Innehållsförteckning för July 2021 från The Field

FOR true sporting sorts the things we enjoy have inherent risk attached. We’re not a tribe to take cosseting comfortably. Just take the standard country morning routine – which varies in the finer details but is repeated in counties nationwide. Our current morning routine involves running the gauntlet of rioting hound puppies at walk, chicken runs and livestock bumper cars as we perambulate our perimeters (disorderly pack at heel) noting down jobs to add to the Sisyphean task list (rail down, gap in hedge to be filled, gate to reset etc). There are ponies to muck out and ride, sometimes a spot of pest control and the gundog to train (hound puppies derailing current operations for the latter). All this before the working day begins in earnest. This process is…

HEAD TO THE GAME FAIR After last year’s cancellation, the Game Fair is back from 23 to 25 July with a packed programme of talks, open-air cinema (presenting the 1976 dramatisation of John Buchan’s John Macnab) and events ranging from terrier racing to mounted games and a hounds parade. Book tickets at: thegamefair.org SAY IT WITH FLOWERS Magnificent show gardens inspired by sustainability, well-being and even Scandinavian design await visitors to the RHS Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival, which takes place from 5 to 11 July at Hampton Court, with COVID-19 measures in place. The RHS show at Tatton Park, Cheshire, will follow from 21 to 25 July. For more details or to buy tickets, visit: rhs.org.uk THE SOUND OF MUSIC Only a few cultural events are going ahead this…

AFTER an epic struggle against God and the elements, Noah sent some animals to scour the land, looking for a signal of hope. A dove eventually returned with an olive branch, thus letting Noah know that the floods had subsided. Symbolic, then, that the first prize ever handed out at the Olympics was an olive branch – an emblem of reconciliation and peace. The quadrennial festival of sport juxtaposes fierce gladiatorial battle with international harmony. Yet, after victories have been declared and flags planted in the soil, the athletes shake hands and hand over olive branches. For all the mythology surrounding the olive branch, Coroebus, a humble cook and winner of the first event, a 192-metre sprint, would probably have preferred a gold medal. Yet it wasn’t until the St…

Raisdale is a mixed residential, agricultural, sporting and amenity estate in the Cleveland Hills on the edge of the North York Moors National Park, 14 miles from Helmsley. The 1,345 acres include sporting rights over neighbouring land and a well-established low ground shoot, taking advantage of the contours of the land, woodland blocks and wooded valleys and hillsides. The commercially managed woodland has felling licences in place until 2026. The 3,000 square foot, five-bedroom farmhouse has been modernised extensively with potential for further expansion. Features include flagstone floors, hand-built oak kitchen units and an oak staircase. There are also two investment farms. For sale as a whole or in two lots. Agent: Savills Tel: 01904 617831 Guide price: £5m for the whole…

The Game Fair returns to Ragley Hall in Warwickshire on Friday 23 July to Sunday 25 July. The Hall, home to the ninth Marquess of Hertford, sits in 450 acres of landscaped gardens and parkland near Stratford-upon-Avon, an ideal spot for sporting sorts to flock to this summer. More than 120,000 people are expected to attend the event. The Field will be in attendance (as we have been every year) and we will be delighted to meet our readers, new subscribers and sporting friends. Visitors to our stand on Gunmakers’ Row will be able to take advantage of our excellent show offer: subscribe and save up to 40% plus get a free gift. We look forward to seeing you there. But what else is happening at this year’s Game Fair?…

TUNGSTEN Tungsten is a hard but malleable greyish element with a density of 19g/cm3. Initial problems have been largely overcome, with a variety of tungsten shot appearing. Eley, working with Royal Ordnance, introduced Black Feather in 1989. In this, tungsten powder and a plastic polymer were moulded together (production has now ceased, Eley concentrating its efforts on bismuth and steel). Federal developed a tungsten-polymer shot (first announced in January 1998) and a tungsten-iron shot (relative density, 9.99). Hevishot – a combination of tungsten, nickel and iron – was developed in the same era. Other tungsten options exist in the US, including tungsten-iron-nickel, tungsten-bronze and tungsten-bismuth-tin. Gamebore continues to work with tungsten as well as steel. It offers tungsten matrix, using a nylon-based polymer as a binding agent. Tungsten matrix has…

Our rivers are under threat and this affects not just keen fishers but all of us. Our brains are about 75% water, our muscles 75%, our kidneys 85% and plasma in our blood 92%, so in a very real way our rivers are the veins of life. We are all dependent on water but there is much to decry about the state of our rivers in the UK. John Bailey is our guide to what needs taking into account, from A-Z. ACRONYMS AND INITIALISMS The EA (Environment Agency) and NE (Natural England) need little explanation but then there is NRW (Natural Resources Wales), SEPA (Scottish Environment Protection Agency), Ofwat (Water Services Regulation Authority) and even CSOs (Combined Sewer Overflows). Line Of Duty is nothing compared to all this but there…

The country house has a new status symbol and it is of the unassuming, feathered variety. Gone are the days of glamorous, colourful peacocks strutting their stuff as the welcoming committee on immaculately raked gravel in front of enviable rural properties. Instead, expect to be met by flocks of prehistoric-looking guinea fowl — the new bird of choice among the country set. Originally from West Africa and thought to have been introduced to Western Europe in the 16th century, guinea fowl are known for their meat, rich eggs and — possibly the main reason for their surge in popularity — their loyal, dog-like behaviour. They use their shrill voices as an effective burglar alarm to alert their owners to the presence of unwanted guests and predators. Less high-maintenance than chickens,…

“A HACKNEY coach – fogh! Who can be a gentleman and visit in a hackney coach? Who can, indeed? To predicate nothing of stinking wet straw and broken windows, and cushions on which the last dandy has cleaned his shoes, and of the last fever it has carried to Guy’s, or the last load of convicts transported to the hulks.” This is how The London Magazine summed up the indignity of travelling in a hackney coach in the 1820s. Charles Dickens described it as “a great lumbering, square concern of a dingy yellow colour”. Henderson has captured its decrepitude in this painting from the collection of the British Sporting Art Trust (BSAT). The coachman and his crew, one sitting on the step of the coach cutting bread with a long…

GARDEN PARASOL FARO HOME Lined with a contrast block print and finished with a valance edge and wooden topper, these parasols are a bright burst of summer to smarten up al fresco entertaining at home or shade picnics on the beach. Two-part steel pole with adjustable tilt will keep the sun out of your eyes from breakfast ’til sundowners. Dimensions: 8½ft high, 7ft diameter Price £380 Tel 07908532683 farohome.com Colour chart EDWARD BULMER NATURAL PA INT TEA GREEN Natural, plastic-free paints, safe and suitable shades from nursery to front door. Made with five pigments, Tea Green is a subtle shade perfect with stone or brick. £41 for 1 litre water-based gloss Tel: 01544 388535 edwardbulmerpaint.co.uk BLENHEIM FOUR SEATER DINING SET COX & COX Just because we are now allowed to…

COMING from a family steeped in hunting and National Hunt racing it was impossible to imagine a life far from the one my parents and grandparents had trodden before me. My father’s mother, Sarah Henderson, whose name I carry proudly, was Master of the Craven Farmers and my mother’s father, John Thorne, finished second in the 1981 Grand National on the legendary hunter-chaser Spartan Missile, a horse he bred, owned, trained and rode. He was 54 years of age and a real legend of the Warwickshire hunting and point-to-pointing world. Growing up in a yard full of beautiful thoroughbreds and surrounded by the bustling hubbub of stable lads, owners and jockeys, home life was never dull or quiet. Saturday mornings were spent up the gallops on my beloved pony, Chubby,…

Few initiatives spark greater controversy than new builds in the countryside, so it is no surprise that the Government’s proposals to overhaul the planning system split public opinion. While the Country Land & Business Association broadly welcomed the plans, underscoring that investment in rural areas has thus far been held back by “an antiquated planning system”, the Campaign for the Protection of Rural England advocated an “urgent rethink” of a bill that, in its view, appears to prioritise the needs of developers over those of local communities. For Shaun Spiers, executive director of Green Alliance and author of How to Build Houses and Save the Countryside, “the Government needs to decide whether it wants a planning system that strives to create better places, or one that drives through house building…

▸ In his 1910 poem, The Kingfisher, William Henry Davies wrote of their distinctive azure blue wings and orange underparts: It was the rainbow gave thee birth, And left thee all her lovely hues.▸ As the first bird to fly from Noah’s ark, it’s said that the orange setting sun and blue sky gave them their bold colouring – it was originally a plain grey bird. The Greek for kingfisher is halcyon.▸ According to Ovid, they had the power to calm the waves on the Aegean Sea to protect their eggs on floating nests — which explains ‘halcyon days’.▸ When Shakespeare wrote in King Lear: Bring oil to the fire, snow to their colder moods Renege, affirm, and turn their halcyon beaks With every gale and vary of their masters…

Write to: The Editor, The Field, 161 Marsh Wall, London E14 9AP. Email: field.secretary@futurenet.com VITAL DISCUSSION Rob Williams advocates that the Hunting Act should not be repealed but replaced by a licensing system [Replacing the Hunting Act, Comment, April issue]. Unfortunately, nobody cares that we are a minority and different. I am all for keeping my friends close and my enemies closer, but Packham not an enemy? To state that we should be prepared to compromise “on just about anything” infers that we should be grateful that we might still be allowed to go drag hunting. Nevertheless, the article is welcome because we need the discussion. To do nothing is to accept that we are on borrowed time. The debate around animal welfare continues to evolve and we must keep…

WESTGATE MANOR WESTGATE, WEARDALE, COUNTY DURHAM The six-bedroom Westgate Manor was built in 1864 and sits in private, wraparound manicured gardens in the Weardale valley. The property has been completely renovated and extended, mixing period features with modern upgrades. Currently run as a B&B and restaurant, it is being sold as a residential property. The garden has a gazebo, summer house and sun terrace. Agent: Finest Properties Tel: 01434 622234 Offers in excess of £1m MOODY COTTAGE DURHAM, COUNTY DURHAM The cottage is in the grounds of Burn Hall, near Durham. It is a barn conversion with three bedrooms, two reception rooms and an orangery with sliding doors out to a glass-walled veranda overlooking woodland. There is underfloor heating throughout from a ground source heat pump and solar panels. The…

The enjoyment derived from using vintage guns for game shooting is an important part of many a day in the field. They are some of the finest guns ever produced and were built by bench-trained master craftsmen who devoted a lifetime to their art. Gun making reached its zenith at the turn of the century when skilled artisans forged, carved and finished guns for their discerning clientele, building them up to a level of perfection, rather than down to a price. It is telling that many are still in use more than 100 years later. Sadly, there are some today who would have others believe they are obsolete hardware in a soon to be non-lead-shot world. I don’t believe that to be true. I have no interest in shooting antiaircraft…

During a day’s rough shooting last season, I asked my companion for advice on the small touches that combine to make a driven day special. I was expecting something unusual from the owner of a well-regarded sporting agency, but his response as we sheltered from driving snow behind a drystone wall surprised me. Or perhaps it didn’t, for the corporate shoots that are the bread and butter of his livelihood are the opposite end of the spectrum to the less formal, friends and family orientated ‘Fieldy’ days at the heart of this feature. Such occasions are often heralded by the arrival of a handwritten invitation in summer, where the host signs off with those most welcome words, “Do bring your dog along, too.” If encouraging dogs to join the party…

It sounds like quiz-night material: can you tell what a Shetland six-ern is? How about a Scarborough mule? A Plymouth hooker? Or a Beer lugger? If you guessed that a Plymouth hooker was not a lady of easy virtue plying her trade in the alleys and darkened doorways around England’s dockyard town, or that a Beer lugger was not the boat a Cornish smuggler might employ to carry contraband ashore at dead of night, ears cocked to the sound of the Revenue men’s hooves, you’d be right – and doubly so if you thought each one of them to be a long-lost type of fishing boat. You would be wrong, however, on one count: not all these crafts are long lost. Although some of the fishing vessels that were once…

Send queries to Rosie Macdonald, Country Queries Editor, The Field, 161 Marsh Wall, London E14 9AP. Email: country-queries@hectareshouse.co.uk For more, go to: thefield.co.uk FLAG IT UP Q I have two large, antique flags that I would like framed to honour my late father. The flags are delicate and full size. Can you recommend someone who can help? FT, Rutland A Tim Everett of Everett Fine Art Ltd can undertake the framing of antique flags. He suggests the best way to conserve and display the flags if weak or fragile would be to finely stitch them onto a backcloth before protecting them with glass and displaying them from one side like a picture. The flag would be kept from the air in a sealed unit with a vital gap between the…

WE examine a new Purdey over-and-under this month – a 30in-barrelled 20-bore ‘PTP’ (Purdey Trigger Plate) model. It hits the scales at 7lb 6oz, which is on the heavier side for a bespoke 20 but the test gun is a much-shot prototype and production guns may be ordered significantly lighter. The specification includes: a detachable triggerlock; hand engraving to the action body and sideplates; a single, non-selective trigger; 3in (76mm) chambers; fleur-de-lys high-performance steel-shot-proof, Teague chokes; and a narrow, slightly tapered, solid rib. The stock, of well-figured walnut, boasts a long, open radius, steel-capped full pistol grip and a slim, rounded fore-end with Anson-type push-button release. It’s a Purdey, so even in a prototype both wood and metal are beautifully finished. The action and sideplates are silver cyanide hardened (there…

DURING the summer months, as the weather warms up, we tend to veer naturally towards eating lighter and fresher meals that are quick to cook. Fortunately, this does not mean you have to compromise on the flavour or vibrancy of your food. Salads and vegetables can be eaten raw or cooked, but I always add a bright, acidic and sometimes even spicy dressing just before serving to help elevate the dish. I also find myself making a lot of punchy and bold sauces to serve with simply grilled pieces of fish or meat – as per the trout recipe below. I haven’t given you exact instructions on how to cook the trout, but if caught oneself I would be inclined to serve it whole so you can show it off…

Curlew Country’s annual Curlew Cam, which gives people the opportunity to see chicks hatch and eventually fledge in early June, has once again put the spotlight on the plight of this beloved species. Although Curlew Country has managed to stem the birds’ decline in the Shropshire Hills, the outlook across the UK is far from rosy. “The prospects are as dire as they’ve ever been; we have lost about 50% of breeding curlew in 25 years,” says Amanda Perkins of Curlew Country. The UK, adds Samantha Franks of the British Trust for Ornithology, is internationally important for breeding curlew, so “we have a global imperative to turn their fortunes around”. The main causes of the wader’s disappearance are habitat loss, predators and some agricultural practices. “Providing good habitats is the…

DOWN MEMORY LANE An evocative hunting picture by Trevor Meeks sparked an Instagram discussion on what hunting means to Fielders. Some saw it as a cornerstone of British tradition, with one poster even calling it “British civilisation”. Others viewed it as a beacon of liberty and “freedom of choice” or a symbol of “happiness” and “excitement”. But for many, it was all about cherished memories with one gentlemen in particular reminiscing about “growing up around the hunt”. CARE FOR CURLEWS Just as conservationists were talking to The Field about the threat to the curlew’s survival, posters on Instagram were celebrating the beauty of this iconic bird, with one in particular wistfully calling them the “soundtrack to my youth”. But a feisty estate manager pointed out that we shouldn’t resign ourselves…

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The whole question of non-toxic shot has caught the shooting world on the back foot. I want to dispel some of the panic and confusion in relation to shotgun shooting with steel, which is the option most likely to become our new normal (bismuth and tungsten being the other, more expensive, options). Concerns about the ingestion of lead shot by wildfowl were first noted in the US more than 100 years ago. These amplified in the 1970s and, supported by academic research, led to the banning of lead shot over wetlands in some states. From the 1977-78 season, non-lead shot use was mandated in 23 states in designated noted zones corresponding to flight paths of waterfowl; by 1984, it was 33. In 1991, the ban became national and is extended…

“IN some of the rich grazing counties, as Meath and Roscommon, a large, long blood-horse is reared of considerable value,” wrote English veterinary surgeon William Youatt about the Irish horse in his 1831 book The Horse. “He seldom has the elegance of the English horse; he is larger-headed, more leggy, ragged-hipped, angular, yet with great power in the quarters, much depth beneath the knee, stout and hardy, full of fire and courage, and an excellent leaper.” It’s a sentiment that remains nearly two centuries on; an enviable mix of breeding and attitude — plus the treasured experience across Irish country — that makes the Irish hunter the pin-up of many a pack. As David Lalor, Master of the Laois Hunt says: “There are no nicely manicured hedges in Ireland, only…

RED RUM liked to race with his ears pinned flat back for aero-dynamic advantage, but as he crossed the line for his third Grand National win in 1977 he pricked them forward for a split second in an equine V for victory sign to fans and doubters alike. Sculptor Philip Blacker had first come across Rummy a few years earlier. He remembers: “We were going down to Becher’s the second time. Crisp was a fence in front and I was upsides Red Rum, and I looked across at Brian Fletcher on Red Rum and then he just started to draw away from us. I was on Spanish Steps and I thought we would win that year because Spanish Steps was a very good horse, he had a lot of class.…

MANY years ago I was walking in the New Forest when I met a fellow dog walker with a fine pair of English springers. We chatted for a while and he told me how adder bites were a major hazard in the summer when walking his dogs. One of his spaniels had been bitten on several occasions but survived. So can a dog gain immunity from snake bite? I gathered that the local veterinary practices were well used to seeing dogs suffering from snake bites, and that these were rarely fatal. Adders are shy animals and do their best to avoid confrontation with anything bigger than themselves. They only ever bite dogs (or humans, for that matter) in defence, not out of aggression. Unfortunately, dogs, and especially spaniels, have a…

AFTER a couple of days in the Defender 90, I knew I needed a second opinion. I booked the shorter version of Jaguar Land Rover’s triumphant new machine specifically because it’s the version more likely to end up on my farm (I prefer rear windows and seats over VAT savings), but there was something not quite right. My neighbour has seen off three score and 10 harvests, and a SWB Land Rover for every seven of those, so I was sure he’d be able to put his finger on it. I had to chuckle when he said he was warming to its looks – he was one of many who said that. It’s the Ford Sierra all over again. Then he climbed in and we set off round his acres.…