This may be a fairly forlorn time of year in the countryside but no-one has mentioned that to our wildlife, particularly our birds. In this issue we get back to nature with a look at the feathered inhabitants of Alton Water in Suffolk, join the coastal gatherers in north Norfolk hunting for mussels, and meet a modest man who has done much to rescue otters in this country from the brink of extinction. We also examine some very distinctive trees growing in East Anglia and showcase the wonderful wildlife photography of Sarah Lefley.

The dictionary definition of celebrity is a person ‘who has a prominent profile and commands a great degree of public fascination and influence in day-to-day media.’ Of course, one person’s celebrity may be another person’s nonentity. I only mention this as we received a letter recently from a reader (see page 111) hoping we never go down the route of being a magazine full of celebrities and – heaven forbid – regularly having one on our cover. That reader need not worry. While we will still feature a few interesting people with local connections on our pages this magazine will continue to major on grassroots, traditional Suffolk and Norfolk. As a friend once said to me: “East Anglians are occasionally interested in ‘celebs’ but we certainly don’t doff our caps to them.”

Richard Bryson

Editor, Suffolk Norfolk Life