Table of Contents
A few years ago when my family and I had a small farm in the Peak District, I was sitting on my swing enjoying the sunshine and the beautiful view from our garden. I had a cup of coffee and all seemed right in the world. Suddenly, two hikers dressed in t-shirts, shorts, and sunglasses appeared at the fence leading from the field to my yard. To my surprise, they went up.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing?” I screamed. “This is my garden.”
‘Right to roam, right, darling?’ They laughed as they wandered across my lawn and out onto the road.
I could not believe it. Wandering the fields is one thing, but a private garden?
BBC Springwatch presenter Kate Humble challenged the Ramblers – the British traveling charity that believes in the ‘right to roam’
Jenni Murray reminds walkers to close gates like this one in the Lake District to prevent livestock from escaping their fields.
I was reminded of this when reading Kate Humble’s controversial comments at this year’s Hay Festival. The BBC Springwatch presenter, who specializes in wildlife, is a brave young woman to take on the Ramblers – Britain’s traveling charity. Dedicated to “removing barriers so everyone can enjoy walking in green spaces,” the Ramblers believe everyone has the right to wander wherever and whenever they want.
Not so, says Kate: ‘I think it’s hugely important that there are areas of the country where people are not allowed in. We have all walked along trails or along river banks or through urban parks and seen the trash that remains; Frankly, the disrespectful way people treat the countryside.
I couldn’t agree more and I write from bitter personal experience in the Peak District. It is, in my opinion, the most beautiful of our national parks. Our garden was a good size, part of which was devoted to growing vegetables and fruits and the rest, surrounding the house, was purely for pleasure with the swing, flowering plants and extensive lawn.
In front of the house was a driveway that was also a public road. There were barns in the back, a couple of stables, and three entrances to a large field that sloped down to the river. An entrance to the field was a small stile from the garden through the dry stone wall. Another stile faced the barns as did the large five-bar door.
Jenni Murray tells how she was sitting on her swing when hikers crossed her yard and declared they had the “right to roam.”
It was our responsibility to ensure that the public style remained repaired and safe for walkers. Our neighbor’s sheep cut the grass in the field beautifully. They had our permission to use our land for that purpose and we gave them additional space for their cows with calves.
We diligently fulfill our responsibilities. The walls were kept in good condition; nothing was allowed to go crazy.
If only the hordes of walkers who appeared en masse at any hint of sunshine had had a similar sense of responsibility.
Every now and then I would get a call from a neighbor on the other side of the valley. Could you please pick up our two ponies? The only way those animals could have gotten out was because some fool, instead of climbing the gate, had chosen to open the gate and then didn’t bother to close it. The horses had gone out for a walk on the roads, putting themselves and any car drivers at great risk.
Similar incidents frequently occurred when the cows were in the field. They would also escape through the open door and go to feast in our garden. Cows make a terrible mess where there are crops.
Then, of course, there were the idiots who walked through the fields when the calves were with their mothers. These hikers happily trotted along, oblivious to the risks they were running. They would have their dogs with them, off leash.
I have watched from the bedroom window in horrified anticipation as they ran, terrified, trying to escape a herd of angry cows heading towards them at high speed.
For landowners, it is a stressful time of year. Anyone injured by an angry cow can claim compensation from the landowner. The farmers around us talked about taking out insurance, but for most it was too expensive.
Small farmers work incredibly hard for little economic return. If only hikers were aware that they are walking on land owned not by wealthy aristocrats, but by hard-pressed workers, perhaps they would be more thoughtful.
Then came Sunday morning when I walked downhill to the bottom of our field, closer to the river. It looked like there had been a party. There were embers from an open fire. Empty wine and beer bottles were scattered everywhere, as were discarded crisp packets. Didn’t anyone think about the risks the poor sheep would run if they stepped on a broken bottle or strangled themselves with a packet of crisps?
I have some sympathy for those who long to enjoy the countryside – I know what it’s like to grow up in Barnsley, Sheffield, Leeds or Manchester and long to get away from the dark industrial cities and into the fresh air. But it is an extremely selfish act to assume that a “right to roam” means that you can go anywhere and do whatever you want without regard for the rights or needs of others.
I often wonder what would happen to me if I walked into someone’s city garden and simply claimed my ‘right to roam’. Death by a thousand curses, I suspect. . .
Mon Dior! Please don’t bring suspenders
Actress Anya Taylor-Joy wore suspenders at the Dior Cruise show in Scotland
Actress Anya Taylor-Joy chose straps to sit front row at the Dior Cruise show in Scotland on Monday. When I was a teenager, tights were new and not many people had them. I had stockings and a garter belt and what a pain they were to wear. I would warn women not to revive them, even if they are Dior!
Rest at last for the fugitive cavalry
Royal Cavalry horses Quaker, left, and Vida make progress in their recovery after running through the streets of London in April.
In April I was very angry to see two beautiful cavalry horses running terrified and bloodied through London. They had been frightened by thoughtless builders who were throwing concrete from a great height. What a relief that Vida, the grey, and Quaker, the black stallion, are recovering well in the new pastures of the Chilterns. It would seem that they are the best of friends. Have a safe and sunny summer vacation.
I push my snails over the fence…
Snails have no place in Jenni Murray’s garden. She confesses to throwing them over the fence.
By very carefully entering my garden at night, I try to avoid crushing any of the hundreds of snails and slugs that currently infest every inch of the yard. I don’t want to kill them. I asked a friend who knows about these things if English snails are edible. After all, he had eaten them in France. “Don’t do it,” he said, “they’re disgusting.” So I confess that he picked them up and threw them over the fence to my neighbors.
Skateboarding has been accepted in Northern Ireland as a topic for a GCSE in physical education.
It was a bit surprising to learn that skateboarding, generally known as something of a wild subculture, has been accepted in Northern Ireland as a subject of study for a GCSE in physical education. Then I thought about the hours I’d spent amid graffiti at one skate park after another when my kids were growing up, watching the kids work harder than any Olympic gymnast to perfect their ollies, shuvits, and drops without breaking their necks. I wish the best of luck to all participants. Be careful with those ramps!
Rob Burrow’s rugby league career ended with a diagnosis of motor neurone disease, but his friend Kevin Sinfield supported him.
Rob Burrow and Kevin Sinfield were teammates in the toughest sport of all: rugby league. Rob’s career ended with a diagnosis of motor neurone disease, but Kevin supported him. It’s unusual to see two men in such a close, loving physical relationship and I’ll never forget Kevin carrying Rob to the finish line at the London Marathon, kissing him on the cheek and saying: “That’s what friendship is for.” Tears still come to my eyes. Oh, if we all had friends like that.
