Episodes

  • The Climbers of Eryri | A Story of Ice and Flowers

    The Climbers of Eryri | A Story of Ice and Flowers
    Dec 24 2025
    The rock faces of Cwm Idwal are cold, dark and uninhabitable; unless what you love is to dangle off the frozen cliffs. Ice climbing takes you into a winter playground, but as the climate crisis thins the ice, how can climbers and conservationists work together to save one of the UK’s rarest flowers?

    Join ecologist and botanist Barbara Jones and ice climber Tom Carrick to scale one of Wales' most dramatic mountains and discover how the precious Lili'r Wyddfa (Snowdon Lily) can survive in this isolated location.
    For the Welsh transcript of this episode please click here

    Or copy this link: https://audioboom.com/posts/8820822-dringwyr-eryri-stori-am-ia-a-blodau/transcript

    [Ad] Wild Tales is sponsored by Cotswold Outdoor, your outside retailer and epic guides to adventure.
    Quick breathers, calming walks or heart-pounding hikes. We feel better when we get out more.
    Find quality kit and 50 years of outdoor wisdom. Plus, supporters save 15% in-store and online. Feel in your element, in the elements, at Cotswold Outdoor.
    www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/

    Production
    Presenter: Rosie Holdsworth
    Producer: Marnie Woodmeade
    Sound Designer: Jesus Gomez
    Contributors
    Barbara Jones
    Tom Carrick
    Image credit: ©National Trust Images/John Millar

    Discover more
    If you want to visit Cwm Idwal you can find out more at the National Trusts website: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/wales/carneddau-and-glyderau/cwm-idwal-walk
    To see the temperature sensors, you can find them at the BMC website https://www.thebmc.co.uk/en/cwm-idwal-welsh-winter-monitoring-system-live-and-upgraded
    You can also find the white guide and more winter mountaineering information here: https://www.thebmc.co.uk/en/mountaineering-resources

    For more on arctic alpines, here are some resources:
    Plants on the Edge: Arctic Alpines in Wales / Ar y dibyn: Planhigion Arctig Alpaidd yng Ngymru
    https://www.ukclimbing.com/articles/features/mountain_plants_in_the_uk__undervalued_and_under_threat-13605


    Follow us @wildtalesnt Instagram account
    If you'd like to get in touch with feedback, or have a story connected with the National Trust, you can contact us at podcasts@nationaltrust.org.uk
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    20 mins
  • A Robin is not just for Christmas

    A Robin is not just for Christmas
    Dec 10 2025
    As the festive season unfolds, one familiar face keeps appearing – the little robin. But behind its cheerful presence, is there more to this charming bird’s story?
    National Trust ranger Rosie Holdsworth chats to garden wildlife specialist Sean McMenemy about the remarkable life of robins, revealing their fascinating year-round behaviour and why this beloved bird deserves to be celebrated all year long.


    (AD) Wild Tales is sponsored by Cotswold Outdoor, your outside retailer and epic guides to adventure.
    Quick breathers, calming walks or heart-pounding hikes. We feel better when we get out more.
    Find quality kit and 50 years of outdoor wisdom. Plus, supporters save 15% in-store and online. Feel in your element in the elements, at Cotswold Outdoor. www.cotswoldoutdoor.com

    Watch a video of this podcast on the National Trust’s YouTube channel:
    https://www.youtube.com/@nationaltrustcharity/podcasts

    Production
    Presenter: Rosie Holdsworth
    Producer: Pippa Tilbury-Harris
    Sound Designer: Jesus Gomez
    Contributor: Sean McMenemy


    Discover more
    You can read Sean’s garden wildlife blog here: Sean McMenemy Wildlife Blog

    Follow us on our @wildtalesnt Instagram account

    If you’d like to get in touch with feedback, or have a story connected with the National Trust, you can contact us at podcasts@nationaltrust.org.uk
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    13 mins
  • Golf Course to Nature Reserve | Just Add Water?

    Golf Course to Nature Reserve | Just Add Water?
    Nov 26 2025
    How can a golf course become a place for nature and people to thrive? Ajay Tegala visits Sandilands in Lincolnshire over its first year as the once manicured lawns transform into a wetland habitat. But with one of the driest springs on record, can Sandilands go from one birdie to another? Will there be enough water for wading birds return?
    [Ad] Wild Tales is sponsored by Cotswold Outdoor, your outside retailer and epic guides to adventure.
    Quick breathers, calming walks or heart-pounding hikes. We feel better when we get out more.
    Find quality kit and 50 years of outdoor wisdom. Plus, supporters save 15% in-store and online. Feel in your element, in the elements, at Cotswold Outdoor.
    www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/

    Watch a video of this podcast on the National Trust’s YouTube channel:
    https://www.youtube.com/@nationaltrustcharity/podcasts


    Production
    Presenter: Ajay Tegala
    Producer: Marnie Woodmeade
    Sound designer: Jesus Gomez

    Contributors
    Carl Hawke
    Kirsty James
    Dave Miller

    Special Credit: A big thanks to Jannis Bonner, composer student at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama, for their collaboration to this episode with the track "Breath of the Canopy".

    Eurasian booming bittern sfx:
    Author: Niels Krable
    Link: https://xeno-canto.org/100296

    Discover more

    If you want to visit Sandilands or keep up to date with their progress you can find them here: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/visit/nottinghamshire-lincolnshire/sandilands
    Follow us @wildtalesnt Instagram account
    Image credit: ©National Trust Images/Rob Coleman
    If you'd like to get in touch with feedback, or have a story connected with the National Trust, you can contact us at podcasts@nationaltrust.org.uk

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    25 mins
  • Warrior the War Horse | Survival Against the Odds

    Warrior the War Horse | Survival Against the Odds
    Nov 11 2025
    What happened to the animals who served in the First World War?

    Uncover the extraordinary story of Warrior the war horse who survived the Western Front. General Jack Seely's horse, Warrior, was anything but ordinary. He carried his master through some of World War One's most brutal battles, including the Somme, Ypres and Passchendaele. Despite more than eight million horses, donkeys and mules losing their lives during the war, Warrior somehow survived. Join General Jack Seely's grandson and broadcaster, Brough Scott and historian, James Grasby, to retrace Warrior's incredible journey.



    [Ad] Wild Tales is sponsored by Cotswold Outdoor, your outside retailer and epic guides to adventure. Quick breathers, calming walks or heart-pounding hikes. We feel better when we get out more.Find quality kit and 50 years of outdoor wisdom. Plus, supporters save 15% in-store and online. Feel in your element, in the elements, at Cotswold Outdoor. www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/



    Watch a video of this podcast on the National Trust’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@nationaltrustcharity/podcasts

    Production

    Host : James Grasby
    Producer and sound designer: Nikki Ruck

    Contributors
    Brough Scott

    Discover more

    To visit Mottistone

    Mottistone

    To find out more about Warrior

    Warrior The War Horse

    If you would like to follow in the footsteps of warrior check out the
    Warrior Trail


    Follow us @wildtales Instagram account
    If you’d like to get in touch with feedback or a story idea you can contact us at podcasts@nationaltrust.org.uk
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    22 mins
  • Halloween Special | Witches' Familiars

    Halloween Special | Witches' Familiars
    Oct 29 2025
    Is your cat the devil in disguise? Probably not, although they may act like it sometimes! But once upon a time, they would have been accused of luring you into witchcraft.
    In Britain in the 16th and 17th centuries witch hunting became an obsession and supposed ‘witches’ were put on trial, and some were even sentenced to death.

    Being an animal lover was considered a sure sign that someone was practicing witchcraft. Friendliness towards cats, rabbits or dogs could lead to accusations of witchcraft, as these animals, known as familiars, were suspected of working for the devil.

    One of those accused of witchcraft and seen with familiars was Elizabeth Clarke, a poor, disabled woman from Essex.

    Join Rosie and historian Dr Romany Reagan as they uncover Elizabeth’s story and the strange tale of the witches’ familiars.

    [Ad] Wild Tales is sponsored by Cotswold Outdoor, your outside retailer and epic guides to adventure. Quick breathers, calming walks or heart-pounding hikes. We feel better when we get out more. Find quality kit and 50 years of outdoor wisdom. Plus, supporters save 15% in-store and online. Feel in your element, in the elements, at Cotswold Outdoor. https://www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/

    Production:
    Host: Rosie Holdsworth
    Producers: Rosie Toy and Katy Kelly
    Sound Editor: Jesus Gomez

    Contributor: Dr Romany Reagan

    Discover More:

    Find out more about witchcraft:
    https://essexwitchmuseum.co.uk

    Uncover folklore, legends, myths and lost histories from the British Isles with Dr Romany Reagan:
    https://blackthornandstone.com

    Watch a video of this podcast on the National Trust’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@nationaltrustcharity/podcasts

    If you’d like to get in touch with feedback or a story idea you can contact us at podcasts@nationaltrust.org.uk
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    13 mins
  • Ranger Rae and the Wildlifers | New Series Trailer

    Ranger Rae and the Wildlifers | New Series Trailer
    Oct 22 2025
    A new series of Ranger Rae and the Wildlifers is here. Awooo! Follow the adventures of Ranger Rae and the Wildlifers, a crew of colourful creatures who use their skills to solve curious cases.

    Beaver’s a super engineer. Sleepy Bat’s skill is sonar. Wildcat’s a proud predator. Deer’s strong and speedy. Fox has a nose for trouble. Shy Mole’s an expert digger, and Dragonfly’s always buzzing.

    In Series Two, 12-year old Roxy has finally become a real Wildlifer and can talk to animals. But she's got a lot to learn to be a top Ranger like her hero Rae.

    Luckily the Wildlifers are back on the trail solving puzzles, where they find old friends and new ones too like inventor Luca.

    Join the crew on new adventures in destinations from under the sea to beautiful forests, from cruising the canal to exploring the city after dark. And meet a host of weird and wonderful characters along the way.

    Perfect for 5-8 year olds.

    Grown ups, follow Ranger Rae and the Wildlifers kids' podcast by finding the show on your favourite podcast app including Apple, Spotify and Yoto.

    Or follow this link: podfollow.com/national-trust-kids-podcast

    Ranger Rae and the Wildlifers is a podcast from the National Trust, Europe's Biggest Conservation Charity, produced by Fun Kids.

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    2 mins
  • Nature Valley, Taiwan | Technology and the Wild

    Nature Valley, Taiwan | Technology and the Wild
    Oct 15 2025
    Taiwan is known for its technology — from the chips that power our phones to the satellites orbiting above us, but just beyond the city of Hsinchu, there’s a small forest that tells a different story. Trust in Nature Foundation Taiwan is Taiwan’s first environmental charitable trust — a place where protected wildlife and local communities are working side by side to protect some of the island’s natural habitats.

    In this episode presented by Rosie Holdsworth, producer Jesse Edbrooke visits the people caring for this forest, meet the protected animals that live there, and explore how conservation can thrive and inspire in one of the most high-tech regions on Earth.

    [Ad] Wild Tales is sponsored by Cotswold Outdoor, your outside retailer and epic guides to adventure.Quick breathers, calming walks or heart-pounding hikes. We feel better when we get out more.Find quality kit and 50 years of outdoor wisdom. Plus, supporters save 15% in-store and online. Feel in your element, in the elements, at Cotswold Outdoor. www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/

    Nature Valley Environmental Trust Taiwan - https://teia.tw/natural-valley-en
    Trust in Nature Founation - https://tnf.org.tw/en

    International National Trust Organisation - https://www.into.org
    Jhih Han Lyu was a participant in the INTO Incubator programme in 2024, which supports emerging heritage leaders across the globe.

    Watch a video of this podcast on the National Trust’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@nationaltrustcharity/podcasts

    Production:
    Hosts: Rosie Holdsworth
    Producer: Jesse Edbrooke
    Sound Editor: Jesus Gomez

    Contributors: Jhih Han Lyu, Wing Lo,
    Translation: Joshua Edbrooke

    Discover More:
    Includes music from Wing Lo’s Aha Moment - https://music.apple.com/gb/album/%E8%AB%8B%E8%AA%AA%E5%AE%A2%E8%AA%9E/1826949430?i=1826949431

    Follow us @wildtales Instagram accountIf you’d like to get in touch with feedback or a story idea you can contact us at podcasts@nationaltrust.org.uk
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    16 mins
  • Sex, Death and Spiders

    Sex, Death and Spiders
    Oct 1 2025
    Warning: This episode contains the unusual mating habits of spiders. Autumn is the time for spiders, and the colder months mean our eight-legged friends are searching for something vital: sex. Join arachnologist Anna Maka and author and broadcaster Lucy Cooke to uncover the fascinating and freaky sex lives of spiders and what it teaches us about evolution itself.
    [Ad] Wild Tales is sponsored by Cotswold Outdoor, your outside retailer and epic guides to adventure.
    Quick breathers, calming walks or heart-pounding hikes. We feel better when we get out more.
    Find quality kit and 50 years of outdoor wisdom. Plus, supporters save 15% in-store and online. Feel in your element, in the elements, at Cotswold Outdoor.
    www.cotswoldoutdoor.com/

    Watch a video of this podcast on the National Trust’s YouTube channel:
    https://www.youtube.com/@nationaltrustcharity/podcasts


    Production
    Presenter: Rosie Holdsworth
    Producer and sound designer: Marnie Woodmeade

    Contributors:
    Lucy Cooke
    Anna Maka


    Discover more
    You can find Lucy’s book Bitch: On the female of the species here.
    You can find out more about Anna’s work with rare diamond back spiders here.
    Follow us @wildtalesnt Instagram account
    If you'd like to get in touch with feedback, or have a story connected with the National Trust, you can contact us at podcasts@nationaltrust.org.uk
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    25 mins