A shepherd's watch

the long version

At Borough Farm, on the rugged, spectacularly beautiful North Devon coast, David Kennard and his dogs are embarking on a new shepherding year. The twelve months ahead will present David and his working sheepdogs Greg, Swift, Gail, Fern and Ernie, with a never-ending series of challenges: from rescuing ewes stranded on the Atlantic cliffs to running the gauntlet of psychopathic rams and officious farm inspectors; from spring lambing and summertime shearing to fending off the ever-present threats nature has in store for the 850-strong flock. All this, in the midst of a harsh economic climate for farming and a landscape that is among the most picturesque, yet wildly unpredictable, in the British Isles. How will David and his young family survive another year? The next 362 days will tell ...