Commons Stories
Commons Stories is a collection of stories from four upland common regions across England: Dartmoor, the Yorkshire Dales, the Lake District and the Shropshire Hills.
You’ll find written and photographic portraits of people, short videos, audio clips, and reflections on events through the year, as well as reflections on some of the challenges of building sustainable futures for people and landscape in these special places.
The collection is put together by somewhere nowhere duo, writer Harriet Fraser and photographer Rob Fraser, with contributions from commoners using GoPro cameras to capture snippets of their day-to-day lives on the farm and in the hills.
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Video Diary: Bleak Bank Farm, Checking the Lambing Fields
Will Dawson from Bleak Bank Farm in the Yorkshire Dales walks out in the early morning to check the lambing fields: watch the video here.
Craig Fearon : Commoner, Lake District
An introduction to Craig Fearon of Nook Farm, Borrowdale. Craig is a National Trust tenant and Cumbrian Commoner with Herdwick Sheep grazing the Cumbrian fells.
Video Diary: Bleak Bank, a Calf is Born
A video from Will Dawson at Bleak Bank Farm: up close and personal for the birth of not one, but two calves. PLEASE NOTE this film contains detailed imagery of a cow giving birth, with assistance.
Exploring Kinniside Common
Kinniside Common is in the far west of Cumbria, on the edge of the English Lake District. A walk from the valley to the common, and back again, reveals layers of history, wildlife and weather.
Video Diary: East Okement Farm, Using the Common
Darren Penna from East Okement Farm shows the view from his upland farm in Dartmoor. This short video is taken as Darren looks out across the commons, and explains how the commons are used for grazing.
Roger Sedgwick : Commoner, Yorkshire Dales
An introduction to upland farmer Roger Sedgwick, a commoner using the Winder side of Brant Fell, Yorkshire Dales
Handing over a flock
Handing over the Landlord’s Flock at Nook Farm, Borrowdale. When a National Trust farm changes hands, and is passed on to a new tenant, that person also takes on the hefted flock. Today Craig Fearon takes on the flock that Stanley Jackson has looked after for decades.
John Heighway : Commoner, Shropshire Hills
Introducing commoner John Heighway, who is a grazier on Clee Liberty Common in the Shropshire Hills
Simon Cooter : Senior Reserves Manager, Stiperstones
An introduction to Simon Cooter, Senior Reserve Manager at Stiperstones National Nature Reserve in the Shropshire Hills
Video Diary: Bleak Bank, Scanning the Ewes
Farmer Will Dawson, whose family have commons rights on Ingleborough Common in the Yorkshire Dales, talks about the process of scanning sheep, which is an important step to take before lambing.
Will Dawson : Commoner, Yorkshire Dales
Will Dawson farms at Bleak Bank, on the flanks of Ingleborough in the Yorkshire Dales. Will works alongside his father, continuing a family tradition of grazing sheep on the common, and keeping a small herd of dairy cows. Find out more here …
Richard Gray : Commoner, Dartmoor
Richard runs Priddons Farm, which sits just below Holne Common, with his wife and his mother. Richard continues a long family tradition of farming in Holne parish, with rights to graze on Holne Common and The Forest of Dartmoor.
Poem: What you might learn when laying a hedge
A poem about hedge laying, inspired by a day with Jeremy Weiss in Dartmoor National Park.
The art of hedge laying - the interwoven cycle of life
There are an estimated 33,000 miles of hedges in Dartmoor, which can offer wildlife shelters and corridors, as well as crucial field boundaries. Harriet and Rob meet Jeremy Weiss, who leads a course in hedgelaying as part of the Our Upland Commons project, and find out more about the benefits of a well-laid hedge for hedges, people and wildlife.
Helen and Darren Penna : Commoners, Dartmoor
An introduction to Dartmoor farmers and commoners, Helen and Darren Penna, at East Okement Farm
