BBC Countryfile Magazine

Countryfile Magazine inspires you to explore forgotten corners of the great British countryside and provides knowledge of the people and wildlife that inhabit it. We want to tempt you into trying new things, seek out new places and make the most of Britain’s beautiful landscapes.

Adventure by the sea

THIS MONTH’S CONTRIBUTORS

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JULY IN THE COUNTRY • PICTURES › WILDLIFE › PEOPLE & PLACES › COUNTRY KNOW-HOW › FOOD

Dolphins by drone

Sustainable seaside must-haves

On the plot • Jobs for the garden with Rekha Mistry

SUMMER STARFISH • Call them starfish or sea stars if you prefer (they are not actually fish), there is no mistaking these celestially shaped animals that dot the seabed around the UK. Here are six to spot.

Countryfile on TV • BBC One, 24 July

COURGETTE LOAF

Top four…SUMMER EVENTS

Good fish guide • The Marine Conservation Society (MCS) suggests ‘buying local’ to encourage the development of a more sustainable UK seafood market, as well as swapping some of those old favourites for something that’s better for the environment. Here are four ideas for your next meal.

Jellyfish blooms bring turtles to UK shores

A view from the farm Adam Henson • THE HEBRIDEAN COAST THAT STOLE MY HEART

Sara Maitland • A day on the beach offers freedom, beauty and childlike fun, whatever your age

ISLE OF WONDERS • With spectacular chalk cliffs, sandy bays and a natural harbour fringed by precious heathlands, Dorset’s Purbeck peninsula is lavishly gifted with natural beauty, says novelist Claire Fuller

NOW GO TO THE ISLE OF PURBECK • Where to stay, visit, eat and drink by Claire Fuller

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Diving for silver • The sight of hunting gannets plunging into the sea at speed is one of the greatest natural spectacles in Britain. Shetland wildlife photographer Richard Shucksmith admires the dramatic lifestyle of our largest seabird

PHOTOGRAPHING A FEEDING FRENZY

ANATOMY OF A GANNET

WHERE TO SEE GANNETS

Keeping traditions afloat • In her Dorset workshop, boatbuilder and teller of stories Gail McGarva makes traditional wooden vessels, the old-fashioned way

JOHN CRAVEN • HOW A HUMBLE SHELLFISH CAN SAVE OUR SEAS

ENGLAND COAST PATH • During and between Covid lockdowns, work continued on completing the landmark England Coast Path (ECP). What difference will the new path make to our experience of the country’s cliffs, shores and coves? Mark Rowe reports

Saving our seagrass forests • What if a habitat could capture carbon faster than a rainforest? Neutralise an acidifying ocean? Stop plastic in its tracks? Provide homes for thousands of species? As Countryfile’s Plant Britain campaign focuses on conservation on our coasts this year, Sophie Pavelle explores the wonders and opportunities that our dwindling seagrass forests can offer us

COUNTRYFILE’S PLANT BRITAIN BY THE SEA • The inspirational seagrass rescue operation aligns with Countryfile’s Plant Britain by the Sea campaign, championing people power to help boost the resilience of our coastlines. Here are some ways you can take part.

Return of the super fish • Following more than 60 years of absence, bluefin tuna have been spotted once more in UK waters. Helen Scales marvels at this sleek turbo-athlete of the ocean

Leading light • Many a boat was dashed to pieces on Bell Rock in the North Sea, until a beacon was built to guide sailors to safe waters. The world’s oldest surviving sea-washed lighthouse remains the finest achievement of visionary engineer Robert Stevenson, born 250 years ago this month, writes Bella Bathurst

THREE STEVENSON...