Matt Baker and Margherita Taylor commemorate 200 years since the birth of the railways with a journey on the Watercress Line in Alresford, Hampshire. They explore how the advent of steam engines connected rural England to cities, providing farmers with the vital link needed to distribute their fresh produce across the UK. Matt visits watercress growers gearing up for this year’s crop and helps prepare their gravel beds ready for seeding, and he learns about the role of river invertebrates in modern farming practices. Margherita meets the people keeping the heritage line alive, helps volunteers clear a disused railway to create a new wildlife corridor, and she meets a local who has set up a community farm shop which sits in the middle of what put this area on the map – watercress beds! Meanwhile, Tom Heap investigates the system designed to protect farmers selling to big supermarkets and asks how well it’s really working.
| Title | Countryfile - Season 38 Episode 13 : Watercress Line |
|---|---|
| Subtitle Available |
 ETC.
|
| Alternative Titles | |
| First Air Date | 1988-07-24 |
| Last Air Date | 2025-06-01 |
| Number of Episodes | 1801 |
| Number of Seasons | 38 |
| Genres | Documentary, |
| Networks | BBC One, BBC Two, |
| Casts | |
| Plot Keywords | , |
Episodes List
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 1 Winter Wonders Winter Wonders
2025-01-05The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 2 The Waterways of the Shropshire Hills The Waterways of the Shropshire Hills
2025-01-12The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 3 Dartmoor Dartmoor
2025-01-19The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 4 New Forest New Forest
2025-01-26The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 5 Welney Wetland Centre Welney Wetland Centre
2025-02-02The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 6 Mourne Mountains Mourne Mountains
2025-02-09The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 7 Sound of Mull Sound of Mull
2025-02-16The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 8 Stirling Bull Sales Stirling Bull Sales
2025-02-23The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 9 Humber Estuary Humber Estuary
2025-03-02The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 10 Kielder Forest Kielder Forest
2025-03-09The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 11 The Slate Landscape of North West Wales The Slate Landscape of North West Wales
2025-03-16The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 12 River Otter Return River Otter Return
2025-03-23The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 13 Watercress Line Watercress Line
2025-03-30The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 14 Cairngorms Capercaillie Cairngorms Capercaillie
2025-04-06The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 15 Stroudwater Canal Stroudwater Canal
2025-04-13The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 16 Wembury Coast Wembury Coast
2025-04-20The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 17 Forest of Bowland Forest of Bowland
2025-04-27The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 18 Lambing Special Lambing Special
2025-05-04The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 19 Dyfi River Dyfi River
2025-05-11The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 20 Shropshire’s Nature Comeback Shropshire’s Nature Comeback
2025-05-18The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 21 Storrington Storrington
2025-05-25The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
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Countryfile Season 38 :Episode 22 Bradford: City of Culture Bradford: City of Culture
2025-06-01The people, places and stories making news in the British countryside.
