Sandi's Great British Woodland Restoration: New series will follow the Extraordinary Escapes presenter has she restores her own patch of land in an ancient woodland

Once vast, they now cover just 2.5 per cent of the UK, and around half of what remains has been felled and replanted with non-native conifers.

Meanwhile, more than 1,000 woodlands are threatened with destruction or deterioration from development and wider impacts such as overgrazing and air pollution.

Although the situation does sound grim, help is at hand, in the form of Sandi Toksvig and her wife, psychotherapist Debbie.

The couple, who married in 2007 and renewed their vows in 2014 following gay marriage being legalised in the UK, recently fulfilled their lifelong dream of buying a patch of ancient woodland in southern England.

Dating from 1600, this 40-acre site is home to trees, streams, a meadow and melting pot of species from fungi to foxes, lichens to little owls.

However, it’s also overgrown, diseased, waterlogged and in need of some serious TLC.

This series follows Sandi, armed with her trademark wit, some dangerous power tools and a pair of chainsaw-safety shoes, as she and Debbie attempt to save and restore it.

The pair, who spend some of their time on a floating home with lovely views of the Thames, are passionate about restoring their woodland.

However, they appreciate they have zero experience other than a bit of gardening, so they bring in a few experts to help.

Over the next few weeks, we’ll see Sandi, Debbie and their new-found friends fell trees, build wildlife ponds, release orphaned owls and welcome new life and the sunshine back into the once-overgrown woodland.

Along the way, they also learn more about the overall state of woodlands in the UK today and the problems trees face.

Toksvig, the 66-year-old Danish-British comedian and presenter is is best known for hosting the Great British Bake Off, QI and Extraordinary Escapes, says: “We all know about the importance of trees and their role in the fight against climate change, but I had no idea the wealth of knowledge I would uncover about the soil they stand in, the habitats they create and what needs to be done to preserve this essential landscape.

“My wonderful wife Debbie and I are only just getting started on this life-long project, but it feels like we’re already making a difference.”

In tonight’s first episode, it’s winter in Sandi and Debbie’s ancient woodland.

Faced with a dark, overgrown jungle, Sandi begins to make a plan – to create space and light in the wood, and increase biodiversity.

As she deals with her own recovery from a life-threatening dose of bronchial pneumonia that she picked up while doing a comedy tour in Australia, Sandi also nurses her woodland back to health.

She also learns way how to chop a tree without it landing on your head and what a bat roost looks like.

Finally, she finds out how easy or difficult it is to buy woodland-based gadgets – with a challenge this big, she’s going to need a few of those.