Interrupted Journeys: Badgers and Other Roadside Distractions

When Adrian Potter retires from a life of teaching at a primary school in West Yorkshire, his interest in conservation leads him to a local badger group. He takes over the ‘Badger Phone’, which he quickly realises is something of a hot potato. He finds himself inundated with calls, many of them regarding road casualties, but also reports of sightings, requests for advice about feeding, complaints about badgers digging up lawns. Adrian is reborn as the ‘Badger Man’, travelling West Yorkshire with two other enthusiasts: Pam and Derek, a retired miner with ruined teeth. However, it doesn’t stop with badgers. Adrian soon finds himself taking on fox and deer incidents, because no network of care exists for these other larger mammals in the area. Interrupted Journeys is an unconventional memoir about one man’s experiences with animals that lead hidden lives, and the consequences when they collide with our world. It movingly describes the author nursing wounded badger cubs, rescuing injured roe deer, liberating trapped foxes, as well as encounters with a host of other animals. And it thrillingly reveals a man who finds a second childhood in later life through contact with nature.