'For many, especially the staff at the time, I was a surprise choice to edit Country Life,' writes Mark Hedges in the Country Mouse column in the October 22, 2025 issue of Country Life.

'A natural scientist, who didn’t know his Ionic from his Doric column, hadn’t been to Cambridge, hadn’t read Jane Austen and, worst of all, had lots of ideas as to how to change the magazine.

'My only real qualification was that I knew a lot about the countryside — I adored it. I was determined that, through the pages of this national treasure, more people could share my Arcadian joy.'

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The choice proved inspired: since Mark

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