The enthusiastic historian and naturalist Michael Clegg travels the Yorkshire region meeting colourful characters, looking at interesting places and uncovering some off-beat jobs and trades. In this episode of Clegg's People, Michael Clegg goes on an exploration through the woods and fields of Lincolnshire, searching for fungi. He meets fungus expert Jack Houghton who advises on edible and inedible types of mushrooms and toadstools. Jack Houghton has been a fan of fungi for more than...

The enthusiastic historian and naturalist Michael Clegg travels the Yorkshire region meeting colourful characters, looking at interesting places and uncovering some off-beat jobs and trades. In this episode of Clegg's People, Michael Clegg goes on an exploration through the woods and fields of Lincolnshire, searching for fungi. He meets fungus expert Jack Houghton who advises on edible and inedible types of mushrooms and toadstools. Jack Houghton has been a fan of fungi for more than 30 years, collecting, studying, photographing, and eating them. Title: Yorkshire Television Production This episode begins with a view of mushrooms frying in a pan. A film made with time lapse photography shows fungi emerging from beneath leaf litter. The sequence is accompanied by a warning from Michael Clegg urging caution when foraging for edible fungi. Pictures shows varieties growing wild as Michael’s commentary states that there are 30,000 different fungi in Britain, with only 5000 big enough to see and only 120 that are edible. In Lincolnshire Michael meets up with fungi expert, Jack Houghton. Jack says he’s found 200 species in the area they will be exploring. Jack picks up one fungus which has the smell of a coconut and oozes a white liquid when pieces are broken off. Another species he finds although smelling like radishes is poisonous. The next specimen boletus edulis is edible and is popular in France where it’s known as cep or in England, the penny bun. Jack tells Michael how he became interested in fungi after taking a picture of a specimen when he was a member of Scunthorpe camera club. Since then, he’s concentrated on his new interest and has a large collection of photographs of a wide variety of fungi. Michael and Jack find a parasol mushroom, which describes its shape. In another field Jack and Michael find a plums and custard mushroom. named because of the reddish cap the yellow gills on the underside, but despite their name they are not pleasant to eat and are inedible. Nearby Michael points to a collection of all yellow fungi nearby. Jack calls these by the common name, sulphur tuft. Clustered Woodlover is another name for this poisonous fungus. A view follows showing a fungus with an orange and black cap, known as the conical waxcap. Next the two foragers come across a group of young puffball fungi as identified by Jack who says they are edible, but only when they are white all the way through. He picks one and slices through it, but in this case it is still in the ripening stage when it will become edible. Some other mature puffballs nearby were cut open by Jack but the contained what appeared to be fine dust. Jack explains that the fine brown dust are spores. Time lapse photography shows fungi growing upwards through grass and from tree bark and then dying back. Michael explains growth for some fungi is extremely rapid and can happen overnight. Some fungi get through a whole lifecycle in one day. Continuing their exploration Jack identifies a species called a stinkhorn, which produces a foul smell that attracts flies which help distribute its spores. Jack cuts through the egg or early formation of a stinkhorn. In this young stage of development, the white centre of the egg is edible according to Jack. Jack and Michael continue their forage, Jack spots another fungus with a large circular cap commonly called the blusher, because of its pinkish red colour it produces when its bruised, he also says its poisonous. General views follow of a range of fungi. Michael and Jack make their way back to Jacks house in Gainsborough for what Michael describes as a fungus feast. Michael sits with Jack in his den, where items connected to his studies fill a table. Jack shows Michael the dried remains of one type of fungus that was attached to tree. Jack count striations on the specimen to provide Michael with information on the length of time it was able to produce spores. On a desk behind him is Jack’s collection of photographic slides. He explains to Michael how his collection has grown and examples from his collection are shown in a short sequence. Michael holds up a large specimen of the parasol mushroom and says it’s on its way to Jack’s wife Margaret who’s in the kitchen preparing to cook. Margaret explains to Michael the best way of cooking fungi. Margaret serves up the feast to Jack and Michael in the dining room. Michael gives a very positive in response to the cooked parasol mushroom. Over a view of Jack and Michael on their foraging expedition, Michael explains that without an expert like Jack to hand, his supply of mushrooms will be most definitely those from the supermarket or market stall. This section ends the programme. Credits: Camera Chris Harris Sound David Pape Editing Sean O’Toole Dubbing Don Atkinson Production Assistant Val Silson Graphics Tony Sharpe Producer Marylyn Webb Director Geoff Hall Series Editor David Lowen Executive Producer Graham Ironside. © Yorkshire Television Ltd 1988 End credit: Yorkshire Television production