Explore the windswept history of the Fylde peninsula, where windmills have stood for centuries. Delve into the enchanting tales of a notable windmill and its impact on local literature. Discover groundbreaking efforts to restore peat bogs and their role in climate regulation. From re-wetting landscapes to carbon farming, the conversation shifts to modern wind-driven activities like kite surfing and land yachting. Experience the thrill of this niche sport, its engineering marvels, and the vibrant community surrounding it.
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Charles Alan Clark's Windmill Passion
Charles Alan Clark, known as Windmill Man, was inspired as a child to cherish windmills after visiting Little Marton Windmill.
His passion led him to write 'Windmill Land', a poetic celebration of Lancashire's windmills.
insights INSIGHT
Fylde Coast's Windmill Abundance
The Fylde coast once had between 30 and 40 windmills, exploiting the flat, windy landscape.
Windmills were vital for grinding grain and land drainage, shaped by the area's abundant wind.
insights INSIGHT
Peatland Restoration as Carbon Farm
Drained peatlands release greenhouse gases, worsening climate change, but re-wetting can reverse damage.
Restoring peatlands as 'carbon farms' offers a sustainable future linking environmental recovery with farming.
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The Fylde peninsula stands between Morecombe Bay, the Bowland Hills and the Irish Sea. Its position means that it's a very windy spot. Windmills have been a feature of the area for hundreds of years, built to grind grain and drain marshy areas in order to turn them into agricultural land. At one point there were over thirty-five windmills on the Fylde coast. Rendered obsolete by the arrival of new technologies – first steam, then electricity - only a few are still standing today. In this programme, Martha Kearney visits one of the last remaining windmills, Little Marton in Blackpool. Built in 1838, it inspired the author Charles Allen Clarke to write 'Windmill Land', documenting the windmills of rural Lancashire. Martha is shown around the mill by the author's grand-daughter, who explains its significance.
Martha travels inland to discover how some of the impacts of the previous generations' decisions about landscape management are being reversed. Where land was once drained, in some places it is now being "re-wetted". She visits Winmarleigh carbon farm where Lancashire Wildlife Trust is running a project to restore peatland which was damaged in the past by drainage, involving planting 150,000 plugs of sphagnum moss. She learns how that's done, and meets the scientist who's monitoring the effect this has on greenhouse gas emissions.
Back on the coast again at Lytham St Annes, Martha finds out about the role the wind has to play in 21st century activities in the area, where sports like kite-surfing and land-yachting are growing in popularity. She meets a man whose father set up the local land-yachting club, and who - now in his 80s - is still going strong in the sport.
Producer: Emma Campbell
Assistant producer: Jo Peacey
Open Country 