The National Trust Podcast is to be split into two new shows, Wild Tales and Back When.
Wild Tales will explore the secret worlds of many fascinating species, including spiders, birds, dolphins and sharks.
The podcast will launch on 26 March with its first episode Gangster Gull, lifting the lid on the extraordinary lives of seagulls.
Future episodes will include the strange world of spider sex, chaffinches with different accents and a thresher shark that uses a tail as long as it’s body to propel itself through the air.
They will also follow a research boat from Cardigan Bay to uncover dolphins’ social networks and join experts at the Isle of Wight to uncover the story behind the discovery of one of the UK’s most complete dinosaur skeletons.
A team of nature experts from the National Trust will explore the most curious parts of the natural world. They’ll hear from presenters Rosie Holdsworth, a Ranger for the North Yorkshire Moors, Heather Birkett, Garden and Outdoors Manager at Acorn Bank and Ajay Tegala, a Wildlife Presenter, Author and former Ranger who now works at Wicken Fen.
Ajay says: “Through the new series listeners will discover the extraordinary ordinary, be amazed by the rare and resplendent, and unearth curious natural histories.
“They can expect interesting collaborators who connect us emotionally to a range of story subjects, in episodes such as Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle Eco Invasion, The Dinosaurs in the Cliff and Gay Animals.
“I’ve particularly enjoyed learning about some of the amazing scientific research projects that are going on. For example, being able to potentially assess the health of individual birds by analysing sound recordings of them singing.”
Senior Producer Michelle Douglass says: “Dedicated nature and history shows will allow listeners to explore unknown or otherwise inaccessible parts of the natural world and learn about the people, objects and places that shape who we are today.
“With many stories recorded on location across the UK’s diverse landscapes, these fortnightly episodes will transport listeners into the heart of places they love to explore, where they will discover the hidden worlds of animals or unearth connections between people and the historical events that changed their lives.”
Back When will launch on 2 April with its first episode – Black Arrow Rocket, which explores Britain’s role in the Space Race.
Other episodes will delve into the invention that pulled Victorian London free from an era known as the Great Stink, Fan Bay’s secret underground network of tunnels used during World War Two, a tale of life and death during plague, and the history of travelling fairgrounds.
There’s also an episode made with National Trust for Scotland telling the story of the Battle of Culloden in 1746 from different sides.
Experts from the National Trust will host the series including curator James Grasby and curator and author Helen Antrobus as they explore the UK’s most fascinating places, many of which are cared for by the National Trust.
James says: “The National Trust is an astonishing organisation in terms of the variety of historic places and landscapes it cares for, which chronologically span from the neolithic times to World War Two and beyond.
“During the recording of Back When I went from exploring Mr Straw’s House – the ordinary 1920s semi-detached home of a grocer in Nottinghamshire – to Quebec House, the grand childhood home of General James Wolfe, who went from playing soldiers in the woods to fighting and dying at the Battle of Quebec.
“We also follow the journey of Warrior, one of few warhorses to survive the First World War, from Mottistone Manor on the Isle of Wight to the battlefields of France.”
Followers of the National Trust Podcast will automatically start receiving Wild Tales Back When as they launch on all podcast platforms.
In May, the National Trust is launching Nature Escape for listeners to join a monthly nature activity to inspire their own adventures in nature.
The National Trust’s kids’ podcast Ranger Rae and the Wildlifers, made by Funkids Radio for the National Trust, will return for series two in the autumn.
