BBC Countryfile viewers slam special episode for ‘scraping the barrel’ as series draws criticism over lack of farming content

Fans of BBC Countryfile are furious over the content of a special episode of the show which aired on Sunday night.

Viewers were quick to criticize the Archeology at Hinton Ampner episode of the popular series, accusing it of a lack of farming content.

In the latest installment of the long-running show, host Anita Rani scoured fields to uncover ancient relics and worked with experts to measure the electrical current in the ground – what’s called resistance.

John Craven also played a prominent role in the episode, as he investigated a prehistoric settlement nicknamed ‘Britain’s Pompeii’.

Located on Must Farm, the site was perfectly preserved by a Bronze Age fire and John was given the opportunity to handle a pot from the site.

In another part of the program, Margherita Taylor went to the Sherwood Pines Forest.

On

‘The whole program is nonsense now. Tonight it was all to do with farming etc. I love an archeology programme, but not on Countryfile. The BBC has ruined it, along with many others.’

‘Archaeology is not what #Countryfile should be. It should be about agriculture, not about centuries-old, no longer usable remains.’

‘What a boring program tonight, not an animal in sight! #countryfile’.

A description of the episode on BBC iPlayer read: ‘From Roman coins to Stone Age axes and prehistoric bones, the British countryside is full of hidden ancient treasures.

‘Anita Rani is located in Hinton Ampner, a medieval village and estate near Winchester in the county of Hampshire. It is home to settlements and burial mounds from the Neolithic and Bronze Age.

‘Some of the land on the Hinton Ampner estate is being converted from grasslands and agricultural land to biodiverse habitats such as woodlands and wildflower meadows.

‘But before that happens, the site is carefully examined for archaeological traces, so that no important historical artefacts are lost.’