The Countryside

As temperatures rise so too will the calls to go cold-water swimming — much to Sophia Money-Coutt's chagrin.

By Sophia Money-Coutts Published 17 June 26

As it turns out, the natural world has a lot of good advice for how to make a great football team. Country Life and the World Wide Fund for Nature break down the keys to success.

By James Fisher Published 17 June 26

As the nation votes on the British wildlife that will appear on the next series of banknotes, our writers argue their case for their favourite animals.

By Lotte Brundle Published 16 June 26

As Labour continues to sideline those in the countryside, seven million people are flocking to county shows this summer to sample rural life at its most tangible.

By Will Hosie Published 15 June 26

A surprising members of the Unloved Birds Club is the starling. Mark Cocker explains why.

By Mark Cocker Published 12 June 26

Sophia Money-Coutts waxes lyrical about the most English of summer countryside traditions. Illustration by John Holder.

By Sophia Money-Coutts Published 10 June 26

They may look closer to Brad Pitt's Paul Maclean than to the grandfathers who taught them how to cast. But they are flocking to the sport in their hundreds, lured by Nature's bounty.

By Will Hosie Published 8 June 26

From Staffie-shaped seals and smiling Samoyed belugas to borzoi swordfish, World Ocean Day seemed the perfect opportunity to tackle one of life's most important questions: which marine animals look most like dogs?

By Florence Allen Published 7 June 26

Mark Cocker defends the ungainly pigeon in this weeks column, where he defends Britain's least likable birds.

By Mark Cocker Published 5 June 26

The UK trade body that represents more than 1,000 small-scale cut flower growers, has been awarded dedicated Standard Industrial Classification codes.

By Julie Harding Published 4 June 26

The dawn chorus is a rich reminder of the beauty of the world we live in, far removed from its many horrors. And you can hear it from anywhere.

By Country Life Published 3 June 26

Independent wine merchants are going from strength to strength in rural communities. Gabriel Stone raises a glass to some of the best. Photographs by Millie Pilkington and Mark Williamson.

By Gabriel Stone Published 30 May 26

For the last quarter of a century, the Knepp estate in Sussex has become a pioneer of the rewilding revolution, and now a new generation is joining the cause. Oliver Berry meets Ned Burrell and Lia Brazier to talk wild charcuterie, climate change — and making their own Marmite.

By Oliver Berry Published 30 May 26

'The Birds' vilified this species of bird on the big screen. They remain instinctively wary and you can almost never get close to one — with good reason, writes Mark Cocker.

By Mark Cocker Published 29 May 26

A group of scientists at the University of Cambridge has managed to identify specific sites that might offer habitat for hedgehogs, writes Will Hosie.

By Will Hosie Published 28 May 26

Clive Nichols and Kathryn Bradley-Hole join the Country Life Podcast live from the Chelsea Flower Show.

By James Fisher Published 20 May 26

Plankton generates at least five times more oxygen than tropical rainforests. Yet its various subspecies remain opaque and poorly understood. That could soon be changing.

By Will Hosie Published 18 May 26

Bella MacLean and Alex Hassell speak to Meg Walters about season two of Rivals and the sex appeal of the Cotswolds.

By Meg Walters Published 15 May 26

In the first of our new series on ‘unloved birds’, we take a beady-eyed look at the charred black carrion crow, the clever corvid with the coarse voice.

By Mark Cocker Published 15 May 26