countryfile, Adam Henson is in New Zealand to find out what makes it one of the most exciting places to farm. Along the way, he meets some old friends, helps with a cattle muster like no other, witnesses sheep farming on a breathtaking scale and goes on the hunt for a rare goat breed with an unbelievable story.

Ellie looks back at some of the shows encounters with Winter Wildlife.

The show head's to Herefordshire, here Matt meets a family who are turning oilseed rape into oil. Jean Christophe-Novelli reveals how he uses the product. Ellie heads to Heartwood Forest to see how the work on the area is going. Tom wants to know if bus routes will ever return to some of the most isolated areas of the countryside. Tony Singh reveals what the British countryside means to him. Adam revisits the winner of 2015's Countryfile Farming Hero and launches this year's competition as well.

Matt gives some trees a health check. Ellie looks at a renowned bird breeding program. Josh Widdicombe relives his youth at a Welsh campsite. Adam Henson revisits a 2015 finalist of the Food and Farming Awards, Cameron Hendry. Tom investigates a new law which has been introduced to try and save neglected and abandoned horses.

Ellie and Matt head to North Devon, a place which is busy but only when it's tourist season. Sarah Storey reveals her favourite bit of the countryside. Adam looks at a new piece of technology which is extending growing season. Tom invesitgates the ban on catching bass.

Matt visits the unlikely stars of the documentary 'Addicted to Sheep'. Ellie looks at winter migration. John goes for a woodland walk in Cumbria with some wolves. Sean tries winter cod fishing. Adam heads to Orkney looking at why seaweed-eating sheep are under threat.

Matt and Ellie are in Tyne and Wear. Matt visits a country park. Ellie heads down the coast near Sunderland to look at the restoration of a lighthouse.

Matt and Ellie are in Norfolk. Matt learns about how to become a gamekeeper, he also sees how to butcher venison and is prepared a stew. Ellie tells the story of the return of cranes to Norfolk. Adam heads to the Stirling bull sales. Nicola Adams reveals what her favourite place is in the British countryside.

Matt and Ellie are in Staffordshire. Matt visits a school that focuses on farming and agriculture. Ellie meets a couple with their very own nature reserve. Adam looks at eggs. Tom investigates a tree disease called Ash Dieback.

Matt Baker and Shauna Lowry are near Colchester on the Essex coast. Matt takes a trip to Mersea Island to Richard Haward, a oyster fisherman. Elsewhere Shauna returns to the River Colne, where five years ago the show saw the start of a big project to return water voles to the wild.

John Craven discovers the Rathlin Island's growing kelp industry. Anita Rani meets farmer who has diversified in an imaginative way.

Adam Henson visits Aberystwyth to meet the youngster working towards a career in farming. He will also explore what life is like being a young farmer today.

Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison explore Ashdown Forest.

The team explore the three counties of Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire. Matt Baker meets some of the local crafts people keeping rural skills alive - heritage builders, a weathervane maker and a stained glass artist. Ellie Harrison is visiting a farm where the owners are potty about poultry, breeding turkeys for their eggs rather than meat. She's also exploring the ultimate wildlife garden. Sean Fletcher is discovering the area's links with the humble daffodil. And Adam Henson is meeting the three-year-old girl already getting to grips with lambing. Hundreds of years after becoming extinct, beavers are back on mainland Britain. Charlotte Smith investigates why some people are trying to save them, while others want them culled.

John Craven takes to Northumberland's roads in a vintage Volvo, much like the car used to ferry the artist L S Lowry around on his visits to the area. To mark the 40th anniversary of Lowry's death, John follows in the artist's footsteps, accompanied by Simon Marshall, who used to drive Lowry to scenic spots for him to paint. Ellie Harrison is on the moors learning that the best ways to conserve vital moorland is to burn it. She joins the team behind an innovative scheme to train people how to cope with wildfires and how controlled burning can benefit wildlife. Domestic violence can be a problem anywhere, but as Charlotte Smith discovers, when you live in an isolated rural area, finding the support you need to escape an abusive situation can be tough. Plus the second of the Farming Hero nominees, Julia Evans, who opened a care farm in Worcestershire.

To mark 400 years since Shakespeare's death, Countryfile travel the length and breadth of the country in search of the landscapes that inspired him. Ellie Harrison is in Warwickshire, rediscovering the ancient Forest of Arden and looking at Shakespeare's intimate knowledge of plants. Matt Baker visits the Clydach Gorge, a magical hidden valley on the edge of the Brecon Beacons National Park, where local legend says Shakespeare wrote A Midsummer Night's Dream. Meanwhile, John Craven is joined by Dame Judi Dench, one of Britain's best-loved Shakespearian actors. Together, they follow in the footsteps of Shakespeare and his players to Fordwich in Kent, where they performed for the town in 1605. Joe Crowley visits the Minack Theatre in Cornwall to see how Shakespeare has had a dramatic effect on our landscape. And Adam looks at Shakespeare's relationship with the lucrative wool trade and takes sheep back to the centre of Stratford-upon-Avon for the first time in over a century.

Ellie Harrison visits the South Haven Peninsula in Dorset to tell the story of conservation's unsung hero Captain Cyril Diver. Diver was a champion of conservation and broke new ground in the 1930s, surveying the whole ecosystem of the peninsula. Ellie spends the day with the National Trust's ecologist Michelle Brown to find out what the Trust have been doing 80 years on from Diver's survey and what the future holds for this diverse landscape. Ellie also talks about her passion and love for nature and conservation, and she takes a look back through the Countryfile archives to see how conservation projects are making a difference across the country.

Matt Baker explores the Dartington estate in south Devon to discover the innovative history of the place, meet the farmers who are turning their goat's milk into ice cream and find out about the vertical farming taking root in the grounds. Anita Rani sees how to make the softest of sheepskin and meets the woman who has turned her cottage industry into a thriving business selling natural, handmade soap, and Adam Henson looks at the livestock being bred specifically for conservation. The programme also visits the Food and Farming Awards to reveal this year's Countryfile Farming Hero. Plus there is a look at European turtle doves - they are in decline, but in one country it is legal to hunt them as they migrate back to their European breeding grounds. Tom Heap travels to Malta to investigate a tradition causing controversy across the continent.

This special programme travels the length and breadth of the country to provide a snapshot of spring, from shoreline and shingle to farmland and fell, we discover signs of new life as the season unfurls. Including dolphins in Cardigan Bay, one of the UK's last remaining hay meadows, a Roman fort in Alderney, the largest vegetated shingle spit in Europe and a look at the start of the shellfish season.

From carrots to cauliflower, peas to parsnips we are a nation of vegetable lovers. To mark National Vegetarian Week, Countryfile is taking a look at all things veggie. Matt Baker is at the heart of the Jersey Royal Potato Harvest. Ellie Harrison gets artistic with her vegetables to create a landscape photograph with a difference. Naomi Wilkinson tastes the delights of Indian vegetarian cooking. Champion free runner and vegan Tim Shieff goes head to head with sheep farmer Gareth Wyn Jones to debate the pros and cons of veganism. Adam Henson looks into the future of farming when he visits an urban farm built in tunnels 33 metres below the streets of London. And Tom Heap investigates the threats facing vegetable producers and finds out why many feel that the days of British veg are numbered.

Countryfile is in Snowdonia. John Craven races a hill runner to the summit of Snowdon and meets the volunteers protecting the area's osprey. Anita Rani dons her wetsuit to discover that you don't need to be near the sea to go surfing. Joe Crowley meets the artist whose work is taking centre stage in this landscape. And it's all going down on Adam Henson's farm as spring takes hold. The EU referendum is arguably the biggest decision facing our countryside for decades. Tom Heap meets up with the leading figures from both sides of the argument and asks the prime minister and Boris Johnson why rural Britain should vote with them.

To celebrate British Flowers Week, Charlotte Smith and Anita Rani look at the resurgence of British flowers. Charlotte meets a Hampshire farmer who has diversified into British blooms, with as many acres given over to flowers as to food. Charlotte is intoxicated by their fragrance and finds out what it is about the smell of flowers we find so bewitching. Anita Rani visits Covent Garden Flower Market, where she meets the traders doing a roaring trade in roses. Meanwhile, Matt Baker takes to the old pack horse trails through the New Forest and hears how the ponies were used by smugglers to ply their illicit trade. He also visits a farm where water buffalo are the main livestock. Adam Henson gets stuck in with the sheep shearing and hears from farmers about the prices they get for their wool. Tom Heap investigates why areas set up by the government to protect our seas are being branded by some scientists as worse than useless.

Countryfile is in the East Midlands to find out about the region's rural past. Matt Baker takes to the Trent in a kayak and finds out about the effort to clean up the river. He also visits Calverton Fish Farm in Nottinghamshire, where the team teach stocked fish how to be 'wild' in special tanks that force the fish to swim against an artificial current for food. Helen Skelton is in Rutland to meet master miller Nigel Moon. Nigel takes her on as apprentice for the day in his traditional windmill, one of the last in the region. Adam Henson is at the biggest agricultural show in the South West, The Royal Bath and West. John Craven launches 2016's photographic competition, with its theme From Dawn till Dusk. Joining John on the judging team are Dragons' Den's Deborah Meaden, comedian Rhona Cameron and wildlife cameraman Simon King. Matt Baker also reveals the total raised by sales of 2015's calendar. Tom Heap discovers how a global health crisis is impacting the battle against Bovine TB.

This episode comes from Pembrokeshire. John Craven takes to the water to find out about the area's boating heritage, painting boats and learning sea shanties along the way. Helen Skelton is foraging on Freshwater West beach and cooking up a seaweed feast. She also meets the team building the ultimate ecohouse using locally sourced materials. Sanjida O'Connell is on Skomer helping to count the Manx shearwaters who call this island home.And Adam Henson is in Cornwall making a special delivery of rare-breed cattle to the Heligan estate, while Tom Heap is looking at what is being done to reduce greenhouse gas emissions on farms after claims that agriculture produces larger quantities of gases than traffic.

It's tennis season and Countryfile is visiting Kent, where Matt Baker will be finding out about Wimbledon strawberries and getting to grips with the harvest.Naomi Wilkinson is meeting the couple who turned their love of wildlife into an animal rescue centre, looking after everything from hedgehogs to flocks of buzzards. In the shadow of the white cliffs of Dover she'll also be finding out about the long history of channel swimming and donning her wetsuit to try out the ultimate wild swim.John Craven meets a farmer who is growing Chinese vegetables and produce, from pak choi to chrysanthemums, and Adam Henson is at the Royal Three Counties show, meeting youngsters with the farming bug. Plus Tom Heap investigates calls to ban live plant imports and asks what dangers could be hiding in the soil that comes into the country with them.

The Countryfile team explores meadows, from the wildlife that makes the meadow its home to the plants that thrive there. Matt Baker discovers the art of scything with Britain's reigning female scything champion, and also makes hay whilst the sun shines.Naomi Wilkinson meets an artist whose passion for meadows echoes through her vibrant paintings. She explores the RSPB site encouraging birds, bees, bugs and butterflies by introducing a meadow habitat. And she finds out about the rise in popularity of burial meadows.John Craven discovers the folklore behind meadow plants and how their healing properties are being used in modern medicine. And Adam Henson is on his farm looking at his own meadows and grasslands. Tom Heap investigates the lack of affordable housing in Britain's rural areas and asks why we're still not getting it right.

The team visit Cumbria, where Matt Baker looks at the places which inspired the work of Beatrix Potter, marking the 150th anniversary of the writer's birth. Helen Skelton meets a couple who run their farm using horses and steam power, and also finds out about traditional Lakeland sports, including Cumberland wrestling. Naomi Wilkinson meets an artist who captures the inspirational women of the Cumbrian countryside, Adam Henson visits a Capability Brown landscape being restored with heavy horses, and Tom Heap investigates why there are calls across the UK and Europe to ban glyphosate, the world's most used herbicide.

Summer has arrived, and the landscape is in full bloom - it is the perfect time to get out and enjoy the countryside. And in a special programme, Countryfile are cooling down by the water's edge in celebration of the Great British summer. Matt travels along the coastline of south Wales with Sam Evans and Shauna Guinn, known as the first ladies of barbeque, sourcing the best cuts of meat for their summer beach party. Meanwhile, Naomi Wilkinson enjoys a summer evening punt along the River Cam in Cambridge, where she is joined by Iain Webb from the Wildlife Trust on the lookout for a feeding frenzy of bats. John Craven is on the river Waveney in Suffolk bringing in the summertime bulrush harvest for the first time in more than 50 years. Sean Fletcher gets on his bike and heads off the beaten track along the beautiful Pembrokeshire coastline to enjoy a spot of wild camping. And Adam is in Northern Ireland, where summer for one farmer means taking to the water with his cattle.

Countryfile is on the tiny Scottish island of Kerrera. Sitting just half a kilometre from the mainland but a world away from the hustle and bustle, Kerrera is the archetypal Scottish Island. There are rugged cliffs, wide-open beaches and remote farmsteads. Anita spends a day getting to know the locals and getting under the skin of island life. She joins postmaster Gill Vollum as she goes about her daily round - not easy when there's only one half-finished road on the island. She helps shepherd Sheila McGregor round up her sheep and hears that all the farms on Kerrera are run by women. And she stops for a welcome cup of tea at the tea room that serves as the community hub. Anita meets owners Aideen Gallagher and Martin Shields who quit busy jobs on the mainland and finds out what living the island dream is like for them.

2016 is the 60th anniversary of the Duke of Edinburgh Awards scheme, and to mark the occasion Countryfile heads to the wilds of the west Highlands of Scotland. Matt joins the intrepid team mid-way through their five-day Diamond Challenge. They have already scaled Ben Nevis, and when Matt meets them they are canoeing the Great Glen all the way to Inverness. Matt also meets the scientist who has made it her mission to fight the menace of Scotland's infamous midges. Sean meets mountaineer Hamish Macinnes, whose inventions, including his famous stretcher, have saved hundreds of lives.Naomi explores Glencoe's 'Atlantic woodland' - a rich and rare habitat, where she gets a close look at the amazingly intricate lichens and mosses that carpet the woodland. Helen is in the Peak District with a party of schoolchildren undertaking their bronze Duke of Edinburgh, and she walks a stretch of Kinder Scout with HRH Prince Edward, himself a Gold Award holder and trustee of the scheme.And as the red grouse shooting season gets underway, Charlotte Smith meets the supporters and critics of one of Britain's most controversial country pursuits.

The first ever Countryfile Live took place in the magnificent grounds of Blenheim Palace in Oxfordshire - four days in the sunshine celebrating the best of the British Countryside. Matt kicks the programme off with a whistlestop tour of the show, mixing and mingling with exhibitors and visitors, and he calls in at the Craven Arms, Countryfile Live's very own pub.Ellie goes behind the scenes to see what goes into setting up a show on this scale, and she also grabs a quick chat with the Duke of Marlborough, Blenheim's owner, to find out what it's like having such a big show in your garden.Anita steps away from the showground to get up close to some truly magnificent oak trees, many of them more than a thousand years old. John takes to the water to see how ducks are helping restore Blenheim's beautiful ornamental lakes, while Tom and Adam go head to head at the timbers sports arena in a test of strength and speed.And Charlotte Smith looks at what might happen to British foods protected under EU law and catches up with some producers who are worried they will lose a vital protection and others who see a real opportunity.

Countryfile has been given access to an excavation at the Stonehenge World Heritage site, and Joe Crowley meets the team who have discovered strange items buried in the soil at Durrington Walls, not far from the famous stones of Stonehenge. Joe meets archaeologist Julian Richards, a world authority on the stones, and then Hugh Morrison, a tenant farmer at Stonehenge, to see just what sort of problem he faces farming on a World Heritage Site. Anita finds out how Neolithic farmers lived by visiting reconstructions of the types of houses they lived in, and she learns to bake bread the Neolithic way. She also meets the modern-day farmer who has built a Stone Age longbarrow on his land where people can inter the ashes of loved ones. John is joined by fellow judges Deborah Meaden and Simon King to select the final 12 pictures in the Countryfile Photographic Competition, and in a nod to the competition's theme, we spend a day with Adam seeing what happens on his farm 'From Dawn til Dusk'.

It is harvest time, and the countryside is buzzing with activity. The Countryfile team are getting stuck in as crops are brought in across the country. Matt Baker visits the Gaddesden Estate to discover how the harvest here has changed over the years. Anita Rani picks peppermint and concocts cocktails. John Craven is meeting a group of 'nutters' to gather in the cobnut harvest ready for a nutty feast. Joe Crowley investigates the farm brands on sale in supermarkets and asks when is a farm not a farm. Countryfile also plays host to the fortieth anniversary of One Man and His Dog, as England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland send their best shepherds and their dogs to compete for the trophy, and Adam has been meeting the teams to see how they are preparing. This week he is travelling to Wales and Ireland to meet the competitors and their dogs hoping to be crowned champions.

Anita Rani explores Anglesey. She navigates the notorious Menai Strait and meets the fisherman who bought an island. She also gets up close with a wild, bloodsucking creature. Adam Henson has been meeting the teams preparing for the 40th-anniversary edition of One Man and His Dog. The best shepherds and their canine companions from England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland will be competing, all hoping to be crowned champions. This week he catches up with the English and Scottish contenders. Matt Baker launches this year's Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need. Taking place over one weekend in October, the event aims to cover the countryside in Countryfile viewers, all rambling across rural Britain to raise vital funds for the charity. Matt and his fellow presenters John Craven, Anita Rani, Ellie Harrison and Adam Henson will be leading the way on rambles of their own, where they will be joined by youngsters who have benefited from Children in Need funding.

Countryfile marks the 100th anniversary of Roald Dahl's birth by discovering his passion for the great outdoors and how it inspired his writing. John Craven explores Great Missenden, the village where Dahl lived for much of his life. He meets the children's author Piers Torday, who is inspired by both the countryside and by Dahl himself. There is also a look back through the Countryfile archive to the times we have met others inspired by the beautiful countryside, from underwater painters to graffiti artists. Matt Baker has more news on how viewers can take part in the Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need. Last year, thousands of Countryfile viewers took part, helping to raise over ú850,000 and transforming the lives of some of Britain's most disadvantaged youngsters. With a fortnight to go until the 40th-anniversary edition of the legendary One Man and His Dog sheepdog trialling competition, Adam Henson meets the English and Scottish teams hoping to win the trophy.

Matt Baker and Anita Rani preside over proceedings as the best shepherds and their dogs from England, Wales, Ireland and Scotland battle it out for the trophy. While Matt takes to the commentary box, Anita explores the history of the estate and catches up with the friends and family of the competitors.

Anita Rani travels to Surrey to explore the revival of interest in growing hops there. She meets the brewers bringing back the county's fabled white bine hop, helps to get the hop harvest in and gets to sample an unusual brew made with fresh undried hops. She also joins Surrey Wildlife Trust, who are carrying out a survey of small mammals to see how effective wildlife corridors are. Adam Henson is hoping for the right conditions to get the last of his wheat harvest in, and John announces which photograph the public voted winner in the Countryfile Photographic Competition. Tom Heap is on the trail of one of the UK's most loved animals, the red squirrel, and finds out what can be done to halt its decline.

The team look at how rivers and waterways have shaped our landscape. Matt Baker is on the Thames Estuary to meet a writer who draws inspiration from the estuary and its people. He also meets the Port Authority staff who oversee some 30,000 annual ship movements, jumps on the foot ferry that once would have brought livestock into the city and meets an artist making beautiful things from the flotsam brought in on the tide. Sean Fletcher is just a few miles from Matt, finding out what it takes to turn a landfill site into a thriving nature reserve. And Naomi Wilkinson is in Devon at the beautiful Lydford Gorge, meeting a photographer captivated by its waterfall and whose pictures have become an internet sensation. Naomi then takes to the oldest shipping canal in Britain on a paddleboard! Meanwhile, Adam visits Widecombe Fair in Devon - one of the country's last traditional country fairs. And with the badger cull once again well underway, Tom Heap explores the science around bovine TB.

Matt and Anita explore the Isle of Wight. Matt dons a harness and abseils down the walls of Carisbrooke Castle to help root out the overgrown ivy. He then heads to the castle's well, the deepest on the island, to meet Jack and Jill - the Carisbrooke donkeys. Donkeys have been used to draw water from the well for centuries, but when Jack refuses to budge, Matt has no option but to do it himself.Anita has her hands full on Ventnor Downs. It's the day of the annual feral goat round-up, and Anita is joining the human chain of volunteers trying to catch the animals. She also visits the vineyard where the owner is growing red grapes - only possible because of the island's mild climate.That mild climate has also made the Isle of Wight a great place for exotic plants. Naomi is at Ventor Botanic Gardens, where the backdrop is more like southern Europe than southern England.Adam meets the commercial deer owner looking to genetics to breed the best deer he can and, as supermarkets and catering companies pledge to put an end to eggs from caged chickens, Tom Heap asks if this victory for animal welfare is all it's cracked up to be.

To celebrate nature's final flourish before the slow descent into winter, the team pulls on its wellies, kicks through the crisp leaves and explores the fruits of our forests.Anita heads to Somerset for a rare autumnal sight - walnut woodland with laden branches. We meet walnut farmer Roger Saul as he reaps one of Somerset's newest crops, borrowing technology from one of its oldest.Matt is in the wilds of East Sussex to meet Nick Weston, a writer, woodsman and chef who spent six months living off-grid in a tree house built from wood and recycled materials.Tim Shepherd is a botanist who specialises in timelapse filming. We gather young fungi on deadwood from Tim's local woodland to take back to his studio to film them growing.We join Adam as he delivers some of his pigs to a Gloucestershire farmer using this traditional way of animal and woodland management.John investigates the hibernation of dormice on the Isle of Wight.

Matt Baker, John Craven, Anita Rani, Ellie Harrison and Adam Henson take on the Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need.Heading to all corners of the UK, the presenters are joined by members of the public as well as children and young people who have benefited from the charity. Thousands of viewers also join the call and head out in support of the cause.John heads to the coast and Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland with 16 year-old Zahra, who has arthritis. Anita takes to the hills of Wales's Sugar Loaf Mountain in the Brecon Beacon's with 15 year-old Olivia, who has Down's Syndrome, Ellie visits Holyrood Park in Edinburgh with young people from the Jeely Piece Club.Adam walks through Alice Holts Forest in Surrey with the Shilston family, and Matt takes on an epic challenge in the hills of the Lake District with 15 year-old double amputee Levana.

Helen Skelton is on a cycle ride across northern France to commemorate 100 years since the Battle of the Somme. She finds out about the brave cycling battalions that travelled from many parts of rural Britain, to fight there. Helen also meets fellow riders to hear their personal reasons for taking on the cycling challenge. Plus a look back through the Countryfile archives to the times Britain's countryside connections to war and the role of nature in remembrance and rehabilitation were explored. John Craven reveals the role of the humble tractor in the development of the tank, Ellie Harrison experiences the tranquillity of the National Memorial Arboretum and Jules Hudson witnesses the impact of the outdoors on one soldier's recovery from war.

Countryfile visits West Yorkshire, where Matt Baker meets the youngsters who have become RSPB rangers. Anita Rani explores Bronte country and meets an author who literally immerses himself in the landscape. Anita also finds out about an award-winning halloumi cheese producer from Syria. Naomi Wilkinson discovers the challenges facing the fire brigade at Ogden Water, and Adam raises a glass to English wine. Tom Heap investigates claims that sheep farming could become impossible in some parts of Britain within just a few years.

The Countryfile team explores the Brecon Beacons. Matt Baker discovers geocaching, a treasure hunt with a modern twist, and meets an artist whose canvas is the night sky. Helen Skelton is sheep trekking across the landscape and taking part in a rather muddy fish rescue. Sean Fletcher jumps on his bike to meet the farmers who have taken diversification to the extreme, and Adam Henson finds out about a cancer cure for man's best friend. Tom Heap asks how safe horses and riders really are on country roads and if more should be done to protect them.

John, Anita and Ellie are in Lincolnshire, where it's all go in the vast fields of winter veg. John visits a farm where they are harvesting tonnes of caulis and sprouts in readiness for Christmas, and he visits the trial plots where new types of vegetable are being developed, including the kalette, a cross between kale and a brussels sprout. Anita sees how robot technology designed to pull up weeds could cut down on herbicides and even cut down on human labour. Ellie visits the ancient woodland at the edge of an old RAF base where bats have set up home in old wartime buildings, and she discovers that it's not just bats hibernating there - butterflies do it too. Adam talks about his lifelong passion for ducks - one of his favourite farmyard animals. Tom Heap finds out why many of our rivers and waterways are suffering and what farmers can do to help bring them back to life.

Helen, Joe and Sean explore the varied landscapes of Aberdeenshire. From the solitude of the rugged north coast to the deep dark forests where wildcats dwell, it's a surprising county. Helen discovers the only village on mainland Britain where cars can't go. She also visits an open-air aquarium where they hand feed the fish, and she makes lino prints with an artist who takes inspiration from this remote coastline. Joe looks at a project mapping the diminishing wildcat population. Sean visits a turkey farm where the guard dogs are alpacas, and Adam catches up with One Man and His Dog winner Dick Roper. Tom Heap investigates why so many council farms are disappearing from the landscape.

Countryfile celebrates Christmas in style at Bamburgh Castle on the wild and beautiful Northumbrian coast. Anita goes on a festive forage with the jewellery maker who turns natural materials into stunning decorations. Anita also sees what it takes to make an award-winning Christmas pudding. John is on Lindisfarne discovering what the first Christmases in these islands would have been like, before meeting the makers of mead. Ellie gives some hints and tips on how to look after wildlife when the temperature drops. Adam is with the hill shepherd watching her flocks, and Tom wonders if a lack of bell ringers could cause some churches to fall silent this Christmas.

Ellie Harrison visits Thirsk in Yorkshire to celebrate the centenary of vet Alf White, known to the world as James Herriot. Ellie meets his daughter and his son, as well as the vets running his practice today. She learns of the landscapes and people that inspired James Herriot's books and finds out what life was really like for a rural vet. She also meets up with actor Christopher Timothy, who portrayed James Herriot in the television series All Creatures Great and Small. Plus a look back through the Countryfile archive to rediscover the people who dedicate their time and efforts to helping animals, including the time when John met the team giving hedgehogs a helping hand through Christmas and the winter months, the dramatic moment when Joe assisted a stag caught up in fencing, and when Ellie met the woman who paints horses to help others understand them.

Ellie and Matt look at how the geology of the Peaks has lead to two distinct landforms. Sean reports from Haddon Hall looking at the buildings restoration. Adam looks at the story of the tractor. Tom finds out the return of wild boars to the Forest of Dean isn't going down too well.

Matt and Ellie are in Coverack, helping the locals get ready for the Christmas festivities. John heads to Truro to discover what became known as the most famous carol service in the world. Tom meets a community who are getting behind their fishermen in a very festive way. Adam explores how a day on the Cornish farm is so busy at Christmas. Sean Fletcher gets a cookery masterclass from Rick Stein.

Adam prepares for the year ahead on the farm, whilst looking back at highlights from the past years programming.