Join one of Britain’s “finest living nature writers” (The Times) to discuss his brand new book, Woodston: The Biography of an English Farm.

Woodston tells the story of John Lewis-Stempel’s family farm for the first time, and in doing so interrogates why farming is so central to our country – indeed, to humanity – at a time when we increasingly want to know where our food comes from.

In the beginning was the earth…
From the Paleozoic volcanoes that stained its soil, to the Saxons who occupied it, to the Tudors who traded its wool, to the Land Girls of wartime, John Lewis-Stempel charts a sweeping, lyrical history of Woodston: the quintessential English farm.
With his combined skills of farmer and historian, Lewis-Stempel digs deep into written records, the memories of relatives, and the landscape itself to celebrate the farmland his family have been bound to for millennia. Through Woodston’s life, we feel the joyful arrival of oxen ploughing; we see pigs rootling in the medieval apple orchard; and take in the sharp, drowsy fragrance of hops on Edwardian air. He draws upon his wealth of historical knowledge and his innate sense of place to create a passionate, fascinating biography of farming in England.
Woodston not only reminds us of the rural riches buried beneath our feet, but of our shared roots that tie us to the land.

John Lewis-Stempel is a farmer and a writer. His books include the Sunday Times bestsellers The Running Hare and The Wood. He is the only person to have won the Wainwright Prize for Nature Writing twice, with Meadowland and Where Poppies Blow. In 2016 he was named Magazine Columnist of the Year for his column in Country Life. He farms cattle, sheep, pigs and poultry. Traditionally.

Tickets: £5.00 per household / Or £20.00 – includes a SIGNED (bookplated) copy of Woodston: The Biography of an English Farm