BBC World Service News Internet

The Why Factor

Documentaries

Factual

The Why Factor  logo

The extraordinary and hidden histories behind everyday objects and actions

GettyImages-451822995.jpg

The Why Factor: Plane, Train and Bird Spotting

Plane, Train and Bird Spotting

29/10/2018 GMT

BBC World Service - The Why Factor, Plane, Train and Bird Spotting

Why do people love plane, train and bird spotting?

Novice aviation geek Alys Harte enters the worlds of twitchers, birders and watchers to find out why people love plane, train and bird spotting?

Why do people love plane, train and bird spotting?

Novice aviation geek Alys Harte enters the worlds of twitchers, birders, watchers and spotters.
 
She meets Noel Marsh-Giddings, who has flown on the shortest and longest flights on the planet - just for the sake of flying; she goes ‘birding’ on the east coast of England with Ashley Saunders where they have a close encounter with a sparrow hawk (and a photobombing mallard!) and speaks to Prof. Kiyohito Utsunomiya, transport economist and railway fan about the subcultures within subcultures that make up Japanese ‘tetsu’ train spotters. 


Photo: Man in a field with binoculars. Credit: Getty Creative Images. ISO3000

BBC World Service

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa Schedule

BBC World Service East and Southern Africa

BBC World Service East Asia

BBC World Service Australasia

BBC World Service West and Central Africa Schedule

BBC World Service West and Central Africa

BBC World Service Online

BBC World Service schedule for American satellite radio and the Caribbean

Accessibility links

Programme Index

The Why Factor

Plane, Train and Bird Spotting

Genres

Formats

Brand

BBC World Service News Internet

About BBC World Service