Simon Barnes spent over 30 years as chief sportswriter at The Times. His books on birding, including How to Be a Bad Birdwatcher and On the Marsh, have introduced more people to the joy of birds than almost anyone's in recent years. Now in the high 30s to mid-40s for books published, he's just released his latest, How to Fly.

Simon joins Chris from his hut on the edge of his Norfolk marsh, where a marsh harrier, a pair of visiting cranes and a newly singing reed bunting have all been keeping him company. We talk about the Cetti's warbler that helped sell him the house, what he learned from a year at Minsmere, and evenings on the marsh with his son Eddie. We also get into why he believes sound is every bit as important as sight, and what he learned about swifts, bumblebees and pterosaurs while researching a book dedicated to flight.

Episode Takeaways:

• Two sides of birding: Simon describes the daily "soap opera" of small, predictable moments that give you a sense of belonging, alongside the peak moments that leave you barely able to believe what you're seeing. It's the combination that brings you back.
• Let the land lead: A reed bunting singing on the marsh told Simon it's slowly turning into a reed bed. The lesson from Minsmere and the World Land Trust is that if you look after the habitat, the birds follow.
• Ears count too: Simon argues that sound is every bit as important as sight, and he learned it from a Zambian birder who recorded around 500 species. Now Eddie calls out the Cetti's warblers from the canoe.
• Watch with more intent: Researching How to Fly changed how Simon watches swifts, from ambient birds to a real show of speed, gliding and manoeuvrability. Ordinary birds become extraordinary when you slow down and look properly.

Episode Timestamps:

• 00:38 - Meet Simon Barnes
• 02:40 - Books and Writing Life
• 04:01 - Buying the Norfolk Marsh
• 05:54 - Marsh Magic Moments
• 09:23 - Why Birding Moves Us
• 11:44 - Marsh Changes and New Birds
• 14:24 - Conservation Lessons Learned
• 21:44 - Eddie and Nature Connection
• 24:37 - Learning Birds by Ear
• 26:11 - New Book How to Fly
• 33:55 - Swifts and Watching Differently
• 39:10 - Rapid Fire Birding Q&A

Important Links & Resources:

• Follow My Birding Life on Instagram
• Subscribe to My Birding Life on YouTube
• Pick Up Your Copy of How to Fly
• Simon's Website

Mya Bambrick has been birding since she was eight. She's now a BTO Youth Ambassador, winner of the BTO's Young Ornithologist of the Year Award and a familiar voice on Radio 4's Tweet of the Day. She works full time in conservation with Birds of Poole Harbour, and she's on a mission to get young people hooked on the hobby we all love.

In this episode, Mya takes us from a street dance academy in Crawley to a hide at Warnham Local Nature Reserve, where an osprey and a kingfisher changed everything. We talk about the bird camp that shaped her path, ringing nightjars for a group of young birders, why birding is booming among young people, and how to keep the joy in birding when the camera and the phone keep pulling you away.

Episode Takeaways:

• Find your people: A free BTO bird camp at 13 gave Mya the community she couldn't find at school. Ten years later, she's helping run one.
• Representation matters: Growing up in a single-parent household, with no birding role models who looked like her, drove Mya to make birding more accessible and inclusive, especially for young girls.
• You're a birder if you love birds: Sofa birder or seasoned twitcher, there's no right way to do it. Binoculars around your neck, and you're in.
• Protect the moment: Mya keeps camera days and content days separate from binoculars-only days, and she saves her eBird list until she's finished birding.

Episode Timestamps:

• 01:46 - Meet Mya Bambrick
• 03:08 - How It All Began
• 07:27 - Kingfisher Chase Story
• 10:31 - Finding Young Birders
• 13:09 - BTO Youth Engagement
• 19:46 - Making Birding Inclusive
• 25:46 - Birding For Everyone
• 27:50 - Sofa Birders And Twitchers
• 28:28 - Camera Versus Birding
• 31:25 - Balancing Tech And Presence
• 32:11 - Apps Versus Pen And Paper
• 33:46 - Young Ornithologist Award
• 37:35 - Rapid Fire Birding Picks

Important Links & Resources:

• Follow My Birding Life on Instagram
• Subscribe to My Birding Life on YouTube
• Follow Mya on Instagram

Tamerra Jones, aka the Birdwatching Baddie, picked up birding almost by accident during lockdown, looking for something slower-paced to get her outside. Three years on, the Central Florida-based birder has racked up hundreds of species, built a joyful, unapologetically fun Instagram following, and become a genuine advocate for making the hobby feel accessible to everyone.

In this episode, Chris and Tamerra dig into how she went from lockdown curiosity to serious lister, why field experience and mentorship beat any app or book, and what it means to bring her full self into a hobby that hasn't always felt built for people who look like her. They also swap camera gear notes, geek out over each other's "boring" local birds, and talk through her next big trip!

Episode Takeaways:

• From Lockdown Curiosity to Serious Birder — How a search for something slow-paced and accessible during COVID turned into three years of increasingly serious birding, out three times a week even with a full-time job
• Becoming a Lister — Why she tracks every sighting in real time on eBird and Merlin, needs eyes on a bird before it counts, and still considers herself very much a student
• A Community That Takes You Under Its Wing — The value of learning in the field from other birders over apps or books, and why the birding community has a rare, generous "fireside chat" feel
• The Birdwatching Baddie Identity — Reclaiming "baddie," refusing to fit a mould, and using her platform to show that birdwatching is for everyone

Episode Timestamps:

• 05:01 - How Birding Began
• 06:35 - Weekly Birding Routine
• 07:24 - Traveling For Birds
• 10:47 - Getting Into Listing
• 13:44 - Apps And Logging Style
• 15:34 - Learning From Birders
• 21:52 - Birding For Everyone
• 23:35 - Safety And Representation
• 25:09 - Birder First Camera Second
• 26:10 - Gear Talk And Nikon Debate
• 27:41 - Trips Goals And Community
• 29:46 - Florida Scrub Jay And Bird Geeking