Indholdsfortegnelse for June 2017 i The Field

“Hunting remains a hugely controversial issue and repeal is never going to be simple” I WAS on the train between Newport and Swindon the day after the recess when the news came in. General Election, June 2017. Unquestionably the best-kept political secret of all time. The expectations seem to be for an increased Conservative majority backed by a nation that sympathises with the PM’s call for a decent mandate to carry us through the next few turbulent months and is increasingly unable to see Jeremy Corbyn as a credible alternative. But polls are a snapshot of opinion on a certain day, not a prediction of a future result. As was the case in 2001/5/10/15 and now ’17, the rural vote has much to consider. Who will stand up for rural…

The aim of the awards is to encourage gundog work throughout all sections of the shooting world. The awards will be judged by an experienced panel, the members of which have years of fieldsports knowledge and expertise between them. “The aim of the awards is to encourage gundog work across the shooting world” TO ENTER OR NOMINATE: Entries can be made on behalf of your own dog or you may nominate another dog in any of the categories (listed right). Contact details for the nominee will be required. Please send in an account explaining why the gundog deserves to win the category. In categories one to five, we will require an independent witness statement to support the entry. All entries must be accompanied by a photograph of the dog or…

With the coming of summer, it’s time for the Purdeys and Holland & Hollands to emerge from the gun cabinet to do battle in a semi-competitive environment at a host of charity shoots, now annual fixtures on the sporting calendar. These are the events at which the game-shooting fraternity, who comfort themselves with the thought, “Well, he can shoot clays but you want to see him on live game”, might now rue those words. But they should not be surprised or upset if the clayshooters upstage them. Gameshooters have to remember that when they go clay-shooting at a charity shoot it must be done on a fun basis because as a sport in itself clayshooting standards are now so high that the chances of a proper gameshooter beating a top…

The self-training dog is the Holy Grail of the gundog training world and the quest to find it unending. In the bad old days, theory revolved around strategically applied ear-tugs and even the occasional human-administered bite, which nobody enjoyed. Then there were clickers, placeboards and, most successfully so far, selective breeding. Now there is rumour among handlers that the Grail has been discovered and that it lies in allowing dogs to train each other. The idea is that if you have a small group of gundogs, pack principles will apply and the older dogs will set an example that the younger dogs follow when they come to work in the field. You may scoff but who can blame us for clutching at any straw when confronted by yet another intransigent…

Keeping poultry in the yard is wonderfully simple and rewarding. You can buy pullets ready-made, which look stylish, are friendly and fuss free, and you will always have plenty of eggs. When you are shopping around for your ideal hen, it’s worth noting that today’s chickens are divided into three main categories: the super producers; the hardy hybrids; and the originals. The super producers are bred by huge commercial organisations to be housed in air-conditioned sheds, fed accurately controlled diets and are guaranteed to lay a certain number of eggs or achieve a predictable weight of chicken nuggets in a certain number of days. They are living miracles but are not designed to rough it in the barnyard. The hardy hybrids are partly based on those high producers and lay…

“The test gun exceeded even high expectations. It pointed superbly. The trigger pulls were crisp. Recoil less than expected” Holland & Holland’s Royal sidelock 16-bore boasts 30in barrels, a single trigger and a price tag of more than £100,000, including Mr Hammond’s fierce cut. The gun hits the scales at 6lb 2oz (quite light even for a modern 20-bore) but does not seem particularly light when handled – it feels well-balanced and willing. The point of balance, as with most Holland & Holland side-by-sides, is on the hinge pin (Purdey side-by-sides, by contrast, favour a slightly more forward balance). There is near ideal mass between the hands, facilitated both by the action type and the well-struck-up, chopper-lump barrels, which are profiled to the house formula. Other first impressions are positive,…

“Modern twists derived from traditional practices have led to a resurgence of pasture-fed livestock” OUR wonderful, temperate, maritime climate lends itself to mild winters, cool summers and plenty of rain – a lottery when it comes to stay-cations but perfect for growing grass. In the warming days of early summer, grass accelerates away. The fresh biomass of the countryside explodes as nature’s abundance of sunlight, carbon, nitrogen and water provide the building blocks for a great burst of organic matter. For many ruminant farmers this is peak harvest time, taking the breaks in weather to reap the abundance of grass growth for ensiling or bailing to feed in the leaner months. The rich heritage of dairy, beef and sheep farming across the regions have long tapped into our success at…

COLLECTOR AND DEALER MARK JONES ON THE FINEST VIEW IN EUROPE“‘There are actually three versions of it, done between 1921 and 1926. Looking at his sketchbook, you can see how captivated he was by the image’” EVERYBODY has their favourite Snaffles. If you are a hunting or racing person, or even halfway horsy, there will be a Snaffles print somewhere in the house. Yet Snaffles, like many of the most astute observers of the equestrian world, wasn’t born in the saddle. Charles Johnson Payne (1884-1967), the son of a Leamington bootmaker, didn’t see a proper horse until he watched the Warwickshire Yeomanry Cavalry parading through the streets of Warwick. Horses and soldiers became Payne’s twin obsessions, passions that the 20th century was all too ready to feed. The South African…

Hole Park in Kent, Berkeley Castle in Gloucestershire and Wittington Estate in Buckinghamshire are among the 63 original gardens opening during 2017 for the National Garden Scheme (NGS), 90 years since it began. The first garden to take part – Hatfield House, Hertfordshire, the ancestral home of the Marquess of Salisbury – opened its gates on 28 May 1927. Admission cost one shilling. Founded by the Queen’s Nursing Institute as a way to contribute to a memorial fund set up after their patron, Queen Alexandra, died in 1925, the NGS has donated more than £50m to nursing charities. This year, Macmillan Cancer Support, Hospice UK and Marie Curie are among the charities to benefit from the record £3m to be given out. During the 90th anniversary weekend (27-29 May) more…

1 THE LUVTUB NAKED FLAME ECO-TUBS Handmade in Scandinavia from larch, spruce, thermowood or red western cedar. No electricity is required, simply set a fire below and hop in. • Price from £2,690 • Tel 020 3394 2986 • www.boutiquecamping.com 2 LINEN SHIRT BEAUFORT & BLAKE Pink or blue linen with Nehru collar and a colourful flash at the cuff. Spot on for summer soirées and the smarter sort of festival. • Price £69 • Tel 020 3793 2867 • www.beaufortandblake.com 3 CHRISTYS’ PANAMA ASCOT RACECOURSE Designed exclusively for the racecourse and sold on site. An ideal alternative to the topper when picnicking in the car park. • Price £109 • Tel 0844 346 0346 • www.ascot.co.uk/shop 4 SITTING STICK SITPACK An updated, polycarbonate (bulletproof glass) shooting stick for anywhere outdoors. Folds down to the size of a drinks…

Woodmancote Place is documented as being under the ownership of Countess Guda at the time of the Domesday Book. A subsequent owner was the notorious Sir Edward Seymour, Edward the Protector. The 10-bedroom house has evolved over the generations, from Medieval through to the modern age. The property is Grade II-listed and the sale includes a two-bedroom housekeeper’s cottage, a range of outbuildings – including a period barn, workshop and machinery store – three garage blocks, a courtyard with 10 stables, manège, a walled garden and an outdoor swimming pool with pool house and loggia. The gardens and grounds have well-stocked lakes and pasture and there is planning consent for a hay store or groom’s accommodation and tennis court. There are 50 acres in total, with a further 100 acres…

I was inspired to take up fly-fishing after interviewing Hugh Faulkus. Shot down in Northern France during the Second World War, he determined to devote his life to fishing as an SS firing party was about to execute him by a trout stream (a fate he escaped thanks to a passing Abwehr general). With his volumes and others less lyrical to hand, I taught myself to cast on a village green in Essex. I suffered, “Caught anything!” countless times from local wits (the best reply, for the record, is: “Only you”). Sorties onto real water were rare. From the beginning, however, the biomechanics and physics of casting and the similarities with shooting and other sports involving swing and vision fascinated. I took, and still take, a sort of Zen-like pleasure…

Our first pony was a bay New Forest with an unruly black mane, thick wavy tail and a splash of white in the middle of his forehead. Hence Starlight. He had a furrowed brow and the ability to look down on you even if you towered above him. He was also one of those ponies that could get fat on air; when that failed, his ability to break into the feed shed would have impressed the Brink’s-Mat brigade. Leading him and his companion home from the orchard up the road one evening, my sister, a slip of a thing, yanked his head off the grass verge, tightened the halter rope and put on a masterly display of control for the benefit of the gardener across the road. The four-legged one…

I have two favourite bits of kit: one for shooting and one for fishing. The bit of kit I most curse leaving at home when heading out pigeon shooting is my DAB digital radio. The pigeon-shooting year begins with shooting over rape, which means radio from about 9am to 2pm, with entertainment on BBC Radio 2 from Graham Norton on a Saturday from 10am to 1pm. As the days get longer, one can catch more and more Radio 5 Live action with footie and rugby and some good film reviews on weekdays. The promotion play-offs are about the last sporting event before pigeon shooting takes a break and Test Match Special kicks in a month or two later. The radio is great company, no matter how good the shooting is.…

NOT only is the going good for ingredients this month but also for our social calendars as we prepare for one of the world’s finest flat-racing festivals, Royal Ascot. I can’t offer advice on the fashion and betting side (though if you’re trying to decide on colours, apparently fuchsia is in) but I can give you a few tips on how to prepare a banker of a picnic. When you are feasting in one of the car parks (car park number one hosts the most elegant picnics) it is worth packing some interesting and pretty serving platters and bowls – after all, the event embraces decadence and style – but you can opt for enamel and metal platters over heavier china. The food needs to be suitable for transportation, easy…

“The most important question is whether it’ll be easy to find good homes for the puppies” BREEDING working gundogs has changed a great deal in recent years. There was a time when if you owned a bitch and decided it was time for her to have puppies, you would cast your eye around on shooting days to look for a suitable mate. The resulting progeny were generally good-looking, healthy puppies and there was a ready market for them among shooting friends. Stud costs were minimal, as the pick of the litter was the usual fee. Such a simple system has its merits. There was a lot of outbreeding, with little fussing about pedigrees. Sires were chosen because they were sound working dogs and attractive examples of their breed. Today, stud…

Suffolk garden takes the honours A moated manor house in Suffolk, owned by the same family for more than 500 years, is the winner of the 2017 Historic Houses Association (HHA) Garden of the Year award. The Grade I-listed gardens at Helmingham Hall have been developed by generations of the Tollemache family. Today, they are overseen by Xa Tollemache, a landscape gardener and wife of the current owner, Timothy, the fifth Baron Tollemache. Visitors to the garden reach a parterre and hybrid musk garden first, approached along a wide grass causeway flanked by yew domes. Beyond the parterre is a rose garden planted in 1965 by Dinah, wife of the fourth Baron Tollemache. In 1986, the working walled kitchen garden was restored to the original plans and tunnels have been…

In the heady days of the 1970s, when what are the minkhounds of today still hunted otters, the spring and summer meets were affectionately known as “love and lunch” parties. Well-turned-out ladies and gentlemen would stay with friends or at now almost extinct sporting country hotels and spend a languid few hours grazing on sandwiches and damsels’ cheeks. A change in the law following the ban of 2004, together with a decline in the UK mink population, has rather changed all that. A slightly timid air hangs over mink-hound proceedings and the dress code of twinset tweeds, florid waistcoats and the background purr of a Humber Super Snipe, so familiar when Captain RE Wallace had the Hawkstone Otterhounds, has been replaced with shellsuits and functional waterproofs from the local farm…

“A rugby tackle from a burly porter would result if the winning bidder made for the door” I Am wondering what is happening to the usually somewhat sleepy world of antiques. Last month, I was warning you about potential new risks with hitherto “safe” pre-1947 ivory. This month, it is internet scams. The fraudsters hack the customer’s personal details – and, presumably, the auctioneer’s (or antique dealer’s) system so as to learn who has bought what and for how much – and then send the buyer a perfect looking fake invoice. The client, expecting it, pays it, usually online. One innocent was stung for £55,000 recently and, to add insult to fury, because the victim gave the instructions to the bank to pay the fraudster, this scenario is unlikely to…

“We had a full-on California Chardonnay with the venison and it worked a treat” SIX OF THE BEST FOOD WINES 2015 CORNEY & BARROW HOUSE WHITE (£7.50, Corney & Barrow) Wonderfully versatile, fruity but dry white from Gascony. 2015 ABBOTTS & DELAUNAY MERLOT (£8 if you buy six, Majestic) A deliciously soft, juicy and mellow Merlot from the Languedoc. 2015 EMILIANA NATURA VIOGNIER (£8.75, Oddbins) Delicately aromatic, honeyed, yet dry organic white from Chile. 2010 FORTEZZA DEI COLLI CHIANTI CLASSICO RISERVA (£9, Lidl) Absurdly well-priced, fully mature, approachable red. 2015 JEAN BECKER LE RIESLING (£13, Davy’s) The wines of Alsace are famously food-friendly and this is a little cracker. 2014 X&N BARBET MOULIN-A-VENT (£14, Hennings) A gloriously succulent and drinkable Beaujolais. IT’s the question I get asked more than any…

“It’s the sort of machine to fuel up and drive a couple of hundred miles just for the heck of it” THE story goes that, at a focus group, Volvo executives were keen to hear the public’s views on the Swedish company’s image. Had all those years of swish SUVs and classy saloons moved them on from being the County Set’s vehicle of choice? Not a chance. The first respondent was quite clear: “Volvo? It’s all about estates full of Barbours, green wellies and black labs.” If the executives were disappointed by that answer, the new V90 might not help; it is a quite brilliant estate car, a welcome return (for those who agree with the focus group’s sentiments) to what Volvo does best. Look at the styling, which is…

MANY of my readers may be both surprised and distressed to hear that I have just returned from a flying visit to Turkey without being locked up. Why, the thinking might go, has President Erdogan got 191 journalists under lock and key but allows the Back Page of The Field freedom to roam? Could it be the Turks have never been exposed to this mighty organ of country speak? Possibly the answer lies in the Turkish translation of the title: “O Alan”. The birthday treat to Istanbul, a city that I have always dreamed of visiting, was courtesy of The Media Queen. But, needless to say, it was not without complications. TMQ had been asked to attend an extraordinary conference in Antalya and I had been tacked on as a…