BRITAIN’S top woodchopper was crowned at Blenheim Palace on Saturday as the nation's best competed at BBC Countryfile Live.

With temperatures touching 30C, Welshman Elgan Pugh saw off 12 rivals to win the Stihl Timbersports British championship for the fourth successive year.

Mr Pugh now heads to the timbersports world championship in Liverpool in October, where athletes from more than 20 nations will compete in a series of woodchopping challenges.

Contestants participated in a head-to-head race against time across six disciplines - three with an axe and three with a saw.

The Welshman won four events to finish 16 points clear of the field and set a new British record in the Hot Saw discipline, with a time of 7.88 seconds.

He said: “The competition was tough, but I concentrated on the events that I needed to get the most points in and that got me through.”

An estimated 120,000 visitors attended BBC Countryfile Live across the weekend.