The Countryside in March

Descriptions of one of the more capricious months for many years. The song of the mistle thrush in the shadow of the South Downs. Turning the old mire of winter into a tilth. The appearance of the early summer migrants such as the little ringed plovers. The impact of toxic residues from agricultural chemicals on bird numbers. The realities of country living on the Kent-Sussex borders. 

These were the topics on offer in this recording from the Countryside in ... series, an overlooked series that ran on BBC radio for nearly four decades. It first appeared on air on the Light Programme on 30 January 1952 as The Countryside in January, running monthly until 1972 when it switched to a more or less quarterly review.

The Radio Times described it as a “nature diary” compiled by ornithologist Eric Simms, whose idea the programme was, indeed there had been a tryout of the idea the previous May called The London Countryside. An article in the magazine explained: “News of the events of the month comes to Mr Simms through his numerous contacts with naturalists and he hopes that titbits supplied by this ‘jungle telegraph,’ together with talks by visiting experts on natural history, farming, the weather, and country lore will make the new programme a lively commentary on many aspects of rural life”.  Simms continued to contribute to the series until 1987.  

Providing the linking narration was C. Gordon Glover (pictured above) who, apart from a spell in the mid 50s when David Lloyd James presented, was associated with the programme until just before his death in early 1975.

Glover is an interesting character. Born in Edinburgh in 1908 he was a writer and novelist who during the 1930s lived for a while in Majorca with his first wife Honor Wyatt. Honor would go on to work for the BBC, writing numerous programmes for BBC schools  during the 1940s. Glover himself also worked for the Corporation as a radio producer and then a scriptwriter and presenter.  He wrote a number of radio plays from the mid-40s on, including dozens for Children’s Hour, as well as scripts for series such as Journey into Romance and All Hale with Binnie and Sonnie Hale. During the war Glover was involved in a brief relationship with the friend of his estranged wife, the novelist Barbara Pym. In 1946 he married again to yet another novelist Modwena Sedgwick.  One of the two children from his first marriage was Julian Glover, a noted stage, film and TV actor.

The Countryside in... continued after Glover’s death in 1975 with Wynford Vaughan-Thomas presenting and with regular contributions from Bob Danvers-Walker, Martin Muncaster and actress Mollie Harris, best known as Martha Woodford in The Archers. Following the death of Vaughan-Thomas in 1987 Mollie Harris was the main presenter until the series was put out to pasture with The Countryside in Spring edition on 27 April 1991.

Very few of the countryside programmes were repeated so this is a rare opportunity to hear an example of the show. It came to me via a contact in New Zealand, Duncan Lockhart. Duncan acquired a stack of tapes from a guy in Wellington who went to New Zealand in the late 50s as a wireless operator in the Merchant Navy. He took an early Akai reel to reel with him all round the world for music and information and some of the tapes had been sent to him by his family back in the UK.  

This edition, The Countryside in March, dates from Sunday 29 March 1964 when it went out on the Home Service just after the 1 pm. News. As well as Gordon Glover and Eric Simms you’ll hear contributions from Bill Douglas with a metrological report, gardener Albert Butler, ornithologist James Ferguson-Lees, Stanley Cramp, Vice President of the British Trust for Ornithology and writer Elizabeth Gray. Providing the introductory and closing announcement is Jimmy Kingsbury.  Producing this edition is Arthur Phillips who’d started the programme in 1952. He continued to oversee the series for 21 years and amongst his other credits were Holiday Hour and Motoring and the Motorist.

If you’re wondering what that opening poem is, it’s Easter by Gerald Manley Hopkins.

Gather gladness from the skies,

Take a lesson from the ground,

Flowers do ope their heavenward eyes,

And a Spring-time joy have found,

Earth throws Winter's robes away,

Decks herself for Easter Day.

The theme used for these countryside programmes was, for many years, a piece originally composed by Lambert Williamson for the 1950 Home Service series Northern Rivers. It’s played by the BBC Northern Orchestra conducted by Charles Groves. 

And finally I’m happy to report that I’ve passed a copy of this recording on to the Glover family to be enjoyed once again by Gordon's son Julian and his grandson Jamie.