IN THIS ISSUE

Farmers can be prosecuted for damaging short stretches of river, but when will water companies be held accountable for their actions?

Page 4

You just can’t get the staff ... The UK’s first post-Brexit trade deals begin amid agricultural industry concerns and severe labour shortages.

Page 10

Glorious flopy dock: the spires of purple foxglove shout ‘June is here!’, says wildlife writer Jane Adams Page 52

Where can you go on a £2 bus fare? What does the bus price cap mean for people in Dorset – and just how far can you actually go? Page 12

Heather’s amazingly soft yet crunchy blueberry and lemon crumble loaf recipe

Page 94

We know, it’s a HUGE magazine. So we make it easy for you - just like grabbing the sections you like best from the Sunday papers, you can click the number to jump straight to the section you want. Or, y’know, just make yourself a coffee and start from the beginning...

As most people know, we headed to Mayfair this month for the swish awards do. As a tiny team, just to be shortlisted for Regional Publication Of The Year – to be considered among the top three regional titles in the country –was an honour. On the night we didn’t win, but did receive a Highly Commended accolade, one of only four on the night. This was beyond anything we expected – we were thrilled just to be in the room (and suspect we were the only ones there who had actually paid for their own seat…).

In other news this month:

After a seemingly unending spring of chilly greyness, summer seemed to rush at us in May. The blackthorn has been positively frothing, hasn’t it? I have never seen the hedgerows so thick with white, it’s been utterly glorious. The buttercups and cow parsley too. Dorset has been flashing its prettiest ankle at us, and I’m happily woo-ed (though some are less happy about a council mow of said cow parsley – there are some disgruntled readers on the letters page this month).

If you’ve been watching Springwatch (those poor little wren chicks! I was stricken!), then you might be feeling inspired to go and explore the AONB near Swanage. In a weird twist, our own best walk this month was from Studland. There are few public footpaths across the RSPB Arne reserve itself, for obvious reason, but the wider area’s stunning heathland is criss-crossed by them. If you’ve never explored it then now is the perfect time. We did a long walk (13 miles), but it’s very endlessly adaptable (it’s easy to cut the route to your own length see the map on p50) – and also very flat! We thoroughly recommend going, it’s simply beautiful, and we’d go now, before the summer hoardes arrive. Lastly, in a quick double answer to current FAQs in my inbox: Mochi, our son’s fifth-floor-window-diving cat, is doing amazingly. Her cast is finally off, she’s still limping but getting around beautifully. And no, I have not yet gone mug shopping. But I am thrilled by the number of people who got in touch to share that they also have a specific mug for every time of day/type of drink/mood. It’s the only way.

Finally, I have a kickboxing grading tomorrow. I am feeling The Fear... but I love the sport, and work hard at progresing (if I pass tomorrow I’ll be just two away from a black belt). I only started it to spite my teenagers (no, really), and though I guarantee my body is the exact opposite of what you picture when you think ‘kickboxer’ it always brings me joy. Even if my creaking bones and weeping joints keep pretending I’m far too old for this nonsense.

PS - the photography submissions were SO strong this month, we’ve even changed the design of the back page to squeeze in just-one-more. Don’t miss it!