Steve Waters - Song Of The Reed - 2. Whirlpool

STEVE WATERS - SONG OF THE REED - 2. WHIRLPOOL (320kbs-m4a/100mb/44mins)
BBC Radio 4 broadcast: 22nd September 2021

We return to Fleggwick where the search is on to find the miniscule Whirlpool Ramshorn Snail – a tiny creature whose presence would bolster the case for the reserve as a habitat for rare species.

Sophie Okonedo and Mark Rylance star in the second of Steve Waters' seasonal dramas following the life of a fictional wetlands nature reserve, over the period of one year.

Fleggwick, like the ecosystem it protects, is under threat. The site was not financially sustainable when its founder passed away, so his daughter Liv (Sophie Okonedo) needs to find a way for it to survive. But if that means selling out to 'trendy conservation', then Ian (Mark Rylance), the Warden, wants nothing to do with it.

Song of the Reed is recorded on location at RSPB's Strumpshaw Fen. The story is informed by the real work and science of conservation taking place in the face of rapid environmental change in the wetlands of Norfolk, and everywhere. This episode also features Tom Fewins of the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust, playing himself.

Cast:
Liv ..... Sophie Okonedo
Ian ..... Mark Rylance
Tam ..... Ella Dorman Gajic
Kay ..... Molly Naylor
Sadegh ..... Zaydun Khalaf
Theo ..... Tom Goodman-Hill
Nikki ..... Karen Hill
Tom ..... Tom Fewins
Voice of the Reed ..... Christine Kavanagh
Other parts played by staff and volunteers at RSPB Strumpshaw Fen

Music by Michael Somerset Ward with Rebecca Hearne
Sound design by Alisdair McGregor
Produced and Directed by Boz Temple-Morris

A Holy Mountain production for BBC Radio 4