An Angry Pom-Pom, Building with Straw, Budgeting with Scissors

From building your dream home out of straw to Dorset Council’s proposed cuts to day care centres, to a fledgling crow who briefly took the internet by storm. May's podcast is as Dorset as ever – practical, thoughtful, and full of heart.

Editor’s Letter: May is the Real New Year

Laura welcomes the season when the long socks are finally left in the drawer, blue glows in the woods, and offers a reminder that now is the time to begin again.

🌿 “Spring makes everything feel lighter. Conversations, to-do lists… even the news. Well, just a smidge.”

Council Cuts and Care Concerns: Jane Somper on Adult Day Centres

Dorset Council is consulting on plans to close five of its adult day centres. Cllr Jane Somper explains why these places matter – especially for carers – and why it appears some closures were based on incomplete information.

“The centres are a lifeline for carers – and we’re asking them to send loved ones to another town with no bus route ... and if there’s a reliance entirely on volunteers, I have real concerns. Volunteers burn out too.”

📝 The public consultation is open until 9th June.

 

Building With Straw: Huff and Puff’s Phil Christopher

Could you live in a house made of straw? Phil Christopher thinks you absolutely should – and no, the Big Bad Wolf couldn’t blow it down.

“Straw grows every year. It’s one of the easiest ways to lock away carbon in buildings. We have everything we need in Dorset to build truly sustainable homes – timber, straw ... even the gravel.”

Phil explains the tech behind breathable, beautiful straw bale homes – and why land costs make self-building almost impossible for anyone under 60.

  Lazlo the Angry Pom-Pom

When Laura Beddow rescued a fledgling rook named Lazlo, she didn’t expect half a million people to fall in love with him.

“One day he was just sitting in a Portmeirion pot while I made breakfast – the next, he’d gone viral. "So many people messaged saying they’d donated – because one small angry bird made them realise how vulnerable wildlife really is.”

❤️ Though Lazlo didn’t survive long, his story raised awareness (and funds) for wild bird rescues across the UK.

This episode is based on articles from May’s BV, available to read here. News, farming, politics, nature, people – and beautiful Dorset photography, every single month.

🎧 The BV – named Best Regional Publication in the UK (ACE Awards) and Regional News Site of the Year (Press Gazette). Always worth your ears.