Countrywise — Season 1, Episode 1: Introduction
Documentary • 30 min • 4 seasons, 84 episodes • ★ 3.0/10
Episode synopsis
"The countryside is my home. I love the landscape, and share with the people who live and work there, the endless fascination about what makes it tick. Countrywise is going to take me into every corner of rural Britain. Who could turn down a job like that?" This spring a new series for ITV1 showcases the fabric of Britain's rural and coastal life. Countrywise dedicates 36 episodes to the riches which lie beyond Britain’s major cities. It is presented by journalist turned farmer and sailor Paul Heiney. Countrywise highlights exactly what makes our countryside tick. Combining items presented by Paul with features drawn from ITV’s regions, the programme takes in the breadth of Britain's countryside, from its crumbliest coastline and happiest valley, to its secret tunnels, rescued gardens and haunted hills. On his travels around rural Britain, Paul Heiney visits the only place in the UK to grow tea, learns the inside story of Dover's white cliffs, and discovers the country's most bizarre beach huts. In these credit-crunch times, a growing number are now turning their backs on foreign breaks and Countrywise provides an invaluable reminder of what's here on our doorstep. Through the stories of the guardians for our landscape, wildlife and traditions, Paul leaves no stone unturned in his quest to uncover the secrets of Britain’s beautiful countryside. (24 episodes in summer + 12 episodes in autumn.)
About Countrywise
Countrywise is a British television series on ITV, in which broadcaster Paul Heiney and the team of reporters look at the best of Britain's coast and country, with contributions from the ITV regions. Quite often, the classical historian Bettany Hughes appears on the programme, when she is introduced as the "Countrywise Historian". The programme began a new series in December 2010 - Countrywise Kitchen, about foraging for food and food connected with different parts of the country. For example, the edition broadcast on 10 December 2010 mentioned gathering mushrooms, and mentioned the cep mushroom. Celebrities who have appeared on the programme include Rachel de Thame, who appeared on the programme on 5 July 2011. The most recent series of the programme began broadcast on 25 June 2012, when it came from the Isle of Man and mentioned the Manx cat. A more recent edition of the programme has come from Ireland.This edition of the programme mentioned how the newest member of the Countrywise team has been the programme's scientist, Charlotte Uhlenbroek, who discussed Finn MacCool when the programme was in Ireland. In late July 2012, the programme was broadcast in Pembrokeshire, Wales, where it visited the smallest city in the United Kingdom, that of St. David's.