:00:27. > :00:29.With golden beaches, rolling shingle,
:00:30. > :00:32.and one of the most stunning wetland areas in the country,
:00:33. > :00:38.has been inspiring artists for generations.
:00:39. > :00:43.that the legendary composer Benjamin Britten
:00:44. > :00:48.I'm going to be following in his footsteps,
:00:49. > :00:50.finding out about the county he adored
:00:51. > :00:59.the perfect combination for growing crops.
:01:00. > :01:03.It's where man would often have been seen working alongside beast
:01:04. > :01:08.Now, these magnificent Suffolk Punch horses
:01:09. > :01:12.able to pull twice their own body weight,
:01:13. > :01:15.but tractors took away their livelihoods
:01:16. > :01:20.and now there are fewer than 500 of this breed left in the entire world.
:01:21. > :01:26.those desperate to keep the Suffolk Punch horse working.
:01:27. > :01:30.looking at claims that life as a hill farmer
:01:31. > :01:36.Making a living from livestock in the uplands
:01:37. > :01:41.But could changes to the way farmers are funded
:01:42. > :01:50.But you CAN still find optimism for the future of the industry.
:01:51. > :01:53.I'm here in Snowdonia, meeting up with a very lucky young lady
:01:54. > :01:59.to run this beautiful and iconic Welsh hill farm.
:02:00. > :02:12.And I'll be finding out what her plans are for the year ahead.
:02:13. > :02:16.The East Anglian county of Suffolk is a lyrical landscape
:02:17. > :02:22.rich in natural and cultural heritage.
:02:23. > :02:24.I'm heading to the coastal town of Aldeburgh,
:02:25. > :02:30.where one of our best-loved musicians made his home.
:02:31. > :02:33.Suffolk has been inspiring creative minds for generations.
:02:34. > :02:39.One of the most famous is composer Benjamin Britten.
:02:40. > :02:43.This Friday marks the centenary of Britten's birth.
:02:44. > :02:46.His passion for music was apparent from a young age,
:02:47. > :02:53.he was always drawn back home to the county he loved.
:02:54. > :02:59.he found international fame in 1945 with his opera Peter Grimes.
:03:00. > :03:02.In later years, he created the Aldeburgh Music Festival
:03:03. > :03:06.to educate and support young artists.
:03:07. > :03:09.His career was followed closely by the media,
:03:10. > :03:13.leaving us with a detailed archive of his life.
:03:14. > :03:15.Benjamin Britten would walk out here for hours,
:03:16. > :03:18.taking inspiration from the landscape.
:03:19. > :03:21.is associated with the Suffolk coastline,
:03:22. > :03:32.I'm on a walk Britten loved - Sailor's Path.
:03:33. > :03:35.It's a six-mile route which follows the River Alde
:03:36. > :03:37.from Snape to the coastal town of Aldeburgh,
:03:38. > :03:42.where he lived with his personal and professional partner Peter Pears.
:03:43. > :03:46.a man who knows all there is to know about Britten,
:03:47. > :03:50.to discover more about one of his lesser-known operas.
:03:51. > :03:56.the sort of slightly mystic-looking church -
:03:57. > :03:59.would have been something he really gained a lot from.
:04:00. > :04:02.This was his inspiration. Indeed, yeah.
:04:03. > :04:06.which is very much based in East Anglian mysticism,
:04:07. > :04:09.this is where he would have come to get the ideas.
:04:10. > :04:12.Not one of his most famous works, by any stretch,
:04:13. > :04:20.which Britten saw in the '50s on a trip to the Far East
:04:21. > :04:24.and then, in a very typical way for him, he would have come back here -
:04:25. > :04:29."How can I use that in my own setting, with the place that I love?"
:04:30. > :04:33.Incredible. How do you move from Japan to Anglia? Indeed.
:04:34. > :04:36.Not the most logical progression, but it works very well,
:04:37. > :04:39.and as a consequence it's very, very atmospheric.
:04:40. > :04:42.So, I've got some of it here, so if you give it a listen...
:04:43. > :05:03.FLUTE PLAYS # Curlews of the Fenland... #
:05:04. > :05:06.You can hear the curlews actually, can't you, in the music?
:05:07. > :05:09.Indeed, and there's a big population of curlews round here
:05:10. > :05:11.and that's something that Britten would have seen,
:05:12. > :05:13.and I think that's a really nice hook for him,
:05:14. > :05:22.is such a nice sort of link to this location.
:05:23. > :05:25.And did he wander around with a paper and pen making notes?
:05:26. > :05:27.Not at all, that was the phenomenal thing.
:05:28. > :05:30.He was able to hold ideas in his head, to sort of file them away,
:05:31. > :05:34.and literally just soaked up everything,
:05:35. > :05:38.then would have walked back, gone home, sat in his studio,
:05:39. > :05:46.and this would have poured out of him.
:05:47. > :05:48.At the end of the Sailor's Path walk is The Red House,
:05:49. > :05:52.where Britten composed some of his most famous works.
:05:53. > :05:57.His studio today feels as though he's just left the room.
:05:58. > :06:00.It is quite sort of spartan in many respects -
:06:01. > :06:02.Britten was someone who liked cold baths,
:06:03. > :06:05.he liked that kind of puritanical thing.
:06:06. > :06:08.But such beautiful artefacts in the room and everywhere.
:06:09. > :06:12.In some ways both Britten and Pears were hoarders.
:06:13. > :06:17.from the first jottings of his trip to Japan,
:06:18. > :06:19.right up to the manuscripts and sort of costume designs
:06:20. > :06:22.and things like that, it tells the story right way through.
:06:23. > :06:24.And this is one of the original manuscripts.
:06:25. > :06:29.and this would have been his first attempt at writing it down.
:06:30. > :06:32.What's remarkable is the clarity on the page,
:06:33. > :06:35.it's not sort of a torn-together, very, very roughshod,
:06:36. > :06:40.which indicates, really, the clarity in his own brain.
:06:41. > :06:47.This is an instrument that Britten brought back from Japan in 1956.
:06:48. > :06:53.which is used to accompany the Noh theatre that Britten saw.
:06:54. > :06:55.And when he brought that idea back here
:06:56. > :06:59.and rooted it in his East Anglian community,
:07:00. > :07:03.he mimicked the sound of this very strange oriental instrument,
:07:04. > :07:06.which plays sort of clustery chords. Blow in here?
:07:07. > :07:10.Yes, blow in the mouthpiece with your fingers on the little holes.
:07:11. > :07:14.OK. Let's see if we can do a rendition of Curlew River.
:07:15. > :07:23.It's not. There's a certain element of passing out involved,
:07:24. > :07:26.there's a lot of puff required. But it's a very strange sound,
:07:27. > :07:34.and I think you have to be a very skilled master to play it.
:07:35. > :07:37.Curlew River was one of the three Church Operas Britten wrote.
:07:38. > :07:42.It was well received, and premiered 12 years before his death.
:07:43. > :07:46.By that time, he was considered to be the country's leading composer,
:07:47. > :07:54.He was offered a grand funeral at Westminster Abbey,
:07:55. > :07:56.but that wasn't Benjamin Britten's style.
:07:57. > :08:03.He wanted to be buried here, in his beloved home county.
:08:04. > :08:07.I've come here to meet one of his close friends, Stuart Bedford.
:08:08. > :08:10.What's your first memory of Benjamin Britten?
:08:11. > :08:12.I'm not sure that I can place it is exactly,
:08:13. > :08:17.but it would have to be either 1947 or '48.
:08:18. > :08:21.We got up to all sorts of wonderful games.
:08:22. > :08:27.He had an enormous sense of fun, it was the thing he adored most.
:08:28. > :08:30.and he would pick up a fork and twang it
:08:31. > :08:36.He took his music very, very seriously though.
:08:37. > :08:38.There was a lot of tension around when he was working.
:08:39. > :08:50.What does this piece of music evoke in you?
:08:51. > :08:56.I was intimately involved with the Church Operas.
:08:57. > :09:04.What was it like, then, making this transition
:09:05. > :09:08.larking around with him in the garden,
:09:09. > :09:11.to actually working with him professionally one stage?
:09:12. > :09:14.It was like two different worlds. It really was.
:09:15. > :09:19.Because that side of him was very much covered up.
:09:20. > :09:22.It was still there, you could get it out of him
:09:23. > :09:24.if he was playing a game or something.
:09:25. > :09:27.The music was his profession, and really serious.
:09:28. > :09:29.But I worked with him for at least ten years,
:09:30. > :09:43.A stained-glass window was commissioned
:09:44. > :09:46.as a memorial to Britten in Aldeburgh Church.
:09:47. > :09:50.It features the three Church Operas with Curlew River at its centre.
:09:51. > :09:55.But his lasting legacy will always be his music.
:09:56. > :09:58.Any time he touched the keyboard there was magic there.
:09:59. > :10:07.to get exactly the right colour out of the piano.
:10:08. > :10:10.Nobody else had ever done anything like that.
:10:11. > :10:15.Did you know him as Benjamin, Mr Britten...? Ben. Always.
:10:16. > :10:19.I said, "What do we call you now you're a Lord?"
:10:20. > :10:39.Farming the uplands is one of the toughest jobs in agriculture.
:10:40. > :10:49.things could be taking a turn for the worse.
:10:50. > :10:53.Britain's uplands, bleak yet beautiful.
:10:54. > :11:00.The farmers who work this land have one of the country's hardest jobs.
:11:01. > :11:03.It's tough to make a living from farming up here
:11:04. > :11:07.with the rugged terrain, the fierce weather,
:11:08. > :11:10.and the huge areas of rough land - in fact many people say
:11:11. > :11:16.without European subsidies it'd be virtually impossible.
:11:17. > :11:21.Nigel Miller and his two sons farm 550 hectares -
:11:22. > :11:35.Well, this is this year's land crop, that we'll be taking over the winter.
:11:36. > :11:38.These are all ewe lambs, and they're getting their fluke dose,
:11:39. > :11:43.to just get rid of liver fluke before the winter comes.
:11:44. > :11:46.He's run this farm for over 30 years,
:11:47. > :11:50.working the exposed hills in all seasons and all weather.
:11:51. > :11:54.But on its own, this hard graft doesn't pay the bills,
:11:55. > :12:00.and he's in no doubt where he'd be without a helping hand from Europe.
:12:01. > :12:03.It looks like a tough job physically as well as economically.
:12:04. > :12:07.out of the hill-farming side of this business?
:12:08. > :12:10.We've got a strange business, it's about half hill land,
:12:11. > :12:15.I would guess about ?10,000 a year is generated off the hill land.
:12:16. > :12:19.Roughly how much of that is made from the subsidy, the farm payments?
:12:20. > :12:23.we probably wouldn't be making any profit at all.
:12:24. > :12:27.That's the difference it makes, it's absolutely key? It is critical.
:12:28. > :12:30.Shall we get the last batch through and get these ones out?
:12:31. > :12:34.'The latest farm income figures show that without support
:12:35. > :12:37.'most hill farms across the UK would make a loss
:12:38. > :12:43.'They're only kept afloat by cash coming from subsidies
:12:44. > :12:46.'through the Common Agricultural Policy.
:12:47. > :12:54.But now both the amount of cash and the way it's shared around
:12:55. > :13:03.and that's likely to have a big impact in Scotland.
:13:04. > :13:06.'This summer, the governments of the European Union got together
:13:07. > :13:10.'to negotiate a brand-new Common Agricultural Policy.'
:13:11. > :13:14.So does subsidy help you with a bit of this as well? It does, yeah...
:13:15. > :13:22.'but also to money available for environmental schemes,
:13:23. > :13:25.'like the one that paid for this woodland planting.'
:13:26. > :13:27.This is the time of year just to check out
:13:28. > :13:29.whether they've done well over the summer,
:13:30. > :13:32.and if they haven't, we'll just pull the tube out
:13:33. > :13:34.and we know these are blanks we've got to fill in the spring.
:13:35. > :13:42.'As he's also President of Scotland's farming union,
:13:43. > :13:46.'Nigel's being paying close attention to how changes to the CAP
:13:47. > :13:50.'are likely to affect him and his fellow Scottish farmers.'
:13:51. > :13:54.So how are the way they calculate these payments
:13:55. > :14:00.Well, historically, support in Europe was very much based on production,
:14:01. > :14:04.so a farm like this, the number of cows, sheep that you kept,
:14:05. > :14:07.the amount of barley you grew, that fixed your payment. Right.
:14:08. > :14:11.and we're going to go to an area payment system,
:14:12. > :14:18.so that every hectare of land gets a standard payment.
:14:19. > :14:22.There are worries that this could mean many Scottish hill farmers
:14:23. > :14:27.Especially when you add into the mix the 13% reduction
:14:28. > :14:32.in overall farming subsidies across the EU.
:14:33. > :14:35.I think the area payment system is quite a blunt tool,
:14:36. > :14:41.and in Scotland almost certainly there'll be a tiered system -
:14:42. > :14:43.the lower ground will get quite high payments
:14:44. > :14:45.and the hill land will get relatively low payments.
:14:46. > :14:48.Now, for hill farmers that's a bit tough,
:14:49. > :14:52.within the hill area the money gets averaged out
:14:53. > :14:55.over all the farms, so that those that are the most active,
:14:56. > :14:57.the most productive, will tend to be big losers.
:14:58. > :15:00.How much of a hit is this going to be for you, do you think?
:15:01. > :15:04.Well, our area payment just now, or single farm payment,
:15:05. > :15:07.is moderate, it's about 180 euros a hectare,
:15:08. > :15:11.and that reflects the cattle we had in the past.
:15:12. > :15:14.Going into the new system, the area payment on our hill land
:15:15. > :15:17.could be 40, 30, 50 euros - we're not sure yet.
:15:18. > :15:30.but England's already been operating this area-based system since 2005.
:15:31. > :15:32.So it seems only fair to bring Scotland
:15:33. > :15:36.and the UK's other home nations into line
:15:37. > :15:43.In the tangled web of European deal-making, though,
:15:44. > :15:51.Time for a masterclass on current subsidy payments.
:15:52. > :15:56.The total Common Agricultural Policy subsidy is decided in Brussels,
:15:57. > :16:00.and it's there too that they decide how much each member state will get.
:16:01. > :16:08.and they reckon that the UK deserves 229 euros per hectare on average.
:16:09. > :16:12.Then, the Government in the UK, in Westminster, decide -
:16:13. > :16:15.with some consultation with the individual nations -
:16:16. > :16:26.Northern Ireland get the most, with 339.
:16:27. > :16:31.Whereas Scotland appear to be the losers,
:16:32. > :16:39.So, Northern Ireland end up with almost three times
:16:40. > :16:41.the per-hectare payments of Scotland,
:16:42. > :16:44.which appears to lag way behind everyone else.
:16:45. > :16:50.at the Scottish Parliament they feel somewhat short-changed.
:16:51. > :16:54.Scotland gets by far the lowest level per-hectare payment
:16:55. > :16:59.and indeed the whole of Europe, it looks like, under the new formula.
:17:00. > :17:01.That's based on historic reasons from many years ago,
:17:02. > :17:04.and for all kinds of political reasons and negotiated reasons.
:17:05. > :17:07.That's a bit of a scandal, it's caused huge anger in this country.
:17:08. > :17:11.Europe allocates the money to the UK on the basis of the total area,
:17:12. > :17:15.but then it's unequally distributed within the UK. What do you think?
:17:16. > :17:19.Well, one of the reasons why Europe adopted this new formula
:17:20. > :17:21.is because they want the payments right across Europe
:17:22. > :17:23.to be on more of a level playing field,
:17:24. > :17:25.and that should happen within the UK as well.
:17:26. > :17:27.But the UK still qualifies for a bit of an uplift
:17:28. > :17:33.so that's about worth about 220 million euros between 2014 and 2020.
:17:34. > :17:37.So clearly, in Scotland we feel 100% of that uplift the UK is getting
:17:38. > :17:39.because of Scotland's low level of payments
:17:40. > :17:54.But these issues are being decided many miles from Edinburgh.
:17:55. > :17:57.And claims that their northern neighbours get a rough deal
:17:58. > :18:03.are met with some scepticism here at the heart of Westminster.
:18:04. > :18:07.Scotland has tended to have a lower allocation per hectare
:18:08. > :18:10.simply because historically its land was less productive,
:18:11. > :18:13.and it's important to note that per farm in Scotland,
:18:14. > :18:16.because the farm units tend to be larger,
:18:17. > :18:20.per farm they tend to get greater payments than other parts of the UK.
:18:21. > :18:23.For the first time, Scotland's doing its own consultation,
:18:24. > :18:25.it's got much more freedom in how it implements the CAP.
:18:26. > :18:28.They will be able to focus more money on the uplands,
:18:29. > :18:35.It's certainly true that some of Scotland's larger landowners
:18:36. > :18:40.and that the UK's individual nations have some leeway
:18:41. > :18:44.to prioritise how their pots of money are spent.
:18:45. > :18:48.But Scotland also insists the UK has just received
:18:49. > :18:54.because generally its farmers get such low levels of cash.
:18:55. > :18:59.Does Defra feel all that money should be heading up north?
:19:00. > :19:01.I don't really accept the arguments being put forward -
:19:02. > :19:06.as I said the reality is that Scottish farms still get per unit
:19:07. > :19:08.more money than a lot of other parts of the UK.
:19:09. > :19:12.Historically they've tended to have lower payments per hectare
:19:13. > :19:14.simply because the land is less productive,
:19:15. > :19:16.and we will listen to the representations
:19:17. > :19:22.but we've got to be fair to all of the constituent parts of the UK.
:19:23. > :19:25.In fact, even since we spoke to the Farming Minister,
:19:26. > :19:30.Defra has decided against passing on this uplift in full.
:19:31. > :19:33.Although it has promised to review the way the UK's individual
:19:34. > :19:36.nation payments are calculated - in 2017.
:19:37. > :19:41.At the sharp end of this political wrangling are farmers like Nigel.
:19:42. > :19:45.that Scotland's lost an awful lot of sheep.
:19:46. > :19:48.We've lost over 1 million sheep since 2000,
:19:49. > :19:51.so things are in a very fragile state.
:19:52. > :19:53.This additional cut is quite frightening.
:19:54. > :19:56.But I think also, at a personal level, at a community level,
:19:57. > :20:00.seeing communities running down is a pretty sad thing,
:20:01. > :20:03.because the farming community is quite a close community
:20:04. > :20:07.it's going to be a difficult few years.
:20:08. > :20:10.probably there's never been a better time to farm.
:20:11. > :20:17.So, despite the cloud of uncertainty on how this deal will play out,
:20:18. > :20:20.Nigel's trying to see the silver lining.
:20:21. > :20:23.Farming these hills has always demanded resilience,
:20:24. > :20:35.and in the short term at least, that quality will continue to count.
:20:36. > :20:41.Today we're exploring Suffolk, a landscape that stirs the imagination.
:20:42. > :20:45.South-west of its wild, expansive coast lie the Claylands,
:20:46. > :21:01.of one of England's finest landscape painters.
:21:02. > :21:05.John Constable famously immortalised the rural character of south Suffolk
:21:06. > :21:10.almost two centuries ago in his paintings.
:21:11. > :21:13.But this beautiful borderland around the River Stour
:21:14. > :21:18.isn't just synonymous with the works of Constable.
:21:19. > :21:21.Another Suffolk great earned its status here
:21:22. > :21:24.and it did so through sheer hard work.
:21:25. > :21:31.A thoroughbred, revered for strength, not speed,
:21:32. > :21:38.this gentle giant made light work of the county's rich yet heavy land.
:21:39. > :21:43.it helped turn Suffolk into the breadbasket of England
:21:44. > :21:47.and worked its way into the hearts of its people.
:21:48. > :21:50.Roger Clark has farmed with the Suffolk Punch,
:21:51. > :21:53.the oldest and rarest of all heavy horses, for 50 years,
:21:54. > :22:08.Roger, how are you doing? Morning, Matt. Welcome to Wylands.
:22:09. > :22:11.Ha-ha, thank you very much. Introduce me to them before we go.
:22:12. > :22:15.Yep, this is Bugle. Bugle! Hello, my man. And that's Jester.
:22:16. > :22:18.So what makes a Suffolk Punch a Suffolk Punch?
:22:19. > :22:21.Face like an angel, middle like a beer barrel
:22:22. > :22:24.and a backside on it like a farmer's daughter.
:22:25. > :22:32.I mean, that amalgamation of power, it's standing here, I mean,
:22:33. > :22:39.They get their height through their depth of heart. Yep.
:22:40. > :22:42.Strong forearms, short cannon. That means they can walk,
:22:43. > :22:45.and when you walk behind these, you'll realise they can walk.
:22:46. > :22:47.But don't forget, with a cart horse, Matt,
:22:48. > :22:50.he's not only got to pull a load, he's got to back a load as well,
:22:51. > :22:53.so this is where the farmer's daughter comes in.
:22:54. > :22:55.You want a good britch and a good second thigh.
:22:56. > :22:57.Right. Cos that's where your strength is.
:22:58. > :23:01.Yeah! And is it right, then, that they can all be traced back
:23:02. > :23:05.to just one horse? Yeah, Crisp's horse of Ufford, 1760.
:23:06. > :23:12.goes back in an unbroken male line to this horse.
:23:13. > :23:18.Good lad. The Suffolk horse was THE agricultural horse.
:23:19. > :23:25.They wouldn't go back to the stable for dinner.
:23:26. > :23:27.They would be fed at five in the morning,
:23:28. > :23:30.they would turn out to work at seven, half past,
:23:31. > :23:34.when the chaps had something to eat during the morning
:23:35. > :23:38.and then they'd finish at three o'clock in the afternoon.
:23:39. > :23:41.For decades, the magnificent sight of a Suffolk Punch
:23:42. > :23:46.to cultivate the land for crops day in, day out,
:23:47. > :23:55.the flat fields of East Anglia were thought ideal
:23:56. > :23:59.for piloting new machinery designed to increase output.
:24:00. > :24:03.The petrol power of tractors would replace the muscle of the Suffolk
:24:04. > :24:11.My mother made me a member of the Suffolk Horse Society in 1964
:24:12. > :24:15.and I was the only new member that year. You know, things were...
:24:16. > :24:19.I mean, it was just on the verge of shutting down.
:24:20. > :24:24.By the '60s, the Suffolk had become almost completely redundant.
:24:25. > :24:30.In 1966, only nine foals were registered.
:24:31. > :24:34.The fate of many of these proud work horses lay in the slaughterhouse.
:24:35. > :24:40.To some farmers, the Suffolk Punch became worth more dead than alive.
:24:41. > :24:44.You'd go to any sale and you might see 200 heavy horses there,
:24:45. > :24:49.and good sorts too, and 95% of them would have gone for slaughter,
:24:50. > :24:51.because there was no trade for them, you see.
:24:52. > :24:59.But thanks to a small number of devotees like Roger,
:25:00. > :25:01.the horse that gave so much to this county
:25:02. > :25:06.has been brought back from the brink of extinction.
:25:07. > :25:09.There are now nearly 500 Suffolk Punches in existence,
:25:10. > :25:12.but that still makes them more critically endangered
:25:13. > :25:17.than the giant panda and the Siberian tiger.
:25:18. > :25:20.I'm very intrigued, Jeanie, that we're standing on what is...
:25:21. > :25:24.It's like a horse version of a snowboard. It is like a sledge, yeah.
:25:25. > :25:29.The plan is to go in and out the cones, find our balance,
:25:30. > :25:36.Just as vital to guaranteeing the Suffolk Punch's future,
:25:37. > :25:42.it's the need to keep the skills to work them alive.
:25:43. > :25:45.20-year-old Jeanie Letch is one of a small number of people
:25:46. > :25:52.Today she's refining her techniques with Suffolks Boxer and Sovereign.
:25:53. > :25:56.I've been with horses all my life, but generally light horses. Right.
:25:57. > :25:58.I wanted to learn something different.
:25:59. > :26:02.And I guess the new generation coming through is so important. Yes, it is.
:26:03. > :26:04.I mean, when the older generation goes,
:26:05. > :26:10.Yeah. I think the history of the Suffolk
:26:11. > :26:13.and how they work is good to carry on.
:26:14. > :26:25.It's not good to see a horse breed die out.
:26:26. > :26:28.With the responsibility of working these horses
:26:29. > :26:31.being taken on by the next generation, with people like Jeanie,
:26:32. > :26:34.it's obvious that these historic horses do have a future
:26:35. > :26:41.'Later I'll be harnessing the pulling power of these noble beasts
:26:42. > :26:53.'to help fight for the survival of another rare breed.'
:26:54. > :27:00.some rather avant-garde newcomers to the region.
:27:01. > :27:04.Suffolk's salty air is thick with inspiration.
:27:05. > :27:08.It brought us Constable, Gainsborough and Britten,
:27:09. > :27:11.all who captured its classic English charm,
:27:12. > :27:14.but if Gainsborough were to paint this scene today,
:27:15. > :27:18.he'd need to add a touch of South American flair.
:27:19. > :27:32.On a trip to Peru, East Anglian couple Paul and Jude fell in love...
:27:33. > :27:38.One thing led to another and now they've got a farm,
:27:39. > :27:45.or should I say a ranch full of them.
:27:46. > :27:51.A small slice of the high Andes in the flatlands of Suffolk.
:27:52. > :27:56.of these curious, camel-like creatures in Britain,
:27:57. > :28:00.small fry compared to our 32 million sheep,
:28:01. > :28:07.and Paul and Jude's alpacas have been busy at it
:28:08. > :28:13.'Paul wants to check if one of his females, Ursula, is pregnant.
:28:14. > :28:18.'What happens next gives him the answer he needs.'
:28:19. > :28:20.Is this Fergus, then, Paul? This is Fergus.
:28:21. > :28:24.We're going to find out whether Ursula is pregnant.
:28:25. > :28:38.'Watch Ursula, the one in the middle's reaction.'
:28:39. > :28:40.That's enough for you to be sure she's pregnant?
:28:41. > :28:42.Well, that's enough for us to be 98% sure.
:28:43. > :28:47.So Fergus was keen - she definitely wasn't.
:28:48. > :28:50.She would have just sat down, but she spat in his face.
:28:51. > :28:53.She said, "I'm pregnant, get out of here." She spat in his face? Yep.
:28:54. > :28:59.'usually happens on days 10, 20 and 30
:29:00. > :29:06.'of the female alpaca's 11-month gestation period.'
:29:07. > :29:10.'It's a reliable indication, but Paul and Jude follow up
:29:11. > :29:14.'with an ultrasound at two-to-three months to confirm the results.'
:29:15. > :29:16.So is it quite a fleshy bit that I'm looking for?
:29:17. > :29:20.You're going just here. Yes, I feel what you mean.
:29:21. > :29:27.What am I..? Ah! And you're looking for that fluid-filled sac.
:29:28. > :29:30.What's that, Paul? Is that any good? Oh, yeah! There you go! Yeah!
:29:31. > :29:34.OK, so we'll save that. Here's the uterus.
:29:35. > :29:38.What you can see here is a transverse section of the cria
:29:39. > :29:44.Now, I can't tell you which bit of the cria it is, but it is there,
:29:45. > :29:52.These females aren't first-time mums.
:29:53. > :29:56.They already young alpacas, or cria, still at foot,
:29:57. > :29:58.but because they're quite far into their pregnancy,
:29:59. > :30:05.The cria need weighing and assessing.
:30:06. > :30:09.Those above 25kg and strong enough can be separated from their mothers.
:30:10. > :30:12.Thought it was going to be very solid. Right, here we go.
:30:13. > :30:20.Well, thanks for being so good to me, little friend.
:30:21. > :30:24.Off you go. 'This little one needs to put on a bit more weight.'
:30:25. > :30:26.As that a good moment to do this? Ready now.
:30:27. > :30:29.'But some of our chums are ready to be weaned.
:30:30. > :30:31.'Paul and Jude have come up with a novel way
:30:32. > :30:35.'to smooth the transition to independence for the young alpacas -
:30:36. > :30:42.So, Jude, what's the story here? Why have we got little ones and a llama?
:30:43. > :30:45.They've been with Spring, so they're used to the llama Spring,
:30:46. > :30:51.she's going to basically behave as their nanny.
:30:52. > :30:52.So they've got an adult figure there
:30:53. > :30:55.so that they can feel a little bit more secure,
:30:56. > :30:56.they'll follow her around in the field,
:30:57. > :31:00.so the whole process of being away from their mums is less stressful.
:31:01. > :31:03.And for the mothers, this is an important time for them too.
:31:04. > :31:07.They're at a stage of their pregnancy now -
:31:08. > :31:10.because they're already pregnant, to give birth next year -
:31:11. > :31:12.where the demands of the foetus as it develops
:31:13. > :31:17.so they now need to concentrate on putting their energies into that
:31:18. > :31:21.rather than producing milk as well, which is an extra demand on them.
:31:22. > :31:25.I love the idea of Mary Poppins llama. Yes! It's brilliant!
:31:26. > :31:39.The Incas didn't keep alpacas for thousands of years just for fun.
:31:40. > :31:42.Stronger and warmer than the finest wool,
:31:43. > :31:48.the people of the high Andes valued alpaca fibre more than gold.
:31:49. > :31:51.These days, the best-quality alpaca fleece
:31:52. > :31:56.sells for 50-100 times more than sheep's wool.
:31:57. > :31:58.Fleeces are graded from one to four,
:31:59. > :32:02.according to the average width of individual hairs.
:32:03. > :32:05.This would be a grade one, so if you have a feel of that,
:32:06. > :32:10.That's about 17 1,000ths of a millimetre across.
:32:11. > :32:16.Almost like a cobweb, yeah? Yeah! So this is a grade one.
:32:17. > :32:18.That's a grade one. Now, this would be a grade four.
:32:19. > :32:21.Oh, yeah, there's quite a clear difference, isn't there?
:32:22. > :32:25.but by comparison you can see it's a thicker hair.
:32:26. > :32:28.Yes, and this would be around 30 1,000ths of a millimetre across,
:32:29. > :32:33.or 30 microns. And the interesting point there is once it's 30 microns,
:32:34. > :32:35.you can actually feel it on your skin,
:32:36. > :32:38.so it becomes what's known as the prickle factor.
:32:39. > :32:42.will just feel like butter on your skin,
:32:43. > :32:44.but anything over 30, you'll feel, "Ah, that's a bit itchy."
:32:45. > :32:50.'This fleece is classed as a grade three,
:32:51. > :32:54.'so we're sorting it into one pile for socks
:32:55. > :33:01.There you go. Somebody's good night's sleep.
:33:02. > :33:06.'But the Holy Grail when it comes to alpaca fleece is the grade one.'
:33:07. > :33:09.We're starting to see much more demand now
:33:10. > :33:14.particularly from the luxury fashion houses of Italy.
:33:15. > :33:19.are gobbling up huge quantities of alpaca.
:33:20. > :33:22.The demand for it really is going up exponentially, which is fabulous.
:33:23. > :33:26.MUSIC: "In The Night" by The Pet Shop Boys
:33:27. > :33:44.Suffolk alpaca is THE look for 2014.
:33:45. > :33:49.owning or running a hill farm isn't without its challenges.
:33:50. > :33:54.But for one young woman, it's a dream come true.
:33:55. > :33:56.Before Adam heads to Snowdonia to meet her,
:33:57. > :34:01.there are a few sheep on his own farm that need sorting out.
:34:02. > :34:21.so they've been taken off their mothers
:34:22. > :34:23.and they're used to following their mother's guidance
:34:24. > :34:26.and the ewes would know the way into the pens,
:34:27. > :34:29.but it's really difficult moving a bunch of lambs around.
:34:30. > :34:33.who don't really know what they're up to.
:34:34. > :34:42.It's quite hard work for us and the dogs.
:34:43. > :34:45.At this time of year, the quality of the grass on this farm,
:34:46. > :34:48.cos we're so high up, starts to fall off,
:34:49. > :34:51.and the lambs won't be getting any benefit from it.
:34:52. > :34:54.So what we're doing is going through them, sorting out any lambs
:34:55. > :34:57.that are fit and heavy enough, ready to go for slaughter,
:34:58. > :35:00.and the rest will be sold on to other farmers,
:35:01. > :35:04.And they will finish them on better grass
:35:05. > :35:06.and get them to go to slaughter in that way.
:35:07. > :35:10.that we can save our grass for all our breeding ewes
:35:11. > :35:12.that will be going to the rams in the autumn
:35:13. > :35:21.I was very fortunate to inherit the tenancy of this farm from my dad,
:35:22. > :35:26.getting on the farming ladder is nigh-on impossible.
:35:27. > :35:29.So when I heard a scheme had been set up to help do just that,
:35:30. > :35:46.Trystan Edwards is part of the team from the National Trust
:35:47. > :35:56.Well, this is Llyndy Isaf and it was owned by Mr and Mrs Ken Owen
:35:57. > :35:59.and they'd farmed it extremely sensitively
:36:00. > :36:01.for the four decades that they were here
:36:02. > :36:05.and they came to the trust saying, "We'd like you to take it over
:36:06. > :36:08."and manage it in the same way and protect it for the future."
:36:09. > :36:11.So what sort of money did you have to raise?
:36:12. > :36:16.and we went out for a public appeal last year.
:36:17. > :36:18.And we managed to achieve that in six months
:36:19. > :36:23.and over 20,000 people actually donated at the end of day.
:36:24. > :36:26.So you ended up with a farm, then you've got to run it.
:36:27. > :36:29.Well, at the end of the day, because the public donation,
:36:30. > :36:34.we decided we had to have something quite special as a public benefit,
:36:35. > :36:40.wouldn't it be great if we had an opportunity for a young farmer
:36:41. > :36:44.to have an opportunity to start farming?
:36:45. > :36:47.23-year-old Caryl Hughes grew up on a farm.
:36:48. > :36:52.to run this 614-acre farm for 12 months.
:36:53. > :36:57.She moved here with her dog, Mist, on the first of September.
:36:58. > :37:00.Caryl, what made you decide to apply?
:37:01. > :37:03.Basically, opportunity of a lifetime, isn't it?
:37:04. > :37:07.key to a house, it's not a chance that comes every day.
:37:08. > :37:11.I wasn't sure where I wanted to go either.
:37:12. > :37:16.I'd got a degree, so I wasn't sure what I wanted to do,
:37:17. > :37:19.so I'm hoping this will make or break me.
:37:20. > :37:22.If I love it, then I'll be going on to manage farms and carry on,
:37:23. > :37:25.or if I hate it, I won't want to see a sheep again, so we'll see.
:37:26. > :37:30.I don't know. Perhaps they're crazy. I don't really know.
:37:31. > :37:33.I've seen plenty of the country - plenty of the world.
:37:34. > :37:37.so maybe I threw some ideas out about what I'd like to do here
:37:38. > :37:44.and, obviously, I'm from a farming background as well, a sheep farm.
:37:45. > :37:52.That's Snowdon up there, you can see just in the cloud area.
:37:53. > :37:58.Northeast Wales, where Llangollen is, sort of thing,
:37:59. > :38:01.so pretty used to this sort of terrain up there.
:38:02. > :38:05.Part of the Berwyn Mountains, so it's all rock, heather and rivers,
:38:06. > :38:07.like it is here, so home from home, really.
:38:08. > :38:09.This is going to be hard work, isn't it?
:38:10. > :38:13.It hasn't been farmed for a while, so there's no tracks,
:38:14. > :38:25.I'm going to be fit as a fiddle anyway.
:38:26. > :38:27.And what are your plans initially, then?
:38:28. > :38:29.I'd start off with just getting the boundaries done,
:38:30. > :38:34.about four and a half kilometres to do of that,
:38:35. > :38:38.We've got some posts down there that need carrying up,
:38:39. > :38:40.so we'll get a helicopter involved with that
:38:41. > :38:43.so the contractor can do all of that work.
:38:44. > :38:46.And then getting the sheep up here, getting the stock onto the farm
:38:47. > :38:54.and we've actually got about 50 coming this afternoon.
:38:55. > :38:57.Caryl will eventually farm more than 250 sheep.
:38:58. > :39:00.The first batch is being delivered today by Arwyn Owen,
:39:01. > :39:06.He'll be using all his experience to mentor Caryl over the coming year.
:39:07. > :39:09.Nice new home for them! Nice new home!
:39:10. > :39:11.Erm, it's very different from the summits of Snowdon,
:39:12. > :39:13.or the slopes of Snowdon, where they've come from.
:39:14. > :39:17.You know, they don't see grass like that up there, so...
:39:18. > :39:19.So I'm sure they'll be very happy. Very happy.
:39:20. > :39:22.And the Welsh is the breed that can live on those mountains, is it?
:39:23. > :39:27.The thing is, it's been bred and developed
:39:28. > :39:32.that this sort of climate and terrain throws at them, really.
:39:33. > :39:35.I wish I was as tough as them! I often wish that!
:39:36. > :39:38.And Caryl's got to be pretty tough as well,
:39:39. > :39:40.hasn't she, to withstand this terrain?
:39:41. > :39:44.It's wonderful that she's got someone
:39:45. > :39:47.with all your years of experience of working these mountains
:39:48. > :39:51.and it's going to be difficult in the winter, isn't it?
:39:52. > :39:55.The winter is the most challenging period, there's no doubt.
:39:56. > :40:00.and that's what makes working and farming here so interesting,
:40:01. > :40:02.in that each of those seasons brings something different.
:40:03. > :40:06.Caryl's a young person coming onto this farm for 12 months.
:40:07. > :40:08.What are the things she's going to find difficult?
:40:09. > :40:14.Maybe working with us is going to be one of those challenges!
:40:15. > :40:16.You know, it's classed as a marginal farm,
:40:17. > :40:18.and when you're farming on the margins,
:40:19. > :40:21.I think all the challenges are that much more extreme.
:40:22. > :40:27.The soils, you know, because they're thin, actually working them
:40:28. > :40:30.and doing anything with them, you know, there's a big challenge there.
:40:31. > :40:32.And then, in terms of the topography,
:40:33. > :40:37.That combination does make farming difficult.
:40:38. > :40:40.And it's great that people such as Caryl are coming through
:40:41. > :40:42.and are interested in taking up these challenges,
:40:43. > :40:46.and I'm sure, in 20 years' time, 30 years' time,
:40:47. > :40:55.I'm sure Caryl will be one of the leaders in the industry.
:40:56. > :40:58.What sort of things have you been up to?
:40:59. > :41:02.Going round some fences, knocking more staples in.
:41:03. > :41:05.And do you feel quite a lot of pressure, taking on the farm?
:41:06. > :41:07.Erm, I wouldn't say it's, like, pressure,
:41:08. > :41:12.Everyone's watching me, aren't they? It's going to be quite a big...
:41:13. > :41:16.so there's a lot of people going to be watching what I'm doing
:41:17. > :41:19.and, obviously, people put money in towards the farm,
:41:20. > :41:21.so they're going to want to see what's come out of it.
:41:22. > :41:25.because I've got enough help and support off Arwyn
:41:26. > :41:29.so it's not so much pressure, but just people overlooking it.
:41:30. > :41:38.Not only is Llyndy Isaf a beautiful place,
:41:39. > :41:41.it's also got a very special legend attached to it.
:41:42. > :41:43.Up on that hill over there, Dinas Emrys,
:41:44. > :41:45.is where a red dragon and a white dragon fought.
:41:46. > :41:48.The white dragon fell and lost, and fell into the lake here,
:41:49. > :41:54.and then the red dragon won and became the emblem of Wales.
:41:55. > :41:56.And here you are, farming the land around that legend,
:41:57. > :41:59.and you'll be a legend in your own lifetime soon.
:42:00. > :42:07.SHE LAUGHS Yeah, not so sure!
:42:08. > :42:13.Most of it is designated as an Area Of Outstanding Natural Beauty,
:42:14. > :42:18.and RSPB Minsmere sits right at its heart.
:42:19. > :42:21.Every year, migratory birds touch down here
:42:22. > :42:23.after thousands of miles on the wing,
:42:24. > :42:30.and I'm hoping to catch some of the new arrivals.
:42:31. > :42:34.On a wet day like today, the best place to see them from is the hide.
:42:35. > :42:37.The RSPB's Adam Rowlands is my guide.
:42:38. > :42:39.So, what have we got out there now, Adam?
:42:40. > :42:43.we've got a haven for a variety of species.
:42:44. > :42:48.and big numbers of teal in front of us here.
:42:49. > :42:50.The ones with the white breasts and the chestnut sides,
:42:51. > :42:52.asleep just beyond them, are shoveler.
:42:53. > :42:57.There's widgeon, and just beyond this bund in front of us,
:42:58. > :43:00.you can see black-tailed godwits feeding in the mud there.
:43:01. > :43:03.Oh, they're such a great shape, the godwits.
:43:04. > :43:05.And where have all these birds come from?
:43:06. > :43:08.Well, they've come from a variety of different locations.
:43:09. > :43:10.A lot of the duck that we can see right in front of us
:43:11. > :43:14.and a lot of these birds will breed in Russia
:43:15. > :43:16.and right the way across into Siberia.
:43:17. > :43:19.But the godwits, they've come from the North West,
:43:20. > :43:26.and spend the winter here on the Suffolk coast.
:43:27. > :43:28.What impact has the warm summer had?
:43:29. > :43:31.All the evidence is it's been a good breeding season.
:43:32. > :43:36.The late spring had an impact, but they had a good second half,
:43:37. > :43:39.and we're seeing lots of young birds arriving.
:43:40. > :43:42.Here comes your very difficult question for your quizmaster -
:43:43. > :43:45.how many birds do you think you'll see this year?
:43:46. > :43:47.Well, it's always difficult to predict.
:43:48. > :43:53.but literally thousands of birds come to spend the winter here.
:43:54. > :43:55.Minsmere's a haven to a wide variety of wildlife,
:43:56. > :44:00.so over 5,300 species of plant and animal recorded here.
:44:01. > :44:02.More than any other reserve in the country.
:44:03. > :44:12.So your pre-booking predictions are good? Well, let's hope so!
:44:13. > :44:14.When you come here, you expect to see birds,
:44:15. > :44:16.but there's a little spot up the coast
:44:17. > :44:20.that you'd imagine wildlife thriving.
:44:21. > :44:31.From the time it first started producing electricity
:44:32. > :44:34.almost 20 years ago, Sizewell B power station
:44:35. > :44:37.has worked alongside the local wildlife trust
:44:38. > :44:40.to ensure that the natural world is cared for
:44:41. > :44:49.has been to care for the environment that surrounds the plant.
:44:50. > :45:02.and anything else we've got swimming around, any other mammals.
:45:03. > :45:05.Right, so you've got a little pot of clay here. We have.
:45:06. > :45:08.Anything that's inquisitive enough to come through the tunnel
:45:09. > :45:11.will leave its footprint. Ah, you're after the footprints.
:45:12. > :45:13.Right, where does it need to go, then?
:45:14. > :45:16.We're going to pop it just on the edge here, on the edge of the water,
:45:17. > :45:18.and we'll then wait and see what happens.
:45:19. > :45:20.Are you going to drag or lift? We'll just lift. OK.
:45:21. > :45:23.And then...hopefully without falling in!
:45:24. > :45:31.Alan's monitoring this area for the non-native American mink.
:45:32. > :45:35.They're escapees from fur farms during the '50s and '60s,
:45:36. > :45:41.which have devastated our native water vole population.
:45:42. > :45:46.First impression, you start to lose your moorhens,
:45:47. > :45:47.but they will take things like kingfisher.
:45:48. > :45:50.Again, you've got a bankside-burrowing bird,
:45:51. > :45:54.and it's been known that kingfishers have been predated by them.
:45:55. > :45:56.I don't think I've ever come across a conservation site -
:45:57. > :45:58.an award-winning conservation site -
:45:59. > :46:01.so close to a nuclear power station either.
:46:02. > :46:04.Well, we've been working hand-in-hand with EDF Energy
:46:05. > :46:08.and, yes, it's awarded by the Wildlife Trust
:46:09. > :46:11.for good conservation work on sites owned by businesses.
:46:12. > :46:21.The wildlife seems to be thriving around here.
:46:22. > :46:24.The power station takes in and pumps back
:46:25. > :46:26.5 million tonnes of seawater every day.
:46:27. > :46:31.Rochelle Grimmer's job is to make sure that the water's safe.
:46:32. > :46:33.Rochelle, am I dressed appropriately? Enough layers?
:46:34. > :46:36.Good! What are you doing with this, then?
:46:37. > :46:39.OK, what we're going to do is take a test of this water here.
:46:40. > :46:44.What's it been doing, and where is it going?
:46:45. > :46:46.It's seawater that comes through our building,
:46:47. > :46:49.cools our secondary circuit, which is non-active,
:46:50. > :46:51.and then comes out to our outfall here,
:46:52. > :46:55.So it hasn't had any contact with anything nuclear?
:46:56. > :46:58.No, this is completely from our non-active side.
:46:59. > :47:04.It's a long way down, isn't it? It is.
:47:05. > :47:14.Before the seawater enters the plant,
:47:15. > :47:17.these drums filter out any fish, mussels and seaweed,
:47:18. > :47:21.so they can be returned to the sea safely.
:47:22. > :47:23.Today, we're testing the chlorine levels
:47:24. > :47:30.What's that? OK, this is a powder agent
:47:31. > :47:34.This will form a coloured complex, which will be proportional
:47:35. > :47:36.to how much chlorine is in the sample.
:47:37. > :47:38.So the chlorine becomes coloured...
:47:39. > :47:41.Exactly. ..and then you can identify how much is in the water.
:47:42. > :47:43.So, as you can see, it's already started
:47:44. > :47:46.to turn to a pink colour here. Pale pink.
:47:47. > :47:53.Is it quite a strange place to work, here at the power plant?
:47:54. > :47:56.Because you're surrounded by all this amazing countryside,
:47:57. > :47:59.testing for chlorine and all sorts of things.
:48:00. > :48:01.Well, you say that, but you get used to it,
:48:02. > :48:04.because it's your daily job, and then, on my lunch breaks,
:48:05. > :48:06.I can go out, wander down the beach, get some fish and chips,
:48:07. > :48:11.The wildlife that surrounds the power station
:48:12. > :48:17.It's even making inroads into the heart of the site itself.
:48:18. > :48:21.I suppose you could say that that is a living landscape,
:48:22. > :48:24.because that is the theme this year of the Countryfile calendar.
:48:25. > :48:27.But, to be absolutely honest, there are nice pictures in this.
:48:28. > :48:31.Here's how you get your hands on one.
:48:32. > :48:34.The calendar costs ?9 including UK delivery.
:48:35. > :48:41.You can buy yours either via our website...
:48:42. > :49:06.To order by post, send your name, address, and cheque to:
:49:07. > :49:10.And please make cheques payable to BBC Countryfile Calendar.
:49:11. > :49:13.A minimum of ?4 from the sale of every calendar
:49:14. > :49:16.will be donated to the BBC Children In Need appeal.
:49:17. > :49:18.Now, I'm going to get out of my hard hat.
:49:19. > :49:32.Here's the weather for the week ahead.
:49:33. > :49:38.Could evening. We will definitely have to exchange hard hat is for
:49:39. > :49:42.woolly ones through the weekend. We are in for our first blast of winter
:49:43. > :49:49.weather is arctic air descends to the country through the course of
:49:50. > :49:52.tomorrow. It has been a chilly November day today, with this
:49:53. > :49:58.weather front meandering. To the north of it, cold enough for Apache
:49:59. > :50:07.frost and icy patches even, to the south of it, grey and misty. -- cold
:50:08. > :50:15.enough for patchy frost. Hide the weather systems the cold, arctic our
:50:16. > :50:19.lives. It will filter into tomorrow. Grey and misty, the rain trickles
:50:20. > :50:24.southwards, but at least with the arctic air it brightens up with
:50:25. > :50:29.sunshine but, boy, will it feel cold. Temperatures barely three or
:50:30. > :50:34.four degrees above freezing. I that stage, snow will be settling at
:50:35. > :50:41.lower levels in Scotland. Temperatures in the South on a par
:50:42. > :50:44.with today, but tomorrow the cold air filter southwards, so there is
:50:45. > :50:50.an increasing risk that the snow showers will descend southwards.
:50:51. > :50:55.More importantly, it will dampen the ground. So with the first widespread
:50:56. > :51:00.frost of the season, clearly, we are concerned about ice. It looks like
:51:01. > :51:05.it will be our first significant icy venture through Monday night and
:51:06. > :51:12.into Tuesday morning. It could quite slippery underfoot and on the roads.
:51:13. > :51:20.There will be a bracing north-westerly wind. The risk of the
:51:21. > :51:26.show was inland -- showers inland, don't be surprised to see snow. It
:51:27. > :51:31.sunshine in eastern areas. Up to seven degrees on the thermometer,
:51:32. > :51:37.the first cold day throughout the country. It will feel below freezing
:51:38. > :51:41.in the North with the wind. Tuesday night and into Wednesday,
:51:42. > :51:45.this developing area of low pressure will be a fly in the ointment. It is
:51:46. > :51:52.possible that many of us will see snow, even in seven areas and even
:51:53. > :51:57.at lower levels. Hopefully it will turn back to rain. It will be cold
:51:58. > :52:02.and frosty on Wednesday but it looks like miserable, wet, windy and cold.
:52:03. > :52:07.Despite the bracing wind, we start to push the brighter weather back in
:52:08. > :52:10.by the end of Wednesday as high-pressure slips in from the
:52:11. > :52:15.north. It changes the orientation of the wind and the showers, a really
:52:16. > :52:23.cold day in the bracing north-east winds on Wednesday. I think the
:52:24. > :52:27.wind-chill will be significant. The best of the sunshine is in the
:52:28. > :52:30.south-west, although by that stage on Friday we are losing the wind,
:52:31. > :52:35.especially in the north, as high-pressure establishes. Some
:52:36. > :52:38.really cold starts in the morning, away from the south and east we will
:52:39. > :52:43.not have such a significant wind-chill. Showers and a bracing
:52:44. > :52:47.wind, not a bad day for many but it will be a lot colder through the
:52:48. > :52:53.weekend. The first taste of winter, widespread night-time frost is, icy
:52:54. > :52:54.roads and even snow. Stay tuned to the forecast, we will be digging out
:52:55. > :53:06.the hat, We've been exploring the beautiful
:53:07. > :53:10.low-lying landscape of Suffolk. While Julia's been finding local
:53:11. > :53:17.wildlife in the most unusual places, I've been paying tribute to a true
:53:18. > :53:26.Suffolk legend - the Suffolk Punch. Unsurpassed in its dedication
:53:27. > :53:30.to work, these benevolent beasts But Britain's most historic
:53:31. > :53:39.draught horse is now category 1 on the
:53:40. > :53:43.Rare Breeds Survival Trust Watchlist. There are fewer than 500 Suffolk
:53:44. > :53:47.Punches alive in the world today, making this horse more rare
:53:48. > :53:53.than the black rhino. Well, what made these Suffolks
:53:54. > :53:57.so popular for farm work Now, pulling double their body weight
:53:58. > :54:02.is well within range It's almost a twig for you,
:54:03. > :54:11.I'm afraid, 'In the 20th-century, the cherished
:54:12. > :54:19.Suffolk lost its traditional job 'to a new kid on the block -
:54:20. > :54:23.the tractor.' 'At last, the Suffolk Punch
:54:24. > :54:47.is coming back into its own, And what better way
:54:48. > :54:53.to employ the selfless animals than to harness their might
:54:54. > :54:58.for conservation? Bruce has been working
:54:59. > :55:00.on a construction project for another of the world's
:55:01. > :55:06.most threatened species. but the stag beetle is among
:55:07. > :55:10.the most vulnerable As a larva and pupa, it spends
:55:11. > :55:16.up to seven years underground, chomping its way
:55:17. > :55:20.through decaying wood. We all like to clear dead wood
:55:21. > :55:24.from our gardens, but our tidying up has a devastating side effect
:55:25. > :55:29.on the stag beetle's population. It is, this is
:55:30. > :55:33.a stag-beetle log pile. Well, I've seen some
:55:34. > :55:35.log piles in my time, Well, the stag beetles,
:55:36. > :55:40.their larvae, they need soggy wood So a normal log pile
:55:41. > :55:44.that isn't underground So your message would be, then,
:55:45. > :55:49.if you've got some dead wood, Yeah, yeah, certainly.
:55:50. > :55:54.Don't burn every bit of dead wood. Try and do imaginative
:55:55. > :55:55.things with it. Make different sorts of log piles,
:55:56. > :55:58.have some in the shade, some in the sun, do some modern art
:55:59. > :56:01.with dead wood, yeah, like this. of what potentially
:56:02. > :56:07.could be moving in very soon? Yeah, absolutely, yes.
:56:08. > :56:10.I'll show you. OK, so these are some things
:56:11. > :56:13.that came out of this area here. Oh, yeah. Just about
:56:14. > :56:15.half an hour ago. Oh, gosh! This is what we're looking for,
:56:16. > :56:17.isn't it? This is a grub of a stag beetle.
:56:18. > :56:20.Look at that! And how old would this be,
:56:21. > :56:23.at this stage in its life? That one's about
:56:24. > :56:25.four or five years old. It's just munching away at the wood,
:56:26. > :56:30.and it's helping to recycle it. And, in fact, we've got
:56:31. > :56:32.this bit of wood here It's almost like
:56:33. > :56:37.a bit of art form, really. Isn't it just, yeah!
:56:38. > :56:39.But that's been done by the grub eating away and helping
:56:40. > :56:41.to recycle the wood. Otherwise, we'd be, you know,
:56:42. > :56:44.sort of 20 miles deep in dead trees. So what happens to it
:56:45. > :56:47.after this state here? it forms a cocoon
:56:48. > :56:51.about the size of a duck egg, and it's in the cocoon
:56:52. > :56:54.for about six weeks. Right, having spent six years
:56:55. > :56:57.like this? Yeah, absolutely. And then it comes out as an adult,
:56:58. > :57:00.and we've got an adult here. With these amazing jaws.
:57:01. > :57:07.Look at that! Only the dads have
:57:08. > :57:12.the jaws like that, and they use them for rutting,
:57:13. > :57:15.like a deer. Like stag deer. It may look ferocious -
:57:16. > :57:19.it can't do a thing to you. And how long would it be
:57:20. > :57:22.in this stage for? This four-week stage
:57:23. > :57:28.is about attracting a female That's right, yes.
:57:29. > :57:34.Magnificent, isn't it? But it's not just
:57:35. > :57:37.beetles that benefit It can also be converted
:57:38. > :57:44.into a desirable bee hotel. as opposed to the basement.
:57:45. > :57:47.Absolutely. And they'll go off and help to
:57:48. > :57:51.pollinate all your local orchards, and your gardens, but you can
:57:52. > :57:53.use all your drill bits, because all the different-sized
:57:54. > :57:56.holes you make in the wood will attract
:57:57. > :57:58.different species of bees. The small ones will go for
:57:59. > :58:01.the little-diameter holes, the bigger ones, like leafcutters,
:58:02. > :58:07.will need the biggest holes. The perfect refuge
:58:08. > :58:11.for lots of little beasties, Next week, John will be
:58:12. > :58:20.in Oxfordshire, looking at the part played
:58:21. > :58:23.by our British countryside It'll be nice to see you,
:58:24. > :58:30.to see you... Bruce?