Britain's Most Scenic Counties: Kent

Parky Parkinson takes to the skies in a 1944 Spitfire and soars over the White Cliffs of Dover. As Margate's art scene blooms and Nepalese families gather for harvest, rare red-billed choughs reclaim the sky in a vivid celebration of Kent.

In Whitstable, the famous Kentish crop, the oyster, is harvested. As punts glide past Canterbury's cathedral, plows churn old soil before uncovering Samphire Hoe, a thriving nature reserve built from chalk below the White Cliffs.

As "King of the Channel" Kevin Murphy helps an accountant train for a swimming competition, a horticulturist re-pots the world's most venomous plant-the Queensland Stinger. On the Isle of Sheppey, wild wetlands thrive just outside of London.

In the Hever Castle gardens, Neal Miller teaches the art of topiary and clips away at a 100-year-old yew tree shaped into a tortoise. Near Biddenden, a visit to Kent's oldest modern vineyard sees how it produces 80,000 bottles a year.

Kent's day unfolds with meals at Europe's largest Sikh Gurdwara, a historic steamer trip, a medieval wedding, fresh harvests for a top kitchen, and glassblowing.