Tollesbury Wick in Essex

Helen Mark visits Tollesbury Wick on the Essex coast. Situated on the mouth of Tollesbury Fleet and the Blackwater estuary, a giant sea wall snakes around the coast protecting both village and ancient grazing marshland. Helen meets the Wildlife Trust warden who cares for 650 hectares of unspoilt 'humpy bumpy' marshland and gets a surprise when she finds out what those bumps actually are. She learns about the seafaring history of the place from a descendent of boat builders and discovers how it was the Dutch who shaped this English Landscape. Meanwhile, 'wild writer' James Canton and renowned sculptor, Roland Piche describe how Tollesbury Wick comes alive in art and literature. Tollesbury native Flavian Capes lives in the middle of this vast, salty landscape and discusses being at the mercy of the tides.Producer: Ruth Sanderson.