Our Countryside

Pull on your wellies and join us on a dog walk. Lola and I bring our second episode from Poets Walk in Clevedon where we introduce you to three fascinating characters. Dorset dairy farmer Jason Barber tells me about his extraordinary, Vodka producing cows. Listen to enter our competition to win some!Outdoor swim coach Rowan Clarke introduces me to the delights and health benefits of outdoor swimming.And I chat music, food and nature with Countryfile Magazine Editor and fellow ‘plodcaster’ Fergus Collins.Get ready to be immersed in wholesome, light-hearted and rural inspired audio.  Further reading: Jason Barber Black Cow Vodka“..we don’t tow an ice-berg down from the arctic, we don’t take water from a bubbling brook or a peaceful wood. Everything in our vodka is made from milk. ” Facebook  blackcowvodka Instagram @blackcowvodka Twitter      @blackcowvodka www.blackcow.co.uk  Rowan Clarke Outdoor Swim Coach“’people often have a story and a reason why they’ve come to outdoor swimming and they just need a bit of help and guidance to get them started.”www.outdoorswimcoach.com  Instagram @_finsandgoggles_ Facebook rowclarkeoutdoorsEmail: [email protected] Fergus Collins Editor Country File Magazine and Podcast “..there’s a very embarrassing squeal that I make as it [barn owl] brushes past me within six inches of my face.. and it’s nice to capture that.. but I wished I’d managed to keep my composure.”https://www.countryfile.com/podcast/  Twitter @blorengeviews 

Pull on your wellies and join us on a dog walk. Lola and I bring our first episode from Weston-super-Mare beach where we introduce you to three fascinating characters - and even a competition.Discover how Steep Holm measures up to the romantic image of the uninhabited island. Warden Christopher Maslen gives us his unique and extraordinary perspective on this fascinating outpost in the Bristol Channel.Leading fused glass designer Jo Downs talks Cornwall, chemistry and Elton John. And did I mention there’s a competition for you to  enter? You don’t have long to be in with a chance of winning a beautiful handmade piece of Jo Downs art.And if you're a keen birder who likes their Poldark or Natural History telly,  the chances are at some point you've seen birds who have been trained by TV Bird Specialist Lloyd Buck. I get the low-down on the surprisingly funny and incredible life of starlings.  Get ready to be immersed in wholesome, light-hearted and rural inspired audio. Further reading:Christopher Maslen Steep Holm Warden“It’s a piece of wilderness that will stay a piece of wilderness, so as time goes on and wilderness gets rarer and rarer, it will be a beacon in the middle of the channel” www.steepholm.onlineInstagram @steepholmislandTwitter      @SteepHolmIslandwww.bayislandvoyages.co.uk Jo Downs Fused Glass Artist“Grabbed me by the scruff of the neck and said, ‘Look Jo, 1 in 2000 people have this talent and I’m not going to let you waste it.’”“I just made sure I was there at 6 O’Clock in the morning on the day of booking.. to use the kiln. I’d sit there for 3 hours in the cold.. so I could teach myself how to do fusing.”www.jodowns.comTwitter @jodownsglassInstagram @jodownsglassFacebook @ jodownshandmadeglass

I'm Victoria and together with my beautiful Boxer dog Lola, we welcome you to Our Countryside Podcast. Join us on our dog walks in the South West of England. Each show is introduced from a field, woodland or a beach perhaps. I'll give a little insight to this place whilst my colleague Lola the Boxer partakes in a little countryside management (i.e chews up a stick) before introducing a set of conversations with people I know you are just going to love! Local producers, farmers, artists, naturalists...Coming up in my first episode I speak with the delightful Jo Downs, Glass Artist from Launceston. She takes all her inspiration from the Cornish landscape that is her home. And I discover what life is REALLY like on Steep Holm - an island situated in the Bristol Channel, as I chat with Warden Chris Maslen. Such a unique and fascinating character. Is it really the romance and poetry I thought it was?  And if you're a keen birder who likes their Poldark or Natural History telly,  the chances are at some point you've seen birds who have been trained by TV Bird Specialist Lloyd Buck. I get the low-down on the surprisingly funny and incredible life of Starlings.  Perfect Sunday Listening. So get the Maris Pipers on, boil the kettle and scald the pot. Get ready to be immersed in wholesome, light-hearted and rural inspired audio.