Get Birding

In this episode, we’re exploring the connection between birds, nature and mental wellbeing — and why spending time outdoors can help us feel calmer and more connected.

Host Sean Bean is joined by singer and actor Will Young, who reflects on rediscovering nature, gardening and the comfort birds have brought him through difficult times. Nature beatboxer and composer Jason Singh shares how birdsong creates a living symphony, while Kings College Professor Andrea Mechelli explains the science behind nature’s positive impact on stress, mood and loneliness.

Plus, Dr Mya-Rose Craig answers your birding questions, as Sean and Will reflect on creativity, grief, childhood memories and the peace that birdwatching can bring.

Produced by Hana Walker-Brown. Executive Producer is Jane Gerber.

This is a Get Birding Production.

Wild Minds Substack by Andrea Mechelli

https://andreamechelli.substack.com/

The podcast is made in collaboration with Forest Holidays, which encourages birdwatching as part of their guests’ stays, with nature sensitive cabins available in 13 incredible locations across the UK. Use the code GETBIRDING26 when booking, for £40 off a 3-night break or £60 off a 4 or 7 night break. The code expires on 30 June 2026 and is for breaks bookable until 1 October 2026.

To find out more, visit www.forestholidays.co.uk
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Join The Flock for exclusive content: https://getbird.ing/starling-payment-form/

In this episode, we’re tuning into one of nature’s greatest performances—the Dawn Chorus—and the remarkable reasons birds fill the early morning with song.

Along the way, host Sean Bean is joined by singer and actor Will Young, who reflects on rediscovering his love of birds, and sound artist Alice Boyd on finding inspiration in listening closely to the natural world.

Plus, Dr Mya-Rose Craig answers your birding questions, and Jenny Shelton from the Wildlife Trusts shares how changing landscapes are reshaping the soundscape of Britain—and what that means for the future of birdsong.

Produced by Hana Walker-Brown. Executive Producer is Jane Gerber.
This is a Get Birding Production.

Wildlife Trusts Dawn Chorus Events

https://www.wildlifetrusts.org/dawn-chorus-day

The podcast is made in collaboration with Forest Holidays, which encourages birdwatching as part of their guests’ stays, with nature sensitive cabins available in 13 incredible locations across the UK. Use the code GETBIRDING26 when booking, for £40 off a 3-night break or £60 off a 4 or 7 night break. The code expires on 30 June 2026 and is for breaks bookable until 1 October 2026.

To find out more, visit www.forestholidays.co.uk

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode, we’re following the vast, invisible highways that birds carve across our skies each spring, and the extraordinary journeys that bring them back to us.

We’ll learn how birds navigate thousands of miles using scent, memory and instinct—and what these epic journeys reveal about survival in a rapidly changing world.

Along the way, Sean is joined by actor and RSPB ambassador Samuel West, broadcaster Johnny Vaughan on the thrill of a fleeting kingfisher sighting, and Chris Hewson from the British Trust for Ornithology tracking cuckoos across continents.

Plus, Dr Mya-Rose Craig answers your birding questions and Zoologist Megan McCubbin shares important new advice on feeding birds safely as seasons change.

Beyond the birds themselves, conservationist Nadia Shaikh and birding instructor George Joseph dig into the deeper story—how our relationship with land shapes who gets to experience nature, and why reclaiming that connection could be key to protecting it.

Produced by Hana Walker-Brown. Executive Producer is Jane Gerber.
This is a Get Birding Production.

BTO Cuckoo Tracking Project
https://www.bto.org/get-involved/volunteer/projects/cuckoo-tracking

Right to Roam
https://www.righttoroam.org.uk/

Decolonising Birding
https://goldengatebirdalliance.app.neoncrm.com/np/clients/goldengatebirdalliance/event.jsp?event=14193

The podcast is made in collaboration with Forest Holidays, which encourages birdwatching as part of their guests’ stays, with nature sensitive cabins available in 13 incredible locations across the UK. Use the code GETBIRDING26 when booking, for £40 off a 3-night break or £60 off a 4 or 7 night break. The code expires on 30 June 2026 and is for breaks bookable until 1 October 2026.
To find out more, visit www.forestholidays.co.uk

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this episode we’re turning our ears—and our attention—to birds in danger, and the thinning of our skies.

From the unmistakable, haunting call of the curlew to the growing gaps where birdsong used to be, we explore the story behind one of the UK’s most threatened species, and why World Curlew Day matters now more than ever.

Along the way, we’ll be exploring how art, music and storytelling can help us reconnect with the natural world—and maybe even change the way we care for it.

Sean will be joined by artist and big time birder, Jim Moir, ornithologist Dr Mya-Rose Craig, Singer David Gray, Founder of World Curlew Day, Mary Colwell and the writer Robert Macfarlane.

Produced by Hana Walker-Brown. Executive Producer is Jane Gerber.
This is a Get Birding Production.

Curlew Recovery Partnership
www.curlewrecovery.org

Curlew Action
https://www.curlewaction.org/

The podcast is made in collaboration with Forest Holidays, which encourages birdwatching as part of their guests’ stays, with nature sensitive cabins available in 13 incredible locations across the UK. Use the code GETBIRDING26 when booking, for £40 off a 3-night break or £60 off a 4 or 7 night break. The code expires on 30 June 2026 and is for breaks bookable until 1 October 2026.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Sean Bean’s love of birding began when he was a lad growing up on an estate in Sheffield. Long before he was an actor, he was a boy fascinated by books on dinosaurs and Sunday nights watching The World About Us with his Dad.

From discussing the magic of the iconic film Kes to debunking myths about helping fledglings, this episode explores how a childhood connection to nature stays with you for a lifetime.

Sean is joined by a flock of guests who discovered their passion at a young age: TV and Radio Presenter, Johnny Vaughn, Wildlife Biologist and Broadcaster, Dan O’Neill, Ornithologist and Environmentalist Dr Mya-Rose Craig, ​​12 year old, artist, naturalist and member of the Youth Council, Benji Fallow and our resident beatboxer and nature sound artist Jason Singh,

Produced by Hana Walker-Brown. The Executive Producer is Jane Gerber.
This is a Get Birding Production.

The podcast is made in collaboration with Forest Holidays, which encourages birdwatching as part of their guests’ stays, with nature sensitive cabins available in 13 incredible locations across the UK. Use the code GETBIRDING26 when booking, for £40 off a 3-night break or £60 off a 4 or 7 night break. The code expires on 30 June 2026 and is for breaks bookable until 1 October 2026.
To find out more, visit www.forestholidays.co.uk
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.