BBC One's Countryfile visits Hertfordshire for its New Year's Eve episode on Sunday, December 31 for a winter's walk along the River Lea.

Welwyn Hatfield Times: Countryfile presenters Joe Crowley, Charlotte Smith, Steve Brown, Sean Fletcher, John Craven, Anita Rani, Tom Heap, Matt Baker, Helen Skelton, Margherita Taylor, Ellie Harrison and Adam Henson.Countryfile presenters Joe Crowley, Charlotte Smith, Steve Brown, Sean Fletcher, John Craven, Anita Rani, Tom Heap, Matt Baker, Helen Skelton, Margherita Taylor, Ellie Harrison and Adam Henson. (Image: BBC Studios/Pete Dadds)

The River Lea is the main focus of the New Year's Eve episode of the popular BBC One Sunday evening programme.

According to the episode synopsis on the BBC Countryfile website: "New Year's Day is traditionally a day when we get outside and go for a gentle stroll to blow off the cobwebs from the night before and welcome in the coming year.

"Margherita Taylor goes for a wintry walk alongside the River Lea."

The River Lea rises in the Chiltern Hills north of Luton.

The river flows through Bedfordshire, Hertfordshire, the county's border with Essex and north-east London, and discharges into the River Thames at Bow Creek.

Along the way, the river runs through the Luton Hoo estate, Harpenden, Batford Springs Nature Reserve, Wheathampstead, Lemsford, Stanborough Lakes in Welwyn Garden City, Mill Green, the grounds of Hatfield House, Hertford, Ware and Great Amwell.

Welwyn Hatfield Times: Countryfile presenter Margherita Taylor.Countryfile presenter Margherita Taylor. (Image: BBC Studios/Pete Dadds)

On her journey along the River Lea, Countryfile presenter Margherita Taylor meets historian Dr Jim Lewis, who describes its history from the Ice Ages to the present day.

Meanwhile, a stop at the UK's oldest angling club still fishing the same water reveals what happens on the river out of season.

A short detour also finds Margherita visiting the Lee Valley Park, where she meets Cath Patrick, a conservation manager who tells her about some of the beautiful wildlife that calls this area home.

Along the way, Margherita will also plunge into the Countryfile archives to look back at other wintry outings enjoyed by the BBC presenting team over the years.

When is Countryfile on?

Countryfile: River Lea can be seen on BBC One on Sunday, December 31, 2023 at 6.25pm.

It will be repeated on BBC Two on Sunday, January 7, 2024 at 6.30am.