What's a redberry, Brambiee? Google doesn't know either.

Is it prickly or thorny? As in Pyracantha? If so, that's the nature of the beast I'm afraid, gets thick wood on it and unless you keep up with the trimming very regularly over the years, you end up with lots of hard wood which is difficult to cut. I'd take it out and replace with something which doesn't want to get so big and is easier to cut such as Berberis darwinii (prickly).

I've had a PM from Brambiee saying he/she has looked at pics and thinks it could be Rosa woodsii. I'm not familiar with this plant, but the pictures of R.woodsii look like Rosa rugosa to me.

Anybody got any comments? I thought rose hedges are difficult to prune cos of the thorns, but not because of excessively hard wood.

I find it hard to believe that you'd have more trouble with the density of wood than the thorns - and also hard to believe the thorns wouldn't be mentioned as an issue if it is a rugosa. But of course there are thornless roses, such as Cecile Brunner and Veilchenblau, but I'd have thought the flowers would have been mentioned rather than just the 'red berries'. I think a photograph is called for...