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Headline: **Strictly embargoed to 00.01hrs Wednesday 3 December 2025** RAW VIDEO: National Trust launches appeal to preserve the Cerne Abbas Giant for the nation
Caption: **Strictly embargoed to 00.01hrs Wednesday 3 December 2025 ** The National Trust has launched an appeal to help preserve one of the British countryside’s greatest icons - the Cerne Abbas Giant - for the nation. For centuries, the giant medieval chalk sculpture in Dorset has captivated Brits - as well as provoking titters due to its impressive appendage. Now, to ensure its future is secure for generations to come, the heritage charity is looking to raise £330,000 to help fund the purchase of the 138‑hectare (340‑acre) site surrounding the famous giant. Thanks to generous grants and bequests, over £2 million has already been raised. Now, public support is being asked to help fund the purchase and care of the Giant’s lair, including Giant Hill, and the surrounding area for wildlife, heritage, and future generations. The campaign is being supported by household names Sir Stephen Fry and Countryfile and Good Morning Britain presenter Sean Fletcher. Sir Stephen said: “This is a very rare opportunity to protect a huge swathe of beautiful and biodiverse countryside surround the Cerne Abbas Giant. Please join me in supporting this appeal.” In addition to protecting the giant’s future, which is ensured by a ‘rechalking’ each year, the site is an important home to several threatened British species. Among its residents is the small, endangered Duke of Burgundy butterfly, a species found in England only and now clinging on at just six stronghold sites in Dorset, with numbers dwindling across the rest of the country. By joining up parcels of land around the Giant, the Trust hopes to create more of the specialist habitat it needs to survive and thrive, alongside other rare chalk grassland butterflies such as the Marsh Fritillary and Adonis Blue, and even the extraordinary Hazel Glove Fungus, which is typically only found in temperate rainforests. Helping to purchase the whole swathe of this land will enable the Trust to restore and care for sections of chalk grassland, plant new woodland, and create a mosaic of habitats that support species under threat and help wildlife adapt to climate change. Hannah Jefferson, General Manager for West Dorset & Cranborne Chase, said: “This is an exciting and unique opportunity to give nature a huge boost in Dorset. The land we’re acquiring is extraordinary – it’s home to everything from our huge 55‑metre Anglo-Saxon chalk figure to a small butterfly with a three‑centimetre wingspan. By protecting the area around the Giant, we can restore a fully functioning ecosystem that supports species under threat and allows wildlife to thrive across the site. “This land is both ecologically and archaeologically significant. Research shows the Giant itself dates from the Early Medieval Period (770–1100 AD), while the surrounding landscape has been important to people for thousands of years, with evidence of human activity stretching back to 4300 BC. Since the National Trust began caring for the Giant in 1920, we’ve worked to protect its heritage and wildlife – and this appeal is the next step in that journey.” As part of fundraising efforts, the charity has launched a Crowdfunder prize draw. Ten donors (plus one guest each) will win a money-can't-buy experience to be part of the giant’s rechalking event in 2026. The first 500 entries into the prize draw will also receive a limited edition ‘Cheeky Giant’ pin badge – an imagined rear view of the Giant – as a special thank you. Donations can also be made online at: www.nationaltrust.org.uk/cerne-giant-appeal
Keywords: national trust,archaeology,cerne abbas,history,countryside,dorset,feature,photo,nature
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