All Around Britain: Two very special guests join Ria and Alex at Westonbirt Arboretum

This week might be the calmest episode of All Around Britain yet, as Alex Beresford and Ria Hebden travel to Westonbirt Arboretum in Gloucestershire - with two very special guests!

Their dogs, Peaches and Ruby, join the pair to practice being mindful in the forest.

Three miles south of Tetbury, the six hundred acre arboretum is home to 15 thousand trees and 17 miles of pathways.

It was created almost two hundred years ago by Robert Holford, a wealthy landowner who was fascinated by rare and extraordinary plants. He funded expeditions to all corners of the globe to collect exotic specimens, many of which are still on show today.

During this week’s programme Alex and Ria are invited by the arboretum’s community officer, Karen Price, to 'Hygge' one of the many trees in the arboretum.

Pronounced ‘hoo-ga’, or hug, Hygge is the Danish and Norwegian word for ‘well-being’. It describes a mood of comfort, coziness and contentment.

The pair also practice forest bathing, an activity that was even enjoyed by their furry friends!

Also in this week’s show, Alex and Ria play their part in helping to make the roof tiles for a new community shelter at the arboretum.

It’s being built at the arboretum to be used by harder to reach groups who can’t easily access nature, or are from deprived areas.

The shelter was designed in 2019 and donations have helped raise the £185,000 needed to build it.

It will be built entirely from the arboretum's own timber and the team have already made almost five hundred of the required eight hundred roof tiles - Alex and Ria came to give them a helping hand.

The programme also showcases some of the most uplifting regional news stories from across the UK. This week we meet the gardeners who’ve been branded the Potty Plotters and the archivists desperate to identify people in a wartime photograph.

Watch All Around Britain on Sunday at 11:55 - Or catch up on ITV Hub!