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Summer Special

The Countryfile team head to the Cotswold County Show in Cirencester for a celebration of the best of rural Britain, bringing along special guests.

The Countryfile team head to the Cotswold County Show in Cirencester for a celebration of the best of rural Britain, bringing along special guests weatherman John Hammond, MasterChef winner Phil Vickery, poet Ian McMillan, cartoonist Tony Husband and an England cricketing great to join in the day.

Ellie Harrison tries her hand at archery; Matt Baker discovers how 100 years ago the showground played host to soldiers rather than summer revellers; Adam Henson takes up the show's theme of 'where town meets country' by inviting some city viewers for a taste of life on the farm; Tom Heap takes to the treetops for a unique view of the local wildlife; and John Craven gets a helping hand from MasterChef winner Phil Vickery to cook up a seasonal feast.

Weatherman John Hammond joins the team to explain the science of our summer weather, poet Ian McMillan and cartoonist Tony Husband capture the day in poetry and pictures and a cricketing great makes a surprise appearance for a Countryfile versus guests cricket match to round off the day.

1 hour

Last on

Mon 18 Aug 2014 00:05

Tree climbing

Tree climbing

Tom Heap is so excited for the summer fayre that he arrives at the site some 11 hours early! But he isn鈥檛 alone; he鈥檚 joined by wildlife photographer Andrew Walmsley who specialises in taking photos from high up in the tree canopy. They hoist themselves into the trees ready for a night under the stars 鈥 and leaves 鈥 in order to capture a unique perspective on the fayre as it begins the next morning.

Archery

Archery

Matt Baker and Ellie Harrison indulge in a traditional summer fayre activity with a healthy dose of competition - archery. They use a traditional longbow and after some instruction by a real Robin Hood, also known as Matthew Nimmo, they take aim and first to pop the balloon wins! So who will be best with the bow?

City slickers

City slickers

For some people living in busy cities the only glimpse of the countryside comes once a week, on a Sunday evening, on 麻豆官网首页入口 One. Adam Henson has decided to give three keen Countryfile viewers the chance to experience a little more than that. So, Annabelle, Liz and Terry are whisked out of London, trading their suits and snappy shoes for raincoats and wellies, in order to get up close and personal with rural life. Will a hard day鈥檚 work on Adam鈥檚 farm send them running for a cappuccino and a blow-dry, or inspire them to keep on the wellies for good?

Phil Vickery鈥檚 food challenge

Phil Vickery鈥檚 food challenge

England rugby champion turned MasterChef winner Phil Vickery is on a mission to create a feast to feed the hardworking Countryfile team at lunch. He ropes in John as his sous chef and together they prowl the stalls for the best of British cuisine. John prepares the kipper salad while Phil sizzles some sausages! Everyone enjoys a well-earned rest from the morning鈥檚 activities while they speculate on who the secret guest will be in the cricket match later.

Weather experiments

Weather experiments

Ellie goes to see John Hammond who has set up some experiments to demonstrate how warmer temperatures lead to summer storms. Eggs and water balloons are just two of John鈥檚 visual aids. Ellie finally gets hands on with a 100 year-old contraption to make her own lightening!

The Women鈥檚 Land Army

The Women鈥檚 Land Army

Summer fayres were not the only time when people from both town and country were brought together. During the First World War thousands of men went away to fight and so the Women鈥檚 Land Army was established in order to keep Britain鈥檚 agriculture moving. Ellie meets historian Cherish Watton who explains how propaganda was used to entice city women out to farms. Once in the countryside they had to get stuck-in but were rewarded with liberating trouser uniforms and usually found themselves to be more than capable. Ellie is shown photos of Valerie Linda鈥檚 mother Dorothy who described her time working for the Land Army as 鈥渢he happiest days of her life鈥.

Celebrity cricket

Celebrity cricket

What better way to end a peaceful and traditional summer fayre than with a high-adrenaline cricket match between the Countryfile presenting team and their celebrity guests?! Adam鈥檚 son Alfie is a keen player and so joins the home team but Phil Vickery and co. aren鈥檛 going to accept defeat lying down and have a surprise team member of their own. There are low balls, high balls and particularly bouncy balls but who will rein victorious? It all comes down to a face-off between Countryfile legend John Craven and the mighty brawn of Phil.

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter John Craven
Presenter Matt Baker
Presenter Ellie Harrison
Presenter Adam Henson
Presenter Tom Heap
Series Producer Joanna Brame
Executive Producer William Lyons
Participant John Hammond
Participant Phil Vickery
Participant Ian McMillan
Participant Tony Husband

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