Adders, Shetland ponies and the future of the human race: Tom Hilder on the Country Life Podcast

Adders, Shetland ponies and the future of the human race: Tom Hilder on the Country Life Podcast

Tom Hilder was born to a life in the country. Born in rural Scotland but raised in Hampshire, he went through school always thinking – and being told — that he needed to find a life, and a career, out in the countryside, working with his hands.


A chance meeting with a lecturer at Sparsholt College changed his life for good, and put him on a pathway to become (deep breath) the 'Senior Nature-Based Solutions Officer — Practical Delivery' at the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust. It's comfortably the longest job title of anyone who's yet joined James Fisher on the Country Life Podcast, but the aim is clear: to make the world around us a better, greener place.


Tom talks to James about his life, how he ended up working in the field (literally), and the challenges he's faced — from Shetland ponies and landowners suspicious of his tender years to the 'charismatic adders' found on Hook Common, in north Hampshire.


You can find out more about the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust here, and to nominate someone for the 2026 edition of the award Tom won, visit the Schoffel Countryside Awards website.


Episode credits

Host: James Fisher

Guest: Tom Hilder

Editor and producer: Toby Keel

Music: JuliusH via Pixabay


Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Det här avsnittet är hämtat från ett öppet RSS-flöde och publiceras inte av Podme. Det kan innehålla reklam.

Avsnitt(117)

From Norman Foster and Ken Follett to James May's Lego and Sadam Hussein's Rolex: The best of the Country Life Podcast

From Norman Foster and Ken Follett to James May's Lego and Sadam Hussein's Rolex: The best of the Country Life Podcast

We’re taking a break, and while I’m not sure when we’ll be back, I am sure we will be back. The world of digital media moves quickly, which is somewhat anathema to the work we do at Country Life. Whil...

16 Juni 34min

What not to miss at the 2026 Chelsea Flower Show, with Clive Nichols and Kathryn Bradley-Hole

What not to miss at the 2026 Chelsea Flower Show, with Clive Nichols and Kathryn Bradley-Hole

Here at Country Life, we love the Chelsea Flower Show — and we know you do too.So we're absolutely delighted to bring you this very special edition of the Country Life Podcast, recorded live in the gr...

19 Maj 33min

70 years of housing hell — and how to make it stop: Jonathan Glancey on the Country Life Podcast

70 years of housing hell — and how to make it stop: Jonathan Glancey on the Country Life Podcast

Britain is full of architectural talent and ideas. So why is our affordable housing in such a state? 'We need to think of unusual sites and then do something special with them,' says the architecture ...

12 Maj 33min

'I hadn't seen anyone who looked like me moving outdoors': Bethany Handley on nature, access, and going up mountains in a pink wheelchair

'I hadn't seen anyone who looked like me moving outdoors': Bethany Handley on nature, access, and going up mountains in a pink wheelchair

Bethany Handley was always an outdoorsy kid. Climbing mountains, crossing rivers or surfing in the sea near her home in South Wales, she lived and worked in the wild, with a job as an outdoor activity...

5 Maj 27min

Is the cure for modern life as simple as going for a walk? Annabel Streets on the Country Life Podcast

Is the cure for modern life as simple as going for a walk? Annabel Streets on the Country Life Podcast

Your grandmother was right: going for a walk really does do you a power of good.Just how much, though, is something that we're only just beginning to discover — a point made beautifully by the writer ...

28 Apr 35min

Is now the time to buy a country house? Strutt & Parker's experts on the Country Life Podcast

Is now the time to buy a country house? Strutt & Parker's experts on the Country Life Podcast

A wise man once said to me, about buying a house, that you ‘have to remember that this is the most money you will spend on anything, ever, so you want to make sure you get it right’. It’s probably bes...

15 Apr 31min

Viking hats, natural wines and messy lunches, with Leonie Cooper

Viking hats, natural wines and messy lunches, with Leonie Cooper

Depending on who you ask, the food and drink scene in London is either in a state of despair or it's never been in better health. As always, when there is this much noise, it's best to get an expert o...

7 Apr 34min

The craft renaissance, with Giles Kime

The craft renaissance, with Giles Kime

Each year, the Country Life Top 100 names the very finest country house architects, interior designers, landscapers, garden designers and craftspeople in Britain. It's one of the magazine's undisputed...

31 Mars 27min

Populärt inom Vetenskap

p3-dystopia
dumma-manniskor
allt-du-velat-veta
bildningspodden
kvalificerat-hemligt-poddradio
svd-nyhetsartiklar
rss-vetenskapsradion-2
det-morka-psyket
sexet
rss-ufobortom-rimligt-tvivel
rss-vetenskapsradion
medicinvetarna
rss-spraket
paranormalt-med-caroline-giertz
vetenskapsradion
rss-kriminologerna
rss-arkeologi-historia-podden-som-graver-i-vart-kulturlandskap
rss-broccolipodden-en-podcast-som-inte-handlar-om-broccoli
hacka-livet
barnpsykologerna