When Ben Short was 8 years old, he was taken on a nature ramble with his class. In a local wood, they came upon a group of charcoal burners. Although life was later to take him down a number of different paths — the chance of a career as a professional rugby player, an art degree, a high-powered job as creative director in an ad agency in London — that formative early encounter always stayed with Ben.
“It was elemental,” he says. “It was a cold afternoon and the light was fading. There they were, gathered round a traditional steel-ring kiln, baking wood. I was immediately drawn to it.”
A mental health crisis in his early thirties was the catalyst that led to a complete overhaul of his life. “On the surface, I had everything. A great job in advertising, a flat in London, a lively social life. But inside I was struggling. I was a wreck.
“The only way to get well again — which, at the time, I never thought I would — was for life to be quieter, more sedate. I wanted my work to be more physical, and to be working outdoors in the fresh air.”
For a while, he did voluntary work in the gardens of a National Trust property in Cambridgeshire, but realised he was drawn more to the wild, and traditional woodland skills. A scholarship from QEST allowed him to dedicate a year focusing on acquiring a new set of skills, working alongside an experienced forester learning the traditional skills of tree felling, coppice restoration, woodland management, hedge laying, and of course, charcoal burning.
Now living on the Dorset/Devon border, Ben manages the woodlands on a nearby 2000-acre estate. He is one of the few remaining charcoal burners in England, selling charcoal locally at farm shops through his company, Old Way Dorsetshire Charcoal.
With his partner, Holly, and their three year-old son, Ben has found the life he yearned for. “I still have to keep an eye on my mental state, but this life has brought me back to health.” He works with nature and the seasons, hedge laying and felling in the spring, charcoal burning from April to September, all the while managing the woodland and coppicing on the estate.
Last year, he published a book: Burn: Fire, Wood and Healing (Hodder & Stoughton, published in paperback by Sceptre in February 2023), chronicling his journey back to mental health and his life in charcoal burning. Since then, there’s been a growing interest in charcoal burning, which Ben welcomes.
“You can buy imported charcoal, but it is often made from wood grown unsustainably and it emits harmful emissions. Traditionally produced charcoal using wood grown sustainably, properly baked to produce pure carbon, emits no harmful chemicals. Charcoal businesses are necessarily small scale, and sold locally.”
These days, working in his woodyard, with his son helping him, Ben feels truly restored. “I was able to convert all the bad things in my life into something that others find inspiring. I’m very grateful for that.”