Indholdsfortegnelse for April 2024 i The Field

The Labour Party has been accused of pursuing a toxic culture war in the countryside after it announced plans to eliminate hunting within its first term of Parliament. Under the plans, made public in February, Labour will implement a ban on trail and drag hunting. Steve Reed MP, Shadow Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, made the announcement during an interview with The Times and suggested that Labour would treat the countryside “with greater respect”. Reed claimed that drag and trail hunting are a result of “loopholes” in the Hunting Act 2004, which was brought in under Tony Blair’s government in order to ban the traditional hunting of live quarry using packs of hounds. However, both activities are lawful and involve laying an artificial scent across country…

Email charlotte.mackaness@futurenet.com LADIES’ QUARTER-ZIP JUMPER Tom Lane Lightweight, super-soft cotton with contrast panel detail and a ribbed collar and hem. Machine washable – if you can bear to take it off. Price £89 Email info@tomlane.co tomlane.co RACING COLOUR CUFFLINKS Inkerman London Made-to-order sterling silver oval cufflinks hand painted with the recipient’s colours. A gift that’s sure to be hot to trot. Price £395 Tel 01892 752211 inkerman.co.uk AX VISIO BINOCULARS Swarovski Optik Smart binoculars that help you identify birds and other animal species at the touch of a button. A must-have for hi-tech twitchers. Price £3,820 Email info-uk@swarovskioptik.com swarovskioptik.com OVERCHECK HOUSE TWEED JACKET Huntsman Single-breasted, 100% wool jacket in a Highland-inspired palette. Patch pockets and half-belt back provide an equestrian touch. Timeless style whether on two legs or four. Price…

THERE’S SOMETHING appropriately Buchan-esque about arriving at the Savile Club for The Field’s Macnab Dinner. As one retreats from the hustle and bustle of Mayfair into the suitably clubby, wood-panelled, 18th-century interior it could be Leithen, Palliser-Yeates or Lamancha ensconced over a dram planning their next sporting adventure. Instead, on an inclement February evening, it was sportsmen from all points of the globe who converged for The Field’s annual celebration of those who followed in their footsteps. This year’s Macnab Dinner, kindly sponsored by Blaser, hosted 11 successful Macnabbers from 2023, who assembled along with Field friends and contributors to toast their sporting success. They had journeyed from as far afield as Italy, Canada, the USA and even Australia to receive their coveted Macnab cufflinks from Field Editor Alexandra Henton…

STREET END PLACE, STREET END CANTERBURY, KENT This country house sits on the edge of the North Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It has four bedrooms and comes with just under 13 acres of land. Agent: Finn’s Tel: 01227 454111 Guide price: £2.45m SPITAL HALL, MITFORD MORPETH, NORTHUMBERLAND Spital Hall is a Regency country house with five bedrooms, three reception rooms and five acres of gardens. The land is a blend of lawns, terrace and mature woodland. Agent: Sanderson Young Tel: 0191 223 3500 Guide price: £2.95m POUND FARM, TILLERS GREEN DYMOCK, GLOUCESTERSHIRE This is a small equestrian estate with a Grade II*-listed four-bedroom farmhouse, nearly 60 acres of gardens, pasture and paddocks, and an outdoor arena. Agent: Savills Tel: 01242 548000 Guide price: £4.99m HOLLIST HOUSE, EASEBOURNE MIDHURST,…

THE ‘BIG FOUR’ Scottish salmon rivers traditionally allowed anglers to cross the country and hit the prime fishing months alongside the changing of the seasons. First in the annual fishing calendar was the Dee from opening day in February through to the early spring, then across to the Spey in late spring and summer, down to the Tay for the big autumn run in September, and finally to Tweed for its famous ‘back end’ run in October and November. But the world has changed. Our seasons and climate seem increasingly out of balance, unpredictable and with more frequent extreme weather events. Where once winters would pack snow on to the hills and gently rising temperatures allowed for a gradual thaw in the spring, now increasingly winters are wet and wild…

THE DATE is Saturday, 30 March 1974, the place is Aintree and 42 horses line up at the start of the 128th running of the Grand National. Scout is the 7/1 favourite, followed at 17/2 by the dual Gold Cup winner L’Escargot, who was third 12 months earlier. The previous year’s winner, Red Rum, is only third favourite and has drifted out to 11/1 just before the off. In 1973 Ginger McCain’s locally trained charge had played the role of pantomime villain as he deprived the gallant, front-running Crisp of victory in the dying strides of the four-mile, four-furlong marathon. Almost everyone felt sorry for Crisp then but it is in the 1974 National that Red Rum, who is now the one having to carry 12 stone, became a hero…

AT THE RISK of sounding like a deranged conspiracy theorist, I’ve a growing suspicion that one reason that governments, whether of right or left, appear to dislike fieldsports, and seem to lose no sleep over interfering with them or banning them, is that ‘they’ have no way of knowing what ‘we’ are up to when we are ‘out there’, doing our jolly thing. Even better for the regulators, spoil our sporting fun and, with time now hanging heavy on our hands, we’ll instead be driven into our cars, where they can monitor us on their multiple CCTVs, and into the shops, where they can analyse us as we use our cards. If this is what government secretly yearns for, then it appears to be working. When I do, rarely, venture…

♦ Dental hygiene A frightening statistic is that more than 80% of dogs over the age of three have dental disease, despite the fact that few show any obvious signs of problems. The best way to avoid it is to provide your dog with raw bones (a healthier alternative to off-the-shelf chews). Alternatively, clean your dog’s teeth regularly with a toothbrush and special toothpaste that is specifically formulated for dogs and is safe to be swallowed. The best dog toothpastes have a meaty flavour and are designed to be ingested, ensuring that dogs are happy to have their teeth cleaned.…

A stain on its character Q My favourite and rather old tweed cap has a bloodstain on it from pigeon shooting. This is the first time it has ever happened. What is the best way to clean it without damaging or shrinking it? Any advice would be appreciated, as I am not keen to have it dry-cleaned. SM, by email A If the stain is just a blood crust, one should be able to remove it with a bristled hat or clothes brush. Otherwise, sponge the area with lukewarm water using a soft cloth. Only dampen the stained area and keep refreshing until the cloth is clean. If the stain persists, use a sparing amount of dry-cleaning fluid or washing-up liquid and gently brush the foam from this on to the stain. Allow…

THERE are those friends’ houses that you arrive at on a Friday evening for the weekend, bleary-eyed from snail-paced, rush-hour traffic and foolishly fuelled by service station crisps, that bring you back to life. Candles lit, fires roaring, a hum around the Aga and a drinks trolley already in full swing by the time you collapse through the front door. It’s an enviable art and one in which chef Hugo Guest and his artist wife Olive have created a masterclass at this old Georgian vicarage atop a hill in east Devon. Glebe House has form when it comes to hosting: this is where Hugo grew up when his parents were running it as a bed and breakfast, and so having people meandering through its plant-strewn garden room and into the…

DURING this century, two small species of Asiatic deer, the muntjac and Chinese water deer, have successfully naturalised themselves in a wild state in this country. While the range of the latter is still relatively local, the muntjac is now firmly established in four counties. About 1900, the 11th Duke of Bedford introduced Indian muntjac to his estate at Woburn and for several years they increased rapidly, both within and outside the park. Eventually, however, it was decided to kill off the Indian muntjac to make room for the smaller and rarer Reeves’s muntjac. While there is no doubt that all the Indian variety were disposed of within the park, it was an impossibility to achieve the same result outside, and a number certainly escaped. The Reeves’s muntjac also flourished…

ALTHOUGH WE speak about conservation and conservationists, what we mean varies enormously. At one end we might put an efficient upland gamekeeper, managing habitat and controlling generalist predators. At the other extreme are ‘compassionate conservationists’ who consider culling grey squirrels to save reds from extinction, or even killing feral house mice to stop them eating albatross nestlings, unacceptable. In between is a kaleidoscope of opinions, all held by people who expect their right to call themselves conservationists to be respected while, in many instances, being reluctant to extend the same courtesy to people who take an alternative view. Despite there being so many different types of conservationist, there are distinct fault lines that run through the debate and it is important to address them. One is whether our engagement with…

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) has requested that the timeline be extended for the final stage of its lead ammunition review. This move comes after the consultation in December received more than 8,000 submissions. The HSE has submitted a request to the Government for more time to sort through relevant information and evidence before it can propose its recommendations to the Secretary of State for the Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. A new timeline is being drawn up and will be published following consultation with policy leads, including Defra and the Scottish and Welsh governments. The extension may well be good news for the shooting community, giving cartridge manufacturers more time to develop steel and other non-lead alternatives.…

IN THE PAST, diversification has been considered a rather dry word when applied to farming, born more of necessity than enthusiasm and virtue. But listen to Will Puxley, heir to Welford Park in Berkshire, and such are the estate’s projects that images of rock stars amid snowdrops are conjured, alongside woodland creation and biodiversity. Last year Puxley left his marketing career in the music business to take on full-time work at Welford Park, near Newbury, which has been in the family for more than 400 years. No agricultural college path for him, instead ploughing his own furrow with iconic record labels. While his father James, the former Lord-Lieutenant of Berkshire, is a chartered surveyor by profession, there was no pressure to swap pop concerts for Cirencester lectures, allowing Puxley to…

IT IS STILL dark when I meet chef José Souto near the Revesby estate woodland he has permission to stalk in, but as we exchange greetings a crack of deep pink starts to seep across the Lincolnshire sky. Aware of time being against us, Souto quickly outlines a plan. Thankfully, the required brevity means I can conceal being wrong-footed by the Essex accent, having made spurious assumptions from his name. As the senior chef lecturer of Westminster Kingsway College (WKC), a BASC Eat Game ambassador, an author of venison and gamebird cookbooks and a keen falconer and stalker, he holds all the credentials necessary for today’s muntjac ‘stalk to fork’ mission. Within minutes we are on the outskirts of the wood. As we set up equipment and close vehicle doors…

THE LURCHER is viewed with suspicion by some, historically labelled as the charge of ‘ne’er-do-well’ poaching types who were often discovered slinking through places they ought not to have been. Yet today’s modern lurcher has found himself a broad fan base, ranging from rural pest controllers and the inhabitants of small city apartments to the owners of sprawling estates. But what exactly is a lurcher? Many assume that the lurcher is a recognised breed in its own right but this is not the case; it is quite simply a ‘type’. The term ‘lurcher’ first appeared around 1668 and is thought to be derived from the verb ‘to lurch’, a variant of ‘lurk’, meaning to lurk or steal. In the 17th century the right to keep a hunting dog (typically a…

THESE days, hoaxes tend to play on societal fears. Scientific and technological advances mean we are inclined to be sceptical about anything that can’t be verified swiftly. That said, there is seemingly no shortage of people prepared to suspend disbelief long enough to read through articles about Mexican aliens and white-collar fraud in the USA. And as most hoaxes that we’re confronted with today – think the fake telephonic requests for £36,542 due in income tax – can be checked out pretty quickly, almost gone is the sort of hoax that could take in whole communities, countries and professions. In the 18th century, Mary Toft of Godalming brought humiliation on the medical fraternity when at least some of its practitioners, including the surgeon to the Royal Household, confirmed her story…

FIREARMS can often be found decorated in the contemporary style of the period in which they were built, and in the early 20th century there were two dominant decorative styles: Art Nouveau and Art Deco. In firearms decoration terms, Art Nouveau is represented in the Royal Armouries collection by the Tiffany revolver that was commissioned from the New York jeweller Tiffany & Co in 1989. To reflect the subsequent Art Deco style the collection holds this tiny pistol, the FN ‘Baby’ Browning, in .25 calibre, which was built for self-defence purposes, as it could easily fit in a gentleman’s vest pocket or a lady’s bag. It is also unusual and rare because of its lavish and extensive classic Art Deco-style decoration. It was built by the Belgian state-owned arms factory…

I CAN NEVER quite decide which is best (or worst): starting a garden from scratch or dealing with one already well established. Both have their delights, of course, but neither is without its difficulties. As someone who has always moved into gardens that were, frankly, over-mature to the point of senility, I think there is a lot to be said for a completely blank canvas; that’s because you can express yourself any way you like and do all the research and planning you need before laying out any ready money. From the start, the garden will be indisputably yours, even if a paradise on Earth is some years in the making. Moving into a mature garden is altogether a different basket of produce. I have always found the greatest challenge…

Across 1/10 Indication that a gun barrel has been passed as safe to use (5,4)4 Shotguns? Rifles? Farmer is confused (8)8 Mammal introduced to UK from USA: escapees from fur farms threaten water voles etc (4)9 Plain obvious, it’s like a chalkstream (5)10 See 1 across11 County location of Chillington Hall for partridge/pheasant shooting (abbrev) (6)13 High standard… of a gun’s bore (7)15 Defined river sections between bends (7)17 Endangered wildlife may be termed thus (2,4)18 A memento of a particularly well-executed deerstalking session? (6)20 Groom brings in UN for secure weapon storage space (3,4)22 Unsteady type of hunting dog? (7)24 Area of soft, wet ground (6)25/28 Blenheim Palace will host this 2024 festival of the British countryside (4,4)27 Pigeon eat the masts of this Fagus tree (5)28 See 25 across29 Large birds of prey with long forked tails and mewing call (3,5)30 Place…

More than 30 Scottish community groups, UK non-governmental organisations, international campaign groups and charities have joined forces to call on the Soil Association to stop certifying Scottish farmed salmon as ‘organic’. In an open letter to the Association, the signatories highlighted the negative environmental, welfare and sustainability issues linked to the salmon farming industry in Scotland, and argued that these impacts are fundamentally at odds with organic farming. Rachel Mulrenan, Scotland director at WildFish, said: “So-called ‘organic’ Scottish salmon is a misnomer. The fish are raised in the same way as all Scottish farmed salmon: in open-net cages where all the waste from the farm flows straight into the surrounding lochs and sounds, including faeces and uneaten feed. “‘Organic’ salmon farms are permitted to still use toxic chemicals, which can…

Women Who Work in Fieldsports (WWWF) was born after an opportune encounter at The Game Fair between founders Louisa Clutterbuck, Iona Campbell and Vanessa Steel. Recognising the need for a dedicated space for women in fieldsports to connect with and support one another, the trio envisioned a platform where women could come together, share experiences and build a sense of community. Given the industry’s male-dominated nature, their vision was to create an inclusive environment for women to discuss challenges and triumphs. From that initial conversation WWWF has evolved, overcoming obstacles such as difficulty setting up a bank account with certain high-street banks. Undeterred, WWWF has successfully navigated this challenge and has already hosted ‘In Conversation’ events with inspirational speakers as well as a festive Christmas drinks. Now fully operational, WWWF…

THIS 1,763-acre Suffolk estate is eight miles from Woodbridge and 14 miles from Ipswich. The main house, a Grade I-listed hall with 12 bedrooms, seven reception rooms and 19 attic rooms, has 16th-century origins and was remodelled in the 18th century. It features mellow red-brick walls, tiled roofs, high ceilings and sash windows, and has been used as a wedding venue. The hall is surrounded by parkland and gardens, including ancient trees, a yew avenue and a rose parterre with pond. Seven cottages are included in the sale, with further properties available. The rest of the estate is a mix of in-hand commercial arable land with a let farm, grazing meadows with frontage to the River Alde, and mature blocks of broadleaf and conifer woodland. There is also a grass…

NDC ONE OF MY EARLIEST sporting memories is of riding on the rusty tailgate of my father’s two-door Range Rover, towing a trailer full of saplings and helping him to plant up coverts on the shoot that he then ran. At around the same time, I would return from school and be allowed to drive the Range Rover along the woodland margins, checking the snares and tunnel traps we’d set to protect the small population of grey partridges we looked after. Although I didn’t know it at the time, this was my introduction to conservation as a symbiotic function of game preservation. It was entirely obvious to my young mind that more trees meant more cover to be driven and that if we didn’t plant them, nobody else would. I…

WHEN IT comes to deerstalking, be it highland or low-land, muntjac, red deer or any cervid in between, there is a rifle to suit. From that representing the pinnacle of the gunmaker’s art to a plain workhorse, we have brought together the stalking rifles you want sitting snugly in the gun safe. Now is the time to upgrade the old rifle that has served the family faithfully for generations but no longer shoots as true as it once did. Fortunately there are plenty of options available and the only real limit is the depth of your pockets. All of these rifles are available in a wide range of calibres suited to deerstalking in this country, and all come with a promise of superb accuracy. Of course, other rifles are available,…

THE TURTLE dove is an enigmatic little bird synonymous with love, peace and hope. As such, it is unsurprising that through the ages it has caught the imagination of writers, artists and musicians from Shakespeare and Elvis to Chaucer and Cliff Richard. Turtle doves might define the summer arable landscape in Britain, yet they are truly global citizens. Impressively, being little larger than blackbirds, they reach our shores in late April and May having completed an arduous migratory journey from the Sahel region of Africa, defining the shifting of the seasons, marking the progress of spring and sounding hope for the coming harvest. The melodic ‘turr-turr-turring’ call of the turtle dove, from which it takes its name, has for millennia been the summer music of East Anglia. In my childhood…

THERE are still places in this kingdom where an ancient magic lingers. Seen through a pair of pricked grey ears, the outline of ruined Corfe Castle on its knoll, misty in gathering dusk between two long ridges of hills, stirs thoughts of frustrated armies, the clash of sword on armour and perhaps even an Arthurian banner flying in the wind. In the other direction, white horses gallop across the largest natural harbour in Britain, where countless birds gather. Such is the view from the Rempstone estate, the southernmost corner of the South Dorset country, on the edge of Poole Harbour. “It is like going back in time down there,” affirmed Joint Master James Baillie. “It’s always that little bit special.” Several dozen riders, including visitors from the Portman, Wilton, Cattistock…

Sporting artist ⬩ Under the hammer ⬩ Royal Armouries ⬩ Sporting dog ⬩ The boot room ⬩ Gun review Country queries ⬩ Gardening ⬩ Farmshop ⬩ Cookery ⬩ Wine ⬩ Travel ⬩ Books ⬩ Field testers ⬩ From the archives Colin Blanchard’s Craigshaw Barns Studio can be found in the Scottish Borders at Lockerbie DG11 3AH. For more details, tel: 07714 123227 or visit: colinblanchard.com COLIN Blanchard is pleased with one of his recent works, I shall go into a Hare (a portrait of Isobel Gowdie), which depicts the 17th-century ‘witch’ transforming into a hare. The printmaker explains: “Isobel was a poor cottar’s wife who was accused of witchcraft, and she gave four testaments. They are amazing things containing beliefs and stories about witchcraft. She said: ‘I shall go into…

IS THE COCKAPOO the most popular dog in Britain? It certainly seems so where I live. I see far more of these curly-coated dogs than I do French bulldogs, a breed that recently topped the Kennel Club’s (KC) popularity stakes. Cockapoos are, of course, crossbreeds and as such they cannot be registered, so no one really knows how many there are. Most of the breeds we recognise today evolved in the 19th century, while the 20th century was the era of the pedigree dog when established breeds were selectively inbred to establish their type. Outcrossing wasn’t just frowned upon – it was forbidden by almost every breed club. The purity of the breed was essential, with breeders using the term ‘line breeding’ to disguise the fact that it was normal…

THIS TEST features a Rizzini BR550 side-by-side 16-bore. Weighing a handy 6lb 5oz, it has 30in barrels, a single selective trigger, concave rib, multichokes and an open radius pistol grip (28in barrels are an option, as are a straight-hand stock and double trigger). With a laser scroll-engraved action that is scalloped to the rear, the proportions and decoration please. It is built on the same action as the Rizzini 20-bore (the firm uses three actions: .410/28-bore, 20-/16-bore and 12-bore). This keeps the weight down and contributes to graceful styling such as that seen in the Rizzini Artemis Light over-and-under, which weighed only 6lb 4oz with 30in barrels but in 12-bore with a sideplated alloy action (reviewed in the February issue). It is easier to make a 20- or 16-bore look…

ONE DOESN’T have to travel far these days to find a well-stocked farm shop, yet cornucopias of genuinely local produce can be harder to find. The farm shop at Welbeck, a traditional estate in Sherwood Forest, North Nottinghamshire is one such gem with artisan food at its heart. Located in Welbeck’s ‘Courtyard’, the farm shop is part of a thriving artisan food community including cheesemakers, bakers, brewers and butchers. “Since the farm shop was founded in 2006 the ethos has been simply to provide exceptional quality produce and service in a responsible and sustainable manner,” explains manager Oliver Stubbins. Food miles are minimal, as the shop works with the 15,000-acre estate’s farmers to source vegetables, dairy and meat, while Welbeck’s kitchen garden provides herbs and edible flowers as well as…