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BBC Springwatch returns to Wild Ken Hill to champion nature

Jill Bennett/BBC Michaela Strachan and Chris PackhamJill Bennett/BBC
Michaela Strachan and Chris Packham will be back to host the new show

Conservationist Chris Packham has said people must not forget about the "very simple joys of nature" they came to appreciate during lockdown periods.

He was speaking ahead of the new series of BBC Two's Springwatch, based at Wild Ken Hill in Norfolk.

"There's still an enormous value in engaging with nature," said Mr Packham.

Across three weeks the show will include films about the birth of wild badgers, romantic life of cuttlefish and a live feed from a bee colony.

Mr Packham, Michaela Strachan, Iolo Williams and Megan McCubbin will present the coming series.

Wild Ken Hill Wild Ken HillWild Ken Hill
Wild Ken Hill is a conservation and sustainable farming project on the west coast of Norfolk

"I guess part and parcel of our remit is to remind people that it was only two summers ago when they were furiously tweeting and posting about very simple joys of nature they were encountering around their community," Mr Packham said.

"They had that bit of extra time to look at things, rather than see them, and listen to things, rather than just hear them," he added, referring to the pandemic.

"And so they recognised that nature was everywhere, not just in the countryside, but in the hearts of our cities - and that it was interesting.

"It also played a significant role in stabilising people's mental health.

"So I think that we are, this season, going to be saying to people, 'Look, don't forget what you learned, there's still an enormous value in engaging with nature'."

A buzzard feeding chicks
Buzzard chicks hatched at Wild Ken Hill last year

A new addition to this series is the introduction of Mindfulness Moments - a 90-second film, free from music or voiceover, that allows viewers to immerse themselves in the sounds and images of nature, from frolicking fox cubs to the crashing waves of the Cornish coast.

Jill Bennett/BBC Chris Packham and Michaela StrachanJill Bennett/BBC
The latest show will be broadcast on BBC Two across three weeks

Ms Strachan said: "I mean, most of us are still absolutely baffled about what's going on in the world right now... but it's so important to connect with nature, with the environment, with our natural world, because it brings so much peace and so much solace."

Springwatch will air on BBC Two and iPlayer from 30 May.

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