An exploration of everything the countryside means to us, from a hundred years of the Telegraph’s archive. The Telegraph is, as its former editor Max Hastings identified, more than any other national broadsheet the newspaper of the countryside, which over the years has been written about in its pages by such distinguished writers as J.H.B. Peel, John Betjeman and W.F. Deedes, alongside eminent modern naturalists like Richard Mabey and even unlikely proponents of the rural life like Boris Johnson. This anthology is no bland celebration of bucolic idyll, but rather an exploration of everything that the countryside represents to the British. For some it means the reintroduction of long-lost wildlife such as the red kite, or ancient crafts like thatching. For others it means jouncing along a green lane in a four-wheel-drive Range Rover. To the Prince of Wales, his new town of Poundbury is the countryside while subjects as diverse as crop circles, second homes, Mad Cow Disease and polytunnels are all flashpoints in the modern debate about what, and who, the countryside is for. Hugely varied, by turns funny and provocative, this is an essential exploration of a central aspect of our national identity.

John Cherrington and his seventy-four year old walking companion set out one fine morning in May to traverse the only English footpath that cuts south through the rural heart of the country, a formidable path called the Macmillan Way. Cherrington’s walking partner is Karl Yzerman, an irascible “bull of the woods”, a full twenty years his senior and the perfect foil to the wry and self-deprecating author. Their journey begins at Boston on the Wash and takes them through areas of outstanding beauty such as the Cotswolds, Somerset, and Dorset, all the way to Chesil Beach. Their ultimate destination is Cadbury Castle, a hillfort that many archeologists believe to be the likely location of King Arthur’s legendary centre of operations in the late 5th century when he—or some other prominent British warrior chieftain—made his last stand against the Saxons. Along the way the unlikely duo experiences many adventures, including a serious crime scene, a bull attack, several ghosts, a brothel, and the English themselves. On virtually every page of the book the historical merges with the magic of the footpath, with Cherrington making astute, often humorous observations on the social, cultural and culinary mores of the English, all from a very North American perspective.

The commentaries of other critics are taken into account, but the author also presents her own explications based on her close reading and wide knowledge of literature."--BOOK JACKET.

Audrey Wilson was born in England and grew up in the twenties in the country and London when milk was still delivered in bottles by pony and cart. She was bombed out in the Blitz of l940 and spent four months in a public shelter. She joined the Womens Royal Naval Service, W.R N.S., and, after training as a radio technician, was assigned to MI-5 to listen to German U-boat communications. After the invasion in l944 she was sent to London to translate captured German documents at the time of the V1 and V2 rocket bombs. After the war she married an American musician who taught piano at FSU Music School. Audreys husband died young and she was left with three young boys and no college education. She took her B.A in English Summa cum Laude at Florida State University 1968, M.A. 1969, and Ph.D. in Humanities in 72. She taught Humanities from 1969 through 1997 at FSU. She taught at the Florence Center for six months in 1980. She also accompanied student groups on several occasions to Europe, teaching Art History.