Countrystride
Countrystride
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Top 10 Countrystride Episodes
Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Countrystride episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Countrystride for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Countrystride episode by adding your comments to the episode page.
Countrystride #33: A brief history of Cumbria
Countrystride
07/17/20 • 52 min
1 Listener
12/20/18 • 49 min
...in which we brave the drizzle to walk from Dove Cottage in Townend along the old corpse road round Grasmere to join the festivities at Allan Bank. En route we talk with Marian Veevers about how William and Dorothy Wordsworth celebrated Christmas, and hear from the National Trust's Elaine Taylor about seasonal Cumbrian traditions. We close with music from the Cumbrian Duo, who play us out with a traditional local wassailing tune.
With thanks to The Cumbrian Duo for the original music from their album Hunsup through the Wood.
10/19/24 • 46 min
...in which we take an autumn stroll into Grizedale Forest with local-born author Rebecca Smith to explore the hidden history of working class people in the countryside.
Exploring the expansive pine plantations north of Satterthwaite, we learn about Rebecca's idyllic childhood roaming the Graythwaite Estate, where her father was head forester. Seeking out elusive Bogle Crag, we consider the class ambiguity of living in the shadow of 'the big house', and the mixed blessings of tied housing for foresters and farmers.
Taking a long view of the rural working class, Rebecca talks about her grandfather and great-grandfather, and the reality of navvy lives – including at Thirlmere – that were tough, transient and are largely forgotten today.
On a mission to find 'Black Apple Tree', we reflect on the social impacts of mass tourism and the risk of dysfunction in rural economies that lose the workers they rely upon. Finally, we ask: why have the Coniston raves been airbrushed from history?
- Rebecca's book, Rural: The Lives of the Working Class Countryside, is available at all good bookshops (we recommend local!).
Countrystride #1: Scafell Pike - Roof of England
Countrystride
10/11/18 • 40 min
#142: Review of 2024
Countrystride
12/30/24 • 104 min
...in which we unwrap a selection box of our favourite clips from the year past in the company of Cumbria Wildlife Trust's Jamie Normington and Low Sizergh Barn co-owner Alison Park.
Featuring clips from, among others, James Robinson, Eileen Jones, Mark Hatton, Phoebe Smith, April Windle, Mark Cropper, Angus Winchester and Peter Todhunter, we sift through 19 episodes and 20 hours of recordings from as far flung as Newlands, Windermere, Seathwaite, Orton and Great Moss.
In our annual extended fire-side chat – in which we pick our Cumbrian Book of the Year and Walk of the year – we cover buses, bars and burial cairns; we discuss rainforests, regeneration and gathering the Rough Fell; we visit Barrow, Borrowdale and the Back o' Skiddaw; we reflect on the increasingly precarious business of hill farming; we consider Cumbria Wildlife Trust’s acquisition of 3,000 acres of Skiddaw Forest, and we close by remembering King of the Fells, Joss Naylor.
- Alison can be found at Low Sizergh Barn.
#130: Goldscope – The wealth of Newlands
Countrystride
08/02/24 • 62 min
...in which we journey deep into Newlands to tell the remarkable story of Elizabethen copper mining, and the part it played in making Keswick the birthplace of modernity.
Leaving Little Town in the company of the inimitable Mark Hatton, we ascend the flanks of Hindscarth, and rewind time to the 1560s, to when England's war footing meant a domestic supply of copper was a matter of national security.
Entering the hand-picked addit that drives through Scope End, we learn about the pioneering German miners who – in the year of Shakespeare's birth – brought their skills to a backwater Lake District valley; and we seek out one of the most audacious engineering feats of its age: a stream, diverted between valleys through the mountain to power an underground waterwheel.
Suitably wowed, we trace the copper ore's ancient route – above the marshy bottoms of Newlands into Keswick – to reflect on the social impacts of an immigrant population, and the ensuing violence... and baby boom.
Arriving by the all-but-ignored former smelter site at Brigham (below the A66 flyover), we discover old tunnels and leats that channeled water to the most important industrial site of its age.
As we digest a lost Lake District story, we consider the fate of the Germans who stayed, and the legacy of an industry that shaped national economics, politics, law... and plenty of future Keswickians.
- Mark is on X at https://x.com/thehatton
10/11/18 • 46 min
...In which we gain a farmer’s perspective on life close to Hadrian’s Wall. Stockmen and women converse about their lives and the age-old cycle of the seasons stretching back long before the Romans imposed their frontier. We walk from an organic dairy farm which produces fabulous cheese to a traditional upland smallholding along the Maiden Way and Hadrian’s Wall National Trail.
11/16/24 • 51 min
...in which we take an autumnual stroll around Grasmere to explore the history of fell-running with runner, archivist and west coast lad Peter Todhunter.
Setting out from the village green – one-time site of Westmorland wrestling matches – we visit the field below Allan Bank, where the first known Guides Race took place in 1868.
As a traditional Cumbrian 'sports day' grew to encompass hound trailing, boating, 'high leaping' and horse-racing – alongside the emerging discipline of fell-running – we consider the locational moves necessitated by an ever-growing number of competitors (often farm workers, gamekeepers and miners) and visitors.
Moving into the modern era, we profile the first fell-running superstars, including Ernest Dalziel – the legend of Burnsall – and Keswick's own Bob Graham, who completed his iconic 42-peak Round in tennis shoes. We consider the growing list of endurance events that developed on the fells, from the 24-hour Challenge to the Mountain Trial, and the emergence of the amateur fell-running scene that dominates the sport today.
Arriving at the Showfield – site of Grasmere Sports – Peter reflects on the achievements and legacy of his much-missed friend, Joss Naylor; tells us why Robinson is the greatest fell of all; reveals why a set of the Wainwright Guides are his desert island reads; and answers the perennial Bob conundrum... why Great Calva?.
- 'Running Int’ Fells' is an exhibition that shares the history, spirit and enjoyment of running on the fells, from the beginnings at Grasmere Sports to ultra and trail running events today. The exhibition is on at The Armitt until 21 December, 2024.
07/31/20 • 54 min
05/29/20 • 57 min
- The podcast features recordings of the 'Keswick Bonnie Lasses' from Striding Edge and 'My Love she’s but a Lassie’ from the Boat Band’s ‘Trip to the Lakes’ - more details below.
The Boat Band and Greg Stephens
Greg Stephens has been researching old Cumbrian tunes since the 60's. He plays with the Boat Band, who in 2001 recorded 'A Trip to the Lakes', an album of old tunes. They recorded it to celebrate the first Duddon Valley Folk Folk festival, held when the foot and mouth lockdown was eased at the end of that disastrous summer for the valley. The record was subsequently issued by Harbourtown Records in 2009 to enormous acclaim.
The Boat Band has been playing since 1989, seventeen times at Glastonbury Festival, once at the St Kilda International Cajun Festival, and most points in between. Currently (May 2020) in lockdown like everyone else, but hoping to be playing again soon. In the Newfield Inn in the Duddon valley, or wherever.
contact: [email protected]
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FAQ
How many episodes does Countrystride have?
Countrystride currently has 145 episodes available.
What topics does Countrystride cover?
The podcast is about Places & Travel, Society & Culture, Nature, Podcasts and Science.
What is the most popular episode on Countrystride?
The episode title 'Countrystride #33: A brief history of Cumbria' is the most popular.
What is the average episode length on Countrystride?
The average episode length on Countrystride is 55 minutes.
How often are episodes of Countrystride released?
Episodes of Countrystride are typically released every 14 days, 6 hours.
When was the first episode of Countrystride?
The first episode of Countrystride was released on Oct 11, 2018.
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