Sporting & Country Pursuits

Love in the Countryside's rocky road to rural romance: Sheep-herding tests, awkward cider farm dates and being dumped by a Shetland pony

Forget Tinder, BBC Two's Love in the Countryside is the farmer's answer to cupid. Rachael Turner reports.

An absolute beginner's guide to clay pigeon shooting: 'Coffee drunk and dogs cuddled, it was time to begin'

Octavia Pollock had never so much as held a gun before she decided to try clay pigeon shooting — she headed down to the Cowdray Estate's Hownhall Shooting School to give it a go.

What's the perfect time to teach your children how to fish?

Walking the 79-mile Dales Way: 'The Wharfe is full and raging; we’re getting worried messages as people hear about the mayhem'

Torrential rain swells the River Wharfe as Fiona Reynolds embarks on a 79-mile walk along the Dales Way, just one step ahead of the floods.

'You’re alive, make the most of it': The 77-year-old British woman who has just become the oldest person to sail around the world

Jeanne Socrates was met by a flotilla of 30 boats when she completed her circumnavigation at the port of Victoria in British Columbia.

How a pony in the Highlands always beats a quad bike: 'Unlike a vehicle, ponies will avoid bogs that swallow the unwary'

On estates such as Balmoral, The Queen’s home in Aberdeenshire, tough and shaggy Highland ponies are vital members of the stalking team when it comes to bringing deer off the hill. Octavia Pollock found out more.

The A–Z of Burghley: All you need to know for this weekend's Horse Trials

Kate Green charts all you need to know about this weekend’s Burghley Horse Trials, from Princess Anne to Zara Tindall.

Alastair Cook on cricket and farming: 'Nature, like international sport, can be simultaneously cruel and wonderful'

Walking Derby and the Derwent Valley, on a morning with 'dappled light on the river reflecting the monumental 18th-century mills'

Fiona Reynolds walks the Derwent Valley Heritage Way in Derbyshire, and is struck by the contrast between Man and Nature.

Michael Vaughan on the Ashes: 'You end careers in Ashes cricket'

Cricket, whether at Lord's or on the village green, is the essence of the English summer — but it needs our help

The World Cup has passed in glory and now the Ashes between England and Australia takes centre stage, but all is not well in the world of cricket.

Jousting gallops into the 21st century with cutting-edge VAR technology

The ancient sport of jousting is being brought into the 21st century this summer as VAR technology is being used to score competitions at English Heritage venues

A walk through the Forest of Bowland: 'I feel the immensity of the history of this place and am deeply moved by it'

A solitary dawn walk through the Forest of Bowland is a magical experience, says Fiona Reynolds.

The Utterly Inessential Polo Shopping List: Everything you'll need for The Hurlingham Polo International Day and beyond

Looking ahead to this Saturday, Alexandra Fraser rounds up all of the Utterly Inessential items you may desire to attend the polo this Saturday in style, from comfy (yet stylish) shoes to the ever-present fedora.

The joy of earning to play polo, the intoxicating sport where you'll ride 'on one of the Ferraris of the horse world'

Watching a polo match will give anyone who loves riding an urge to try it for themselves — Octavia Pollock went to the Cowdray Estate to give it a go.

Royal Portrush: How one of golf's greatest masterpieces has been made even greater

Royal Portrush, in County Antrim, is one of the finest golf courses not just in Northern Ireland but the world. Toby Keel paid a visit ahead of the world's best players alighting on this beautiful spot for The 2019 Open Championship.

The Utterly Inessential Outdoors Shopping List: How to grow your own drinks garnish, a water bottle that keeps ice for 24 hours and a quacking picnic blanket

Henley Royal Regatta: An insider’s guide

Received an invitation to Henley? Charlotte Peters tells you everything you need to know, from dress code to star-spotting.

Hunter have a highly-technical collection of wellies that are designed to brave even the wildest countryside conditions

Long-time British footwear favourites, Hunter are returning to The Game Fair this July at Hatfield House with the brand new Field range, carefully crafted to tackle the typical trials and tribulations faced by boot owners every day.

Jason Goodwin: 'Even when repeated 20 times, “The ball was in!” won’t cut it on the croquet lawn.'

Our Spectator columnist ponders the really big questions as he discusses life, death and croquet.