Hawthorn on Scottish beach named tree of the year 2021

Prickly tree beat hundreds of nominations in Woodland Trust contest

A lone, weathered hawthorn, which has stood for at least half a century on the rugged Scottish coast, has been named tree of the year for 2021.

Sticking out at an angle over the cockle shell beach at Kippford, with a tangle of broken and twisted branches, the prickly tree beat hundreds of nominations to become the UK's favourite in the contest run by the Woodland Trust.