Sheep on show!
The pressure is on for a Yorkshire farmer to produce a prize-winning flock...
Unlike most of us in lockdown, black-faced Swaledale sheep have been able to get a summer haircut! In the final film of the A Wild Year trilogy, cameras follow North York Moors farmer Lewis Barraclough and his flock over a year.
From looking after his pregnant ewes in winter through March’s lambing season to summer shearing and showing his sheep at the popular Thorntonle-dale Show, every season is a busy one.
‘Winter on this exposed high country is hard but these tough sheep have been bred for moorland life. In March, the whole valley echoes with the bleating of hundreds of new lambs,’ reveals narrator Toby Jones.
‘In July, Lewis makes a selection of his most handsome Swaledales. The chosen ones receive the full beauty treatment – a facial, pedicure and trim... then it’s show time!’ There’s more to the North York Moors than these iconic sheep, however. We also get a glimpse of birdlife, such as red grouse
(below, left) and curlews, and learn about salmon breeding. Cameras also capture the emergence of an emperor moth (above) and the trapping of mosquitoes by carnivorous sundew plants!
‘The nature of the moors and the valleys has long sustained the wildlife here and the lives of people for thousands of years,’ says Toby. ‘ A Wild Year gives a new perspective on life’s journey through a year on the North York Moors.’