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The tranquil moors and endless coast of Northumberland are the setting for some of the most pivotal and violent moments in British history. The rulers who ran the ancient kingdom of Northumbria controlled great swathes of England from their seat of power on this beautiful coastline. Julia Bradbury is heading out across the causeway to the tidal island of Lindisfarne, once the cradle of Christianity and home to monks who would become saints. However, their coastal retreat was rocked in 793 when marauding Vikings launched a raid on the island, shattering their dream of isolation forever.

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The North East has a proud industrial heritage, but one name that you may not have heard of is Lord William Armstrong. This Victorian industrialist was a powerhouse of invention and for him, innovation started close to home. His lifelong love affair with the Northumberland countryside led him to build Cragside House, a grand mansion towering over stunning landscape gardens. Thanks to Armstrong, the house was the first in the world to be lit by hydroelectricity and came kitted out with a whole range of labour saving devices.听 Matt Baker is heading to Cragside to help prepare the house and gardens for their 150th birthday.

The second phase of Britain鈥檚 newest high speed railway line will take fast trains from Birmingham through the countryside to Leeds and Manchester. But what impact will this new route have on the environment? Tom meets locals who are concerned about the effect the line will have on their livelihoods and local wildlife. Then he travels to Kent to find out what the impact of Britain鈥檚 first purpose-built high speed railway was.

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The Geordie accent is one of the most recognisable in the UK. Dig a little deeper, however, and you find there is more to the language of this area than 鈥渉oway the lads鈥� or 鈥済annin鈥� along the Scotswood Road鈥�. The Northumbrian Dialect is a language born from the landscape and history of Northumberland, a melting pot of influences brought in by those who鈥檝e settled in the area over thousands of years. Julia heads into the remote hills of the Northumberland National Park to meet a farmer鈥檚 son working to keep the dialect alive. James Tait has teamed up with local schools to pass this unique language on to the latest generation of Northumbrians.

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This week Adam鈥檚 father Joe Henson visits the farm and they look back on how Gloucester cattle numbers have increased since the formation of the Rare Breed Survival Trust, 40 years ago. Adam also visits a gene bank in Whitchurch, Shropshire that specialises in storing equine semen. This technology is being used to help protect rare breeds of horses like the Hackney stallion. This elegant horse was known as a carriage horse, but it lost popularity when the motor car took its place. Adam discovers the science behind freezing their genes in time as a safeguard for the future.

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