Escape to the Country is one of the UK's most successful daytime TV shows, and has opened up viewers' imaginations to the possibilities of rural life for over two decades.
One of its longest-serving presenters is Jules Hudson, whose passion for the outdoors and background in history and rural storytelling has made him a fan favourite.
Who is Jules Hudson?
Jules Hudson is a TV presenter best known for fronting the BBC’s rural property programme, Escape to the Country. He has been one of the main presenters of the show since 2007, having previously focused on historical programmes. Working initially for the Discovery Channel, he then moved onto Channel 4’s Time Team and BBC Two’s Horizon.
He has also presented Britain’s Heritage Heroes and Britain’s Empty Homes, and more recently on Channel 5’s Winter on the Farm with Helen Skelton. With a keen interest in social and military history, Hudson has also presented Dig 1940, Dive World War 2 and How We Won the War, all hosted on the BBC, and Defenders of the Sky on the history channel H2. He is often featured in sections of BBC One’s Countryfile as a guest presenter.
In 2015, Jules Hudson became president of the Campaign for the Protection of Rural Wales (CPRW), the Welsh countryside charity advocating on behalf of rural Wales. He handed over the role to the musician, author and broadcaster Cerys Matthews in 2024.
In 2018, he produced a book with the National Trust, Walled Gardens, which looked at the history, design and cultural significance of walled gardens in England and Wales.
Listen to our Countryfile podcast interview with Jules Hudson.
Where is he from?
Jules Hudson was born in Colchester in Essex and grew up in East Anglia, brought up in a B&B run by his mother.
How old is Jules Hudson?
Hudson was born on 9 January 1970.
Did he go to university and what did he study?
Hudson studied field archaeology at Lampeter University in South West Wales, before pursuing military training at RMA Sandhurst in Berkshire. He later undertook a master’s degree in archaeology at Durham University, as a member of University College.
What rank was Jules Hudson in the army?
He briefly pursued a career as an army officer, receiving training at Royal Military Academy Sandhurst in Berkshire. He graduated in 1994 and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the Army Reserve, in the Royal Monmouthshire Royal Engineers.
Where does he live?
Hudson lives in Herefordshire. Speaking to The Times in 2020, he said he had found London to be “very claustrophobic. There’s an energy about it that I absolutely love, but I need green fields and space. But west Wales was a long way from anywhere. We literally lived at either end of the M4. I was keen for another chapter. I’d done mid-Wales and I wanted to try something else.”
Hudson has undertaken extensive renovations on a cottage in Herefordshire, which he bought in 2012 with his wife Tania.
How long has Escape to the Country been on TV?
Escape to the Country has been on the air since 2002, and Hudson joined the presenting line-up in 2007.
Is Jules Hudson married?
Jules Hudson married Tania Fitzgerald in 2016, and together they have a son called Jack.