One day in late spring.

Woodpeckers, foxes, cuckoos.

It’s been fairly glorious out there the last couple of days. The dawn has arrived awash with birdsong and sparkling dew. The comfrey is smothered with bumblebees, and local feathered celebrities have been causing a stir.

It hasn’t been without its challenges. Two days of torrential rain raised the level of the canal and sunk the nearby swans’ nest - and …