Countryfile spring Diaries
John Craven on why the arrival of spring is the best time of year
holiday Mon-fri / BBC1 ‘He who tires of the British countryside, tires of life!’ says presenter John Craven. Townies like me will appreciate the highlights from Exmoor in the Countryfile companion show.
NEW FACTUAL Countryfile Spring Diaries hol Mon-fri/ BBC1 / 9.00am & 9.15am
If only every day John Craven spent in the fields, moors and woodlands of our beautiful countryside was as perfect as the one dawning when we catch up with the Spring Diaries presenter in Exmoor.
‘It’s glorious here,’ says John. ‘We’ve got blue skies and the West Country is looking its best, which is exactly what we want.’
John, 76, will be enjoying the delights of the Devon countryside (and the odd cream tea) while his four co-presenters Jules Hudson, Paul Martin, Margherita Taylor and Keeley Donovan will be revealing early spring highlights from around the country as the daily morning show – little sister of the hugely popular Countryfile – returns for a second year.
How does it feel to be back filming Countryfile Diaries?
It’s great, I love it. It’s such a nice addition to the Sunday-night show. We can go into a lot more detail about the great things that happen at this time of year as everything bursts into life again.
What are you up to in Devon? Yesterday I unveiled a wonderful stainless-steel statue called ‘The Walker’ in Lynmouth, where four main coastal walking routes meet – The South West Coast Path,
The Coleridge Way, The Two Moors Way and the
Tarka Trail. After 28 years of presenting Countryfile, is there a corner of the UK you haven’t been to? It’s always possible to discover new places. The Yorkshire Dales are, for me, the most wonderful place, and I recently discovered a little dale near Settle, called Crummack Dale. It has the most amazing natural constructions of stone, with huge boulders perched on top of tiny ones.
It’s such an unexpected sight.
Do you think you will ever tire of the Great British countryside? He who tires of the British countryside, tires of life! Even through the fog, rain and ice that we often face, I’m always happy to meet people in the countryside who have wonderful stories to tell.
How would you spend your perfect spring day?
It would have to be a walk through bluebell-strewn fields down to the sea. Actually, today we are in The Valley of the Rocks, to the west of the village of Lynton. It has a stark beauty all of its own, and I can’t think of a nicer place to go on a wonderful day like this.