EAR TO THE GROUND

Ear to the ground 01ear-to-the-ground-presenter-darragh-mccullough-with-donal-sheehanhedge-cutting-story-prog-9-1 Image Name: Ear to the ground 01ear-to-the-ground-presenter-darragh-mccullough-with-donal-sheehanhedge-cutting-story-prog-9-1
Ear to the ground 01ear-to-the-ground-presenter-ella-mcsweeney-with-farmer-and-landowner-of-the-lost-valley-1 Image Name: Ear to the ground 01ear-to-the-ground-presenter-ella-mcsweeney-with-farmer-and-landowner-of-the-lost-valley-1
Ear to the ground 01ear-to-the-ground-presenter-helen-carroll-with-master-of-the-meath-hunt-pat-dillon-1 Image Name: Ear to the ground 01ear-to-the-ground-presenter-helen-carroll-with-master-of-the-meath-hunt-pat-dillon-1

Broadcast Details: Tuesday 3rd January, 8.30pm

Meath Hunt -the people behind the scenes from the farmers to the men looking after the hounds, The Lost Valley in Mayo - a place so remote that after the Great Famine, the land remained untouched by human hand, and the proposed amendment to the Wildlife Act to allow hedge cutting in August.

(01)Ear To The Ground (Series 24, Programme 9)
Tuesday 3rd Janurary 2017
RTÉ One
8.30pm

THE LOST VALLEY
Ella McSweeney opens a door to the past, as she visits The Lost Valley in Mayo – a place so remote that after the Great Famine, the land remained untouched by human hand. The Lost Valley sits on the edge of Ireland and the clue is in its name.
The valley was so dangerous to enter that Gerry Bourke, a farmer and the landowner of the abandoned terrain, created a pathway leading through its deserted houses, potato ridges and farmland of his ancestors. Join Ella as she goes back in time with Gerry, at this extraordinary site.

MEATH HUNT
10 years ago Pat Dillon took over a position his father Ben had held for many years, as joint Master of the Meath Hunt – one of the largest in the country.
While many of us are familiar with the image of a group of well turned out riders and hounds being led by men in red coats, what actually goes into making that spectacle happen?
Helen Carroll spend a day with Pat and the Hunt, to meet the people behind the scenes, from the farmers allowing them to hunt  on their land, to the men who look after the hounds.

Hedge Cutting
There are over 300,000 kilometres of hedgerows in Ireland and they cover 6 percent of the land area, but they are all too often overlooked. They need constant management to keep them in good order, but farmers and contractors can only cut hedges from September to February to protect nesting birds and other wildlife.
The government has proposed an amendment to the Wildlife Act to allow hedge cutting in August but Birdwatch Ireland say that this will further threaten already endangered species of birds like the Yellowhammer.
Darragh McCullough travels to the Golden Vale to hear the arguments.

Ear to the Ground is produced for RTÉ by Independent Pictures.
Series Producer – John Cummins
Presenters – Darragh McCullough, Helen Carroll, Ella McSweeney
Directors – Paula Williams, Liam Lavelle
Executive Producer for RTÉ – Michael Hughes