Actress Jill Halfpenny, one of the north east's best-loved and most dedicated champions, takes us on a personal journey of discovery through the region, exploring how ancient Christian paths criss-crossed this part of world, inspiring unique traditions and customs, many of which are still celebrated at Easter.

Jill travels across the beautiful landscape she calls home, offering us a unique window into this part of the world, its history and its significance to Christianity. The films mark Easter, the coming of Spring and the ancient ideas of renewal that are associated with it as we travel with Jill through this stunning part of the world.

Jill visits the historic town of Hexham, joining bellringers in the abbey and having a go herself, and watches the Hexham Abbey choir as they rehearse a favourite Easter hymn, This Joyful Eastertide. At Corbridge Roman Town, she learns about Roman gods and goddesses and Roman links to Christianity. In Lauder in the Scottish Borders, Jill meets a local horseman who explains the tradition of riding the parish boundary, a traditional annual event. In Jedburgh, she is honoured to start the Jedburgh Hand Ba', a traditional event that usually takes place on the first Thursday after Shrove Tuesday. The Hand Ba' is played by hundreds of people in the town and has no rules. These days the participants use a ball; in the past they used the head of an Englishman.

Jill joins chocolatier Ruth Hinks in Peebles to find out why we celebrate Easter with eggs, then visits Cherrytrees Farm to talk to farmer Ally about the cycle of farming life and the onset of spring. She also meets walkers who make an annual pilgrimage across the region, following in the footsteps of the area's patron saint, St Cuthbert. After their walk they meet for a chat at Cuddy's Well, said to have been blessed by St Cuthbert himself.

Jill's journey ends on the island of Lindisfarne. There she meets Mary Fleeson, an artist who moved to Lindisfarne and was entranced by the place. Mary draws in a style similar to that used by the monks who used to live there, and she shows Jill how the mindful practice can be a form of prayer.

Jill Halfpenny's Easter Journeys

Episodes

Season 1