Bird of prayer
BBC Countryfile Magazine|September 2023
This September, Christopher Eccleston narrates A Kestrel for a Knave for BBC Four's The Read. Stephen James-Yeoman discusses the enduring power of this classic countryside book
Stephen James-Yeoman
Bird of prayer

For more than 30 years from the mid-1960s, BBC storytelling programme Jackanory featured the stars of the day, from Kenneth Williams to Bernard Cribbins, reading stories aloud - with the counterintuitive aim of encouraging young viewers to actually stop watching those square TVs and pick up a book instead.

Now, almost 30 years later, the spirit of the series lives on in BBC Four's The Read, this time reimagined to introduce adults to iconic British novels. Sam Selvon's The Lonely Londoners, Bruce Chatwin's On The Black Hill and Louise Levine's A Vision of Loveliness have all been given this fresh treatment and now it's the turn of Barry Hines' seminal work A Kestrel for a Knave.

Filmed at Oldham Colliseum Theatre, Christopher Eccleston is the narrator and he himself acknowledges the impact Hines' coming-of-age novel has had on him.

"If I hadn't met Barry Hines' Billy Casper from the extraordinarily beautiful novel A Kestrel For a Knave, I would have cared less about other people and I would not be an actor," he said.

It's easy to see why this book, first published in 1968, has such a profound effect on those who encounter it. Billy Casper's life in a South Yorkshire mining village is bleak; he is ridiculed and bullied at home and at school. The calming open fields of a nearby farm represent the blessed relief from his life's difficulties and the freedom Billy feels when connecting with his beloved kestrel, Kes.

Denne historien er fra September 2023-utgaven av BBC Countryfile Magazine.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

Denne historien er fra September 2023-utgaven av BBC Countryfile Magazine.

Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.

FLERE HISTORIER FRA BBC COUNTRYFILE MAGAZINESe alt
Guilt-Free Meat? - Should the world stop eating meat to tackle the climate crisis? Chris Baraniuk meets an experimental farmer who says we don't all have to become vegetarians
BBC Countryfile Magazine

Guilt-Free Meat? - Should the world stop eating meat to tackle the climate crisis? Chris Baraniuk meets an experimental farmer who says we don't all have to become vegetarians

Should the world stop eating meat to tackle the climate crisis? Chris Baraniuk meets an experimental farmer who says we don't all have to become vegetarians. Livestock farming around the world is facing scrutiny because of its greenhouse gas emissions. Globally, the sector contributes somewhere between 11.1% and 19.6% of total emissions. Meat production is roughly twice as bad as the production of plant-based food, according to some analyses. And beef is the worst of all. Study after study has suggested that, in order to curtail the devastating effects of climate change, we ought to shift to a diet containing less meat - or even go vegetarian or vegan.

time-read
8 mins  |
October 2024
Discover Cider Country - Explore mellow golden countryside, pedalling between medieval villages, historic inns and fruitful orchards, on a delightful Herefordshire Cider Circuit adventure with Julie Brominicks
BBC Countryfile Magazine

Discover Cider Country - Explore mellow golden countryside, pedalling between medieval villages, historic inns and fruitful orchards, on a delightful Herefordshire Cider Circuit adventure with Julie Brominicks

Explore mellow golden countryside, pedalling between medieval villages, historic inns and fruitful orchards, on a delightful Herefordshire Cider Circuit adventure with Julie Brominicks. I'm cycling Porter's Perfection, one of three cider circuits developed for Visit Herefordshire over the past few years. Each showcases a section of this bucolic county's loveliest villages, pubs, orchards and cidermakers via lanes suited to bicycles - e-bikes for hill-averse cyclists like me. The idea is to allow you to appreciate the sights, sounds and smells of cider country while traversing roads never meant for modern cars. If you have dodgy knees, or are keen to indulge in the local adult apple juice as you go (remember, it's illegal to cycle while under the influence), Visit Herefordshire also promotes cider bus routes.

time-read
7 mins  |
October 2024
TOP 10 WILD AUTUMN FOODS
BBC Countryfile Magazine

TOP 10 WILD AUTUMN FOODS

Make the most of seasonal abundance with foraging tips and recipe ideas from wild food expert Liz Knight

time-read
10 mins  |
October 2024
The taste of England
BBC Countryfile Magazine

The taste of England

Amid pastures farmed by her family for more than four centuries, Mary Quicke is reviving forgotten dairy traditions to produce delicious Devon cheeses

time-read
6 mins  |
October 2024
How to eat 30 plants a week
BBC Countryfile Magazine

How to eat 30 plants a week

As science proves the many health-boosting benefits of eating at least 30 different plants each week, Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall shares recipes to help you meet the magic target

time-read
5 mins  |
October 2024
RARE RAFT SPIDER MAKES A COMEBACK
BBC Countryfile Magazine

RARE RAFT SPIDER MAKES A COMEBACK

Thanks to dedicated conservation work, this impressive but vulnerable arachnid is resurgent in East Anglia

time-read
1 min  |
October 2024
SPECTACULAR STONEHENGE FINDS
BBC Countryfile Magazine

SPECTACULAR STONEHENGE FINDS

Following the latest astonishing revelation about the Stonehenge Altar Stone's Scottish origins, Dixe Wills looks at recent discoveries that have changed the way we view this impressive and enigmatic Neolithic monument

time-read
4 mins  |
October 2024
GALLOWAY NATIONAL PARK DEBATE
BBC Countryfile Magazine

GALLOWAY NATIONAL PARK DEBATE

Would this protected status bring welcome recognition and attention - or overcrowding and problems for farmers?

time-read
1 min  |
October 2024
Farmers are valued, so why do they feel we don't care?
BBC Countryfile Magazine

Farmers are valued, so why do they feel we don't care?

For farmers out in their fields in all seasons, worried about the future as dramatic levels of rainfall blamed on climate change damage their crops, inflation and uncertainty push up their costs and what they see as unfair imports threaten their livelihoods, here's a spot of unexpectedly good news: the rest of us think you are doing a good job.

time-read
2 mins  |
October 2024
Pumpkin patches
BBC Countryfile Magazine

Pumpkin patches

Find the perfect jack-o'-lantern for Halloween at a pick-your-own pumpkin patch. Some are simple affairs in tranquil countryside; others offer activities ranging from ghost trains to spooky mazes.

time-read
2 mins  |
October 2024