Cedar climbed by Beatles on tree awards shortlist

The Beatles perched on one of this tree's low-swooping boughs in a video for their song Rain in 1966

A cedar tree climbed by The Beatles, an oak that may have inspired Virginia Woolf, and a King of Limbs near Marlborough are among ten nominees to be named Tree of the Year 2025.

The shortlisted entrants, chosen from across the UK, were selected to meet the theme of "Rooted in Culture", highlighting how trees have inspired creative minds and become ingrained in our cultural landscape.

Voting opens on Friday for the Woodland Trust's annual competition, which aims to celebrate and raise awareness for rare, ancient or at-risk trees across the country.

The winner will be announced in September and will progress to represent the UK in the European Tree of the Year finals.

The Argyle Street Ash in Glasgow is among the contenders

A panel of experts selected nine trees of differing ages and species for the shortlist, while the public chose the 10th as a wildcard entry.

Amongst the nominees are trees from all four UK countries, which have either featured, or inspired, poems, films, music videos and peace agreements.

Wiltshire is particularly heavily represented with both the King of Limbs near Marlborough and the Lollipop Tree on Salisbury Plain, featuring on the list.

Also included is the Beatles' cedar tree in Chiswick, which can be seen in the music video for their 1966 song Rain and the Tree of Peace and Unity in County Antrim, which played a role during the signing of the Good Friday Agreement.

Knole Park Oak in Kent, believed to have inspired an epic poem in Virginia Woolf's novel Orlando, also made the list.

Last year's winner was Skipinnish Oak, in Lochaber, Scotland, which claimed 21% of the vote.

The Lollipop Tree on Salisbury Plain, played a starring role in the final scenes of Sam Mendes' World War One film 1917

In urging people to vote, Woodland Trust patron, Dame Judi Dench, said that "our oldest trees hold more stories than Shakespeare; some were putting down roots long before he began writing, more than 400 years ago".

"They are as much part of our heritage as any literature," she added.

Partial list of entrants

• Argyle Street Ash in Glasgow, Scotland

• Beatles' cedar tree in Chiswick

• Borrowdale Yews in Cumbria

• King of Limbs in Wiltshire

• Knole Park Oak in Kent

• Lollipop Tree on Salisbury Plain, Wiltshire

• Lonely Tree in Llanberis, Wales

• Tree of Peace and Unity in County Antrim, Northern Ireland

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