Remembering Sycamore Gap

Hello and welcome to Wild Tales. I'm Rosie Holdsworth and for this episode I'm handing you over to gardens expert Heather Birkett. Nine months ago we released a podcast about a tree that moved an entire nation. This was no ordinary tree but one that stood majestically in a gap between the hills. A tree so iconic it became a symbol of the landscape itself.

On the 28th of September 2023, the world reacted with shock and sorrow to the news that the Sycamore Gap tree had been felled overnight. Over the following year, we were able to go behind the scenes and gain access to the people closest to this story to uncover how this crisis unfolded, what happened next, and why it's meant so much to so many. And

Hi I'm Luke, I'm one of the ranger team up here on the Hadrian's Wall estate.

Hi nice to meet you.

My name's Andrew Poad, I'm general manager for Northumberland Coast in Hadrian's Wall country and as you can hear in the background I've got my dogs with me today so I've got Goose who's whining.

Hello, Goose

She's only eight months old, and Archie was much older and just sat quietly in the background.

So why do you think the tree was so iconic?

It was a recognised landmark prior to its appearance in Prince of Thieves back in 1991. That was the launch of its career. It was referred to locally as the Kevin Costner tree because of the film. And then my belief is with the advent of social media, it became that symbol that everybody wanted to capture for their Instagram moment. And in so doing became... emblematic of this part of the world.

As well as finding fame in the Hollywood blockbuster Robin Hood, Prince of Thieves, the tree was also awarded the title "English Tree of the Year," in 2016 by the Woodland Trust, a further testament to its popularity. We have a fenced off area here. It's about three metres square. And in the centre, there is what I can only describe as a significantly large tree stump. Luke. Tell me what's happened here.

The tree was a pretty striking part of the landscape. It was around 15 metres tall, but it had a good canopy. It was in good health. This, sadly, was felled overnight in an act of vandalism. And the fence is up now round to protect the stump in the hopes that we'll get some regeneration.

Andrew, were you the first to get the call when this happened?

Yeah, the National Park are based at the Sill, which is just within sight of where we are now. Their staff spotted there was something missing on their way into work. So I got a call from them. Initial reaction was that it was a hoax, because we've had hoaxes in the past, and then we had had storm Agnes the night before. The initial thought was that it's somehow blown down. But then very quickly, they managed to get the National Trail Ranger on site, who was able to clarify

And it didn't take long for the news to spread.

Within the hour, the whole world knew because it hit social media, my work channels, my personal channels, everything started lighting up in front of me.

Luke, you came down here and found a felled tree. What happened next?

Our first priority was to make sure that the site was safe because the tree had fallen onto the North side and it was hanging up in the air. So the first thing we needed to do was make sure that it wasn't shifting, that it wasn't a risk to the public. So we cordoned off the area just to make sure no one could get too close to it. And at that point, obviously, our thought turned to what can we do to preserve the

The seeds and cuttings were immediately sent on to the National Trust Plant Conservation Centre, a specialist plant nursery. But there was still the pressing matter of what to do with the tree.

It was apparent to us, to everybody really, that we needed to come up with a plan to remove the tree effectively.

The team then began preparing the site for the tree's removal. But as Luke explains, there were a few challenges to overcome.

So the first issue we had with it is the tree had fallen onto Hadrian's Wall itself, and so we needed to do what we could to preserve. the UNESCO World Heritage Site. That meant we were quite limited in our options. That meant we needed to lift it off the wall. So that meant we were going to have to get a crane in.

Bringing a piece of machinery that size into the gap was a first.

We are quite fortunate in that the tree was used as a filming location for Robin Hood and a road was put in. That meant that we could get it quite close, but it was very tricky. Sections of the tree had to be removed bit by bit. And they had to be held back as well to make sure that they didn't roll or fall in any way. We used the crane to lift it out and then we moved all of that wood onto a trailer and that was taken away to another location.

It was quite a challenge, we had the world's media sat on the little hill to the south of us so not only were we doing something totally unprecedented we'd never done before but we had all the cameras pointing at us while we we were doing it. So that was a bit of a tense few hours.

On Friday the 13th of October, the tree was carefully lifted off Hadrian's Wall and covertly transported to a top secret location within the National Trust. But as a sycamore is part of the Acer family, the team needed to act quickly. The clock was ticking the moment it was felled, as the sugars within the wood could quickly lead to fungi and decay. To preserve it as best as possible, The tree was put under the care of a specialist team until a decision could be made on its future.

A lot of people have got a real connection with Sycamore Gap. It's been a part of the local community. People had proposals here. Everyone comes out here for a picnic. People have left memorials and mementos to loved ones who've passed away here and Sycamore Gap is just a part of their lives

Having worked with it over these last 30 years i definitely saw how important it was to people but i think i hadn't appreciated the reach of that

It's been there all my life you look in the gap oh there's a tree look at all them people standing around the tree. Look at them all come to see it, take the pictures, get the selfies. My name is Judith Ward and I am one of the workers and front of house supervisor at the Twice Brewed Inn. The pub itself is situated right on the Roman Wall alongside one of the largest tourist destinations in England. And then that morning my husband rang me and said, the tree's

The global response to the felling of the tree has been heartfelt and touching, and in the days following its fall, the tributes and messages came flooding in.

The sycamore of Sycamore Gap, more than just a tree. It's a part of our identity, a symbol of pride and belonging for the North East, from badges on school uniforms to the backs of joiners vans. It's a part of our everyday life, whether we visit it or not. A place of deep personal connection, of landmarks in our lives, of romantic proposals and poignant farewells, of memories and sandwiches shared with those we love, or of solitude and

And while Mark and his team were sifting through the responses from the public, the staff at the National Trust Plant Conservation Centre were working against the clock.

Once material has been cut off the tree, it is divine. So we need to get in there as soon as possible to do our work. I'm Chris Strimmer, I'm the Plant Conservation Centre Manager and I look after all the rare and unusual plants in the National Trust. I actually found out that the tree had been cut down from our national press team. I had a phone call and essentially we just started all the prep work behind the scenes. To move plant material we have to issue what's called a plant

And then all their efforts paid off. They successfully propagated cuttings and cultivated seeds, creating a whole new generation of Sycamore Gap trees. The first of these made a special journey to London in May, where it was put on display for all to see in the National Trust Garden at the Chelsea Flower Show. The young seedling was placed into the garden by

Well, I grew up in Haydon Bridge, which is, what, maybe five miles from the gap. When we found out the day it happened, we were both at work and Charlotte was at school, and that night, went for a drive along, just.to see if it was true, and it was just so strange not seeing that tree there. It was quite emotional, wasn't it, when you find out and you think. That's just a tree, why am I getting upset over a tree?

A competition was set up, inviting pupils from Henshaw Primary School, the closest school to Sycamore Gap, in which pupils were invited to draw a picture of the tree and write a short poem about what it meant to them. And it was Charlotte's poem which won.

I went to see Harian's Wall and I saw a tree. It was a mindful tree. It was a mindful, famous tree. It was a mindful, famous, historical tree. It was a mindful, famous, historical, magnificent tree. It was a mindful, famous, historical, magnificent, welcoming tree. I really hope Sycamore Gap grows back. When I go and see the tree, it brings back lots of memories.

After the show, the seedling was returned to the Plant Conservation Centre, where it continues to grow alongside its siblings until they are ready for planting the first successful sapling has been gifted to his Royal Highness the King in honour of celebration day. A day dedicated to remembering those no longer with us. This special tree will be planted in Windsor Great Park for all visitors to enjoy. It is now the beginning of July ten months after the felling and

We've just heard from our colleagues at the National Park that... The stumps actually started regrowing, which is brilliant news.

Oh, that's fantastic news, Andrew.

Yeah, it was a real pleasant surprise to get the call. The really nice story is the chap who found it, is the first person that was on site that confirmed that the tree had actually been felled. He's the National Trail Ranger for Hadrian's Wall. So it's really nice that it's him that's the one that's spotted the regrowth first. A little bit of serendipity there. So the last time I was there, we'd got up to 12. New shoots. They're only a few centimetres tall and a few

As encouraging signs of regrowth emerge at the stump, plans are also underway for the stored wood. After a year of careful seasoning, the largest section has been gifted to the Northumberland National Park Authority. CEO Tony Gates tells us more.

The National Park Authority, we own and run The Sill National Landscape Discovery Centre on Hadrian's Wall. It's the closest visitor centre to the site of Sycamore Gap. We get about 125,000 visitors a year through the centre. And it would have been one of the most popular starting points for people who wanted to walk to see the Sycamore Gap tree. And we gathered all the feedback that people sent to us,

Earlier in the year, a call went out for artists to design an exhibition that would incorporate the gifted tree section. This exhibition is set to open at the Sill in the Northumberland National Park Discovery Centre, one year after the felling. The commissioned artists are Charlie Winnie, Nick Greenall and Matt Sowerby. It's a beautiful sunny day in August and I've come to a barn in rural Cumbria, nestled between the majestic fells of

Good afternoon, my name's Nick Greenall and this is Charlie Whinney and jointly we're both directors of a community interest company called Creative Communities and we do kind of out there art projects with members of the community who might not normally get the opportunity to do that kind of thing. On this particular project, the Sycamore Gap project, we're working with a poet called Matt Sowerby. So we've got poetry, we've got Charlie Whinney who's an amazing steam woodbender.

We come to you Charlie, I wondered if you could tell us a bit about your work.

The reason you can see all these strange, twizzly, curly shapes around you is because my sketchbook is full of these shapes. And part of the interest and the challenge for me is to take normal wood from a tree outside and use as little energy as possible and still achieve beautiful results.

So can I ask, have you seen the tree?

We have. Charlie was keen to study the material that he'd be working with, and there was a bit of mystery about where the tree actually might be. It may be in Devon, it may be in Berwick-upon-Tweed. And then they took us, and then the tree out of the darkness was revealed.

When I saw it, I'd already met, I don't know, like 100 people there who had tears when it came down. And I think looking at the bark of the tree and all the interesting swirls and patterns, having already studied loads of photographs of the living tree, and it was like, oh my God, it's you. It's the same one. It was a strange feeling.

Because I'd seen the tree in life in this dip on Hadrian's Wall. It was just very aesthetic' it was the right tree in the right place. And then seeing it cut up as a log, there was definitely a disconnect between seeing a log of wood and this formerly beautiful tree in life.

So Charlie, what happens next?

There were two stages to this project. You've come to us now about five weeks before the first stage is going to be complete. It's going to be the one year on exhibition at the Sill. And I'm making five giant canvases that are going to go on the wall. They're going to depict the tree wrapping around the gallery, kind of life size. And in the middle of the gallery will be our log, which the National Trust have currently given us.

So there'll be an opportunity for people to make pledges. And they may be pledges of what they're going to do for nature. And it's these pledges that will be gathered and they will form part of the final piece that Charlie is going to make.

So as a phase one, that's an amazing way to capture people's feelings and connection with the tree. What happens to all those pledges afterwards?

I'll show you. So in my hands here, I've got one of our samples from the final sculpture. So these are just ideas.

I can see some twisted wood almost in a spiral. With a lovely grain on it, and then engraved onto the flat side of the twist some words. "I will get chickens who will eat our scraps." At the exhibition at the Sill, visitors will see a section of the felled Sycamore Gap tree, along with all the artwork surrounding it. Charlie's also designed seating for the show, so visitors can sit, reflect and immerse in the exhibition.

So we're going to go next door now and we've been steaming some wood. So the process of steam wood bending is we heat the wood in a steam chamber and all the lignin and cellulose in the wood becomes malleable and then you're able to bend it. It's quite a marvellous thing to see. So let's go and have a look.

Sounds like magic.

This metal thing here is a compression strap that I'm going to put on the outside of the wood. It's called a compression strap so it's going to literally squash all the fibres as we bend around. The wood needs to be about 100 degrees, If it isn't then it'll break. So this is a piece of Ash that I'm putting in here. So I'm going to put it into the compression strap and I'm going to see how many times I can bend this piece of Ash around here.

And then it was my turn to have a go.

Do you see all the sculptures over there?

Yes.

You're making one of them.

Okay.

Can you see they all look completely different?

Yes.

So there's no rules?

Okay.

You can do what you want.

Charlie has handed me five strands of wood that we're going to wrap around here.

Yes.

Oh, it's not easy.

That's perfect. There we go.

Like a granny knot in wood. Thank you so much for showing me your workshop, Charlie, and to show us how this wood is bent. And it really gives us an insight into the kind of methods and skills involved in the work that you're going to be doing for the Sycamore Gap project. The story of the Sycamore Gap tree continues to touch people across the country and beyond. Stage one of the exhibition at the Sill was hugely popular with