Ramblings

Clare goes beachcombing on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent with author Lisa Woollett. Lisa is fascinated by what we throw away and how it reflects our changing lifestyles. Her new book ‘Rag and Bone’ tells the story of her discoveries in beachcombing and mudlarking and how it links to her family history: her great grandfather was a scavenger and her grandfather was a dustman. Clare and Lisa begin their walk (crucially, at low tide) at grid reference TQ954737.Producer: Karen Gregor

David Wilson is a well known criminologist and former prison governor. Clare meets him in the village of Wicken on the Northamptonshire/Buckinghamshire border near to where he lives for a walk to the nearby village of Leckhampstead. This is one of David's regular routes. He has been walking around 50 miles a week since lockdown began in March. He does it to keep his weight down and to help process the horrors he often faces in his work dealing with murderers and serial killers. Clare talks to him about a case in his hometown in Scotland which he has recently written a book about. In it he reexamines the brutal murder of a young woman in 1973. Many people in the town believed the wrong man was tried and convicted. With the help of his sisters, David revisits the case and tracks down the man he believes to be the real killer. Producer: Maggie AyreThe route starts on OS Landranger 152 Grid Ref SP 745394 Wicken to Leckhampstead

Barry Farrimond, who plays Ed Grundy in The Archers, takes Clare Balding for an adventurous hike across Dartmoor. As they navigate the granite boulders of Wistman's Wood and scramble cross the West Dart River, Barry discusses the challenges of recording The Archers during lockdown, the knot he invented a few years ago (the Farrimond Friction Hitch) and Open Up Music, an organisation he co-founded to ensure that orchestras are accessible to young disabled musicians; this led to the establishment of the National Open Youth Orchestra, the world's first disabled-led national youth ensemble. Barry and Clare began their walk at Two Bridges, in the car park for Wistman's Wood: grid reference SX609750.Producer: Karen Gregor

On a hot day, Clare and Alice Roberts walk from the village of Draycott in Somerset up through the Draycott Sleights Nature Reserve with views opening out across the Bristol Channel to Wales and across the Somerset Levels to Glastonbury Tor. Alice says she finds the ancient landscape fascinating and imagines the inhabitants of past centuries who would have lived on the small settlements on the Levels.Producer: Maggie Ayre

Dom Joly, famous for Trigger Happy TV, takes Clare on a walk near to his home in Gloucestershire. Leaving the village of Winchcombe, they walk up Spoonley Hill to see the remains of a Roman Villa. As they walk, Dom talks about his love of walking, discovered later in life after he became a travel writer. Recently he walked the entire length of Lebanon where he was born. His book The Hezbollah Hiking Club is an account of the 27 day walk. And he has been an avid walker since moving to Gloucestershire. Produced by Maggie Ayre for BBC Audio in Bristol

Clare Balding digs into the archives to find the most dramatic weather conditions she's recorded in; she also hears from those walkers who've had had the biggest adventures.The highlights include: Satish Kumar who covered 8000 miles when he walked from India to North America in the 1960s, to protest about nuclear arms; retired RAF officer, Lucy Newcombe, who has walked around the British coastline; and back in 2012 Clare found herself in the wildest of conditions on Dartmoor, luckily she was with a group from the Search and Rescue Dog Association.Please scroll down to the 'related links' box to click through to the featured programmes.Producer: Karen Gregor

Clare Balding continues her exploration of the archives and finds a selection of entertaining highlights which give some good advice to walkers both experienced and novice.Writer, Simon Ingram, recommends walking at 'guide's pace' when climbing steep hills; bothy-bagger, Phoebe Smith, discusses the etiquette of staying in these remote shelters; and experienced long-distance walker, Jenny Walters, tells Clare how best to prepare when tackling a mammoth route.Please scroll down to the 'related links' box to click through to the programmes featured.Producer: Karen Gregor

Clare Balding recalls her favourite walks with a colourful variety of writers and singers including Bill Bryson, Toyah Wilcox, folk duo Ninebarrow, and the choral group Werca's Folk. Clare has been walking on air since 1999, and for this lockdown series of highlights has been digging into the archives to retrieve some of her most memorable moments: Today she gets dressed with Bill Bryson, takes a lift across a small puddle with Toyah, discovers that Dorothy Wordsworth avoided marriage so she could continue walking, and hears from author Emma Mitchell about exactly why our mood is lifted when we spend time in nature.Scroll down to the 'Related Links' box where you can click through to all the featured programmes.Producer: Karen Gregor

In a joyful celebration of 20 years spent walking on air, Clare Balding digs deep into the exhilarating archives of Ramblings to share the best moments from her favourite walks.This week's highlights showcase the diverse landscape that Clare has explored since the series began. From the Sands of Forvie in Aberdeenshire to the Wicklow Mountains in the Republic of Ireland via a moonlit night walk across the South Downs to the unique landscape of Alderney. Please scroll down to the 'Related Links' box to click through to the programmes featured today. Producer: Karen Gregor

In a joyful celebration of 20 years spent walking on air, Clare Balding digs deep into the exhilarating archives of Ramblings to share the best moments from her favourite walks. This week she explores the theme of Health and Happiness to discover how walking can provide a real boost to both our physical and mental health.The featured programmes include The Diamond Ramblers, a group who discuss their achievements with weight loss; the positive and uplifting Forget Me Not dementia group; and Dr. Kate Harding who persuades Clare to walk in silence, always a challenge, however this was an encounter that proved very meaningful for Clare and it's a walk she's never forgotten.Please scroll down to the 'Related Links' box to access the full programmes included in this edition. Many, many more are available on BBC Sounds.Walking for Spiritual Renewal Mental Health Walking Group Black Men's Walking for Health Group (now Walk4Health) The Diamond Ramblers Up to the Labyrinth on St. Catherine's Hill 'Forget Me Not' Dementia Group Producer: Karen Gregor