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BBC Radio 4 - 92 to 94 FM and 198 Long Wave

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OPEN COUNTRY

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	PROGRAMME INFO

	Saturday 6.10-6.35am Repeated Thursday 1.30-2.00pm


	From Shetland to the Scilly Isles, Open Country travels the UK in search of the stories, the people and the wildlife that make our countryside such a vibrant place. Each week we visit a new area to hear how local people are growing the crops, protecting the environment, maintaining the traditions and cooking the food that makes their corner of rural Britain unique. Email: [email protected] Postal address: Open Country, BBC Radio 4, Birmingham, B5 7QQ.


	LISTEN AGAIN


	Listen to Open Country for 27 August 2005


	PRESENTERS

	HELEN MARK and RICHARD URIDGE



	More about Helen Mark




	More about Richard Uridge


	PROGRAMME DETAILS

	Saturday 27 August 2005
The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings Every summer, the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings decamps for one week from its London HQ to put its advice and expertise into practice at a building in need. This year, they're coming to the aid of a medieval Nottinghamshire church. Around 30 conservation experts and volunteer heritage enthusiasts from all walks of life have descended on Holy Trinity Church at the tiny village of Ratcliffe-on-Soar for a week to carry out vital maintenance and repair work to this attractive 13th century church. The church is notable for its unusually long chancel (longer than the nave) and fine alabaster tombs of members of the locally important Sacheverell family, formerly the Lords of the Manor. Richard rolls up his sleeves and joins in - and discovers that the volunteers and the local community have all banded together to help preserve the church - undertaking tasks like using traditional lime mortar in repointing work, improving the drainage around the building and using traditional lime washing techniques inside the church itself. The workers include SPAB's Chief Executive, Philip Venning who says it's all about trying to capture the subtle qualities buildings have - they're easily destroyed by well-meaning people - and the Society's technical director, Douglas Kent, adds that it's repair, not restoration, which is key to the work. The Priest in Charge at the church is the Rev Steve Osman who believes that churches aren't just for religious ceremonies but should be meeting places for the villages. Ratcliffe has no village hall, pub or shop and the church is a popular venue for everything from parish meetings to musicals. Churchwardens John Greensmith and Nigel Taylor - the men responsible for looking after the fabric of the church, were also getting stuck in. They and their families are also some of the many villagers who are putting the visitors up and providing meals - including a huge barbecue at the end of the long working day. But before that, Richard has to do some hard graft … and finds it's all becoming like The Midsomer Murders as digging new drains away from the churchyard produces not one, but two skeletons … Email Open Country: [email protected] The BBC is not responsible for external web sites

	RELATED LINKS BBC Holiday Category BBC Country file