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John D Burns

Outdoor author and speaker.

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  • Locked Antlers: Mike Daniels – The Battle Over Scotland’s Deer | Podcast

  • Mick Fowler: Eternal Alpinist | Podcast

  • Gear review: Brede II jacket – 5 years

  • Jack Longland – Biography: Mark Lambert | Podcast

  • Peter Silburn: The Norwich Cycling Campaign | Podcast

Locked Antlers: Mike Daniels – The Battle Over Scotland’s Deer | Podcast
Mick Fowler: Eternal Alpinist | Podcast

Locked Antlers: Mike Daniels – The Battle Over Scotland’s Deer | Podcast

November 9, 2026November 9, 2026John D Burns Comment
Red Deer dominate Scotland’s landscape. John D. Burns talks to Mike Daniels about hi new book, Locked Antlers, which highlights the damage deer [...]

Mick Fowler: Eternal Alpinist | Podcast

September 29, 2026September 29, 2026John D Burns
Mick Fowler talks about taking back his life after a cancer diagnoses and returning to the mountains. [...]

Gear review: Brede II jacket – 5 years

September 10, 2026September 10, 2026John D Burns
Here’s my review of the Brede II Jacket by Klattermusen after five years use in the Scottish Highlands. [...]

Jack Longland – Biography: Mark Lambert | Podcast

August 27, 2026August 31, 2026John D Burns 1
John D. Burns talks to Mark Lambert about his book, A man for all mountains, celebrating the remarkable life of mountaineer, broadcaster and [...]

Peter Silburn: The Norwich Cycling Campaign | Podcast

August 5, 2026August 5, 2026John D Burns
I recently Interviewed David Barter about his book Great Scottish Bike Rides and it occurred to me that the vast majority of cycling [...]

Steve Micklewright: Scottish Rewilding Alliance | Podcast

July 16, 2026July 27, 2026John D Burns
As you gaze across the landscape of the Highlands you will see vast areas of magnificent hills and lochs that stir the imagination, [...]

David Barter. Great Scottish Bike Rides| Podcast

June 25, 2026July 10, 2026John D Burns
John D. Burns talks to Dave Barter about his new book Great Scottish Bike Rides. (Available to pre-order now) Released 6 July. Scotland [...]

It’s Up to Us: Path restoration project | Podcast

June 12, 2026June 12, 2026John D Burns
Derek Williams Sound Editor John D. Burns talks to Stuart Younie, CEO of Mountaineering Scotland and Ewan Watson, Project Manager for the Outdoor [...]

Dan Bailey: UKHillwalking.com | Podcast

May 29, 2026May 29, 2026John D Burns
For better or worse, the Internet has changed all our lives. Dan Bailey talks to John D. Burns about the influence the influence [...]

Bobby Motherwell: Singer/Songwriter, Poet and Climber | Podcast

April 28, 2026May 1, 2026John D Burns
Sound Editor Derek Williams In this podcast Bobby Motherwell talks to John D. Burns about his deep connection with wild places and how [...]

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John D. Burns has spent over forty years among the mountains of the Scottish Highlands. He is an author and public speaker. His books tell of his adventures in this iconic landscape and have become classics for those who love wild places.
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Outside In Podcast
Outside In Podcast

From the Highlands of Scotland, climbers, hikers and nature lovers talk about their experiences in the wild

Locked Antlers: Mike Daniels – The Battle Over Scotland’s Deer | Podcast
byJohn D Burns

Red Deer dominate Scotland’s landscape. John D. Burns talks to Mike Daniels about hi new book, Locked Antlers, which highlights the damage deer have done and the battle raging to control their numbers and reclaim the natural diversity of our land.

The image of a red deer stag standing proud amongst the hills of Scotland is an iconic symbol of the majesty of these great beasts. The Monarch of the Glen conjures dreams of a wild Scotland, populated by country estates, great houses and tartan clad deer stalkers. This image has been celebrated in paintings and on biscuit tins, creating a mythical Scotland, and a rural paradise. But what is the truth behind the roaring stags that populate our imagination. Mike Daniels reveals the truth behind the myth and the struggle to regain control of our land.

Mike Daniels

With its natural predators long exterminated, huge deer populations controlled by landowners – largely for their own private interests – have had far-reaching environmental impacts. Despite efforts by conservationists to reduce populations and reverse the damage, historic deer management has left vast areas of rural Scotland under siege from high deer densities.

Photo: Mike Daniels

As the current nature crisis and climate breakdown pushes deer management up the political agenda, the book explores the long-standing conflict around deer in Scotland from the perspective of someone who has been at the heart of the debate for decades. It provides a first-hand insight into some of the most controversial episodes, examining the stories, the science, the culture, the history and the politics beneath the deer conflict. It points to the future – what could be the role of predators, fences and community hunting? What does the next generation of deer managers want, and what does Scotland need in the way it manages its deer?

Red deer have had a devastating effect on our landscape. The huge herds of deer that roam the Scottish hills have effectively prevented and regeneration of the natural forestry that should cover the landscape. Their grazing has prevented the young shoots of saplings from growing into mature trees and this has left our hills as vast open tracts of land were little other than Heather and grass survives.

The story of red deer in Scotland is, in reality, the story of power and wealth. It was Queen Victoria and her husband Albert, who made deerstalking a fashionable pursuit and popularised the creation of large shooting estates with their great houses, a pursuit that still shapes much of Scotland today.

In his book, Locked Antlers, Mike tells the story of the ongoing struggle to free the Highlands from the oppression of a sporting pursuit that became the dominant force in land management in the Scottish nation.

JOHN D. BURNS’ BOOKS NOW AVAILABLE ON SPOTIFY

Locked Antlers: Mike Daniels – The Battle Over Scotland’s Deer | Podcast
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Locked Antlers: Mike Daniels – The Battle Over Scotland’s Deer | Podcast
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Mick Fowler: Eternal Alpinist | Podcast
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Jack Longland – Biography: Mark Lambert | Podcast
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Peter Silburn: The Norwich Cycling Campaign | Podcast
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Steve Micklewright: Scottish Rewilding Alliance | Podcast
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David Barter. Great Scottish Bike Rides| Podcast
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It’s Up to Us: Path restoration project | Podcast
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Dan Bailey: UKHillwalking.com | Podcast
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Bobby Motherwell: Singer/Songwriter, Poet and Climber | Podcast
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Climbing in Yosemite: A Memoir – Dennis Gray | Podcast
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Recent Posts

  • Locked Antlers: Mike Daniels – The Battle Over Scotland’s Deer | Podcast
  • Mick Fowler: Eternal Alpinist | Podcast
  • Gear review: Brede II jacket – 5 years
  • Jack Longland – Biography: Mark Lambert | Podcast
  • Peter Silburn: The Norwich Cycling Campaign | Podcast

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