Hello, and welcome to the National Trust Podcast. I'm Heather Burkett, Garden and Outdoor Manager for the National Trust. Today, we journey into a story that begins with a tree. 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 past year, we've had behind-the-scenes 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. As I sit with a cuppa, I can't help but reflect on the headlines that echoed around the globe. This one says, Sycamore Gap, iconic tree seen lying next to Hadrian's Wall after being felled. Another declares, famous Sycamore Gap tree found cut down
overnight. And one particularly poignant headline, the last time I visited Sycamore Gap, I never imagined I would never see it again. I start my journey in December 2023, just over two months after the felling, to try and understand the impact of this loss firsthand. We've come to Northumberland. We're surrounded by green rolling hills, which rise gently up and then drop away sharply, giving the whole landscape a sense that it's been tilted on its side.
It feels remote, other than a few cottages and the occasional sound of a tractor or a car, and this fantastic stone wall. It's been here for 1900 years, Hadrian's Wall is a real feature of the landscape. So we've reached a gap between two hills. At the bottom of the gap, there's this fenced-off enclosure which surrounds the stump that used to be the Sycamore Gap tree. And I'm hoping to meet... Andrew and Luke here today who are going to tell me a bit more about what happened.
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 and 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.
He's only eight months old and Archie who's 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 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 that it had actually been cut
down. So that shifted things considerably from a natural accident to a deliberate act.
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 tree? Over the next couple of days we collected cuttings, we collected seed with the hope that we can get some regeneration and so that we can hopefully get a new Sycamore Gap tree.
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 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.
I can see some items left at the base of the tree. Some flowers. Homemade cross?
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 their 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 down
and I went what do you mean? He says, the tree's down. I went, no. So I jumped back in my car and I could see the cut end of the tree and I stopped the car and I took a picture and I put it in our group chat and then the picture started coming in online and it's just senseless. It stood there through the test of time. It stood through many a storm, the harshest of weather conditions and... My brother proposed there and it just seems unfathomable. It's just altered the landscape forever.
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 joiner's 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 reflection, of peace, recovery and hope. For some, its loss
lays bare the vulnerability of nature itself. My name is Mark Robinson. And I am an Experiences and Partnerships Curator for the National Trust based up in the North East. I was asked to review and collate the responses that were coming in from the public, people's responses on social media, but in particular the responses that people had shared in the memory room in the exhibition at The Sill. The memory room was a kind of a pop-up, impromptu place for
people. To share their memories of the tree, it felt important to find a way to somehow capture that. Some people wrote long stories, some people wrote poems, some people drew pictures. I think the thing that struck me the most was, particularly from school children, that there was a huge amount of hope. There was a lot of references to this tree will come again or we will not
forget you. It was a really humbling experience really to spend the day reading all of the responses but also to kind of remind yourself of just how important places can be.
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 dying. So we need to get in there as soon as possible to do our work. I'm Chris Trimmer, 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 had to issue what's called a plant
passport, did that straight away. One of our gardens consultants were actually on site within sort of day, day and a half afterwards. And they sent material down to us through the post they sent first class and it arrived here nine o'clock on Saturday morning. We asked for seed which is one of the easiest methods of propagation but also cuttings doing grafting budding from the same sort of material. So by Saturday five o'clock everything was propagated and it's all gone quite well so far.
We've got 21 cuttings, we've got five budded trees, we've got 15 grafted trees. And we've sown four seed trays so far of seeds. But we don't know what's going to happen. But the stump that's been left behind will probably grow as a multi stem tree. But it'll never look the same as it did. And it'll be another two, three hundred years before it looks good.
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 seven-year-old Charlotte and Dame Judi Dench, who affectionately named it Antoninus, after Emperor Hadrian's adopted son, inspired by the location of the Sycamore Gap tree. Charlotte and her parents, Andy and Louise, travelled down from their home in Northumberland.
Well, I grew up in Hayden 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? But it's strange how a tree up in Northumberland is all over the
world. It's made such an impact on everyone. I just remember Charlotte was saying to me one day, oh, I've got to do this with the school, write a poem about Sycamore Gap.
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 Hadrian'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 goes 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's now the beginning of July, ten months after the felling, and hopes of any regrowth at the stump are starting to fade. But at various sites in Northumberland, the first artworks, are about to go on display. These are five prints by Shona Branigan, who is known for her evocative tree prints. The prints have been commissioned by the National
Trust as a creative response to the public's suggestions. This collection, lovingly titled Heartwood, is designed to reflect the intricate shape and essence of the tree trunk. The five prints will be showcased together at the Queen's Hall Hexham and then at the The Baltic Art Gallery in Newcastle. Then, at the end of July, I get a call from Andrew Poad, General Manager at Hadrian's Wall, with the news that we have all been hoping for.
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 got up to 12 new shoots. They're only a few centimetres tall and a few centimetres across with
two or three leaves on each shoot. And they're a lovely rusty red colour at the moment. And that's great. I mean, this is nature bouncing back. This is how it responds. And whether all the shoots survive or not remains to be seen. I'm delighted the tree's regrowing, although it'll never look the same as the original tree. It's the best possible outcome we could get. So it's really nice to share, when I was
on site, sharing that with other people. What we were saying to a lot of them who had children with them is that they're going to need to come back in... 10, 20 years time and see the results of what they've just witnessed.
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.
We gathered all the feedback that people sent to us following the felling of the tree and one of the things that came through is that people wanted to see some type of long-term legacy for the tree in the Sill, In the visitor centre and so we've negotiated with the National Trust and they've kindly agreed to gift us the largest remaining intact section of the Sycamore Gap tree and the idea is that we use that to create a lasting legacy for Sycamore Gap that people can visit in the Sill
National Landscape Centre and it means that people who maybe physically can't get as far out as the site itself can still have some contact with the tree.
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 the Lake District and the open waters of Morecambe Bay, it's a really special corner of Cumbria that feels incredibly tucked away. The Barn is home to an artist's studio where the artists specialise in art made from wood. We're inside the studio now and you might be able to hear a little bit of action in the background, some sawing and drilling, but I'm sat here with two of the artists involved.
Good afternoon, my name's Nick Greenall and this is Charlie Winnie 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 Winnie 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 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 woodbending 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.
So this metal thing here is a compression strap that I'm going to put on the outside of the wood. It's got 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.
I'm going to go for number four. There we go, there's our thing.
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 say 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.
Yeah.
Oh, it's not easy.
That's perfect. There you 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. Stage one of the exhibition is set to run at the Sill until the end of October, ahead of the permanent exhibition in spring
2025. Meanwhile, the saplings, which are around five feet tall, are thriving under the expert care of the Plant Conservation Centre. To Mark the one-year-on anniversary, 49 of the new Sycamore Gap trees will be available for the public to request through the Trees of Hope campaign, while a handful of the others have or are in the process of being allocated to amazing projects around the country. Please head to our episode show notes for more details.
The Sycamore Gap tree may be gone, but its legacy lives on in a story that is far from over. Thank you for listening to the National Trust Podcast. If you've liked what you've heard, please make sure to subscribe on your favourite podcast app or visit us at www.nationaltrust.org.uk/ podcasts. Until next time, from me, Heather Burkett, goodbye.