Table of contents for September 2023 in The Field

ONE OF the greatest frustrations of recent political history is how division has become an electoral tool and compromise has become perceived as weakness. Rural politics has been as scarred by this trend as every other part of our lives. From the discussions in mainstream and social media, it would seem that the various views on the future of the countryside are so far apart as to make any attempt at accommodation futile. It was a rejection of this fatalistic view, and a belief that there is actually a large amount that environmentalists, farmers and land managers agree on, that was the catalyst for Future Countryside, which held its first event in June. Future Countryside was conceived as an attempt to stop the slide towards pessimistic absolutes and to ensure…

Grouse shooting has been effectively ended on land owned by water company United Utilities after it announced it would not be renewing shooting leases. The announcement by the company, whose lands cover swathes of the Forest of Bowland, the Goyt Valley, Longdendale Valley and the West Pennines, comes three years after it suspended all licences for legal trail hunting on its land. According to the Daily Telegraph, the decision was made after United Utilities’ AGM in July, which saw large protests from campaigners over the company’s environmental record. In 2022, United Utilities was identified as England’s worst-polluting water company, pumping waste into the River Ellen for nearly 7,000 hours. The decision has been condemned by BASC and the Countryside Alliance, which said that it has the “hallmarks of an ill-thought-out…

Write to: The Editor, The Field, Future Publishing PLC, 121-141 Westbourne Terrace, London W2 6JR Email: field.secretary@futurenet.com LETTERS MAY BEEDITED FOR CLARITY OR SPACE GUN LICENSING Graham Downing’s article on firearms licensing [Comment, August issue] was well timed. Firearms offences with legally held weapons draw huge media and public interest due to their rarity, whereas knife crime these days barely registers. The length of time a licence or certificate is valid for is a regular topic of discussion. When I served as marine engine officer on HMS York several years ago, the ship deployed to the South Atlantic. The operations officer and I took our shotguns, a clay trap and many clays for Saturdays on passage. While in the Falkland Islands, we were invited to the Stanley Clay Club. Our…

HAWSON COURT COTTAGE BUCKFASTLEIGH, DARTMOOR, DEVON On the market for the first time in 60 years and once home to Grand National-winning jockey Jimmy Frost, this three-bedroom cottage within Dartmoor National Park dates from 1750 and is in need of renovation. Adjoining the property is a stable yard with 12 boxes and a tack room. There is also an American barn with 12 boxes, a feed store and a sand school. The land is 14 acres in total, including pasture and woodland. Agent: Luscombe Maye Tel: 01548 845095 Guide price: £1.5m PARK HOUSE COPT HEWICK, RIPON, NORTH YORKSHIRE This is a five-bedroom house, accessed through electric timber gates, on an elevated plot with 18 acres of grazing land, six stables, an Olympic-size floodlit menage and a tack room. There is…

EYE DOMINANCE is integral to being a topshot but it is also often misunderstood and oversimplified. For those keen to shoot well, you need to know what your eye dominance is as precisely as possible. It can change suddenly or over time and have a huge impact on shooting. Men may experience changes of eye dominance in mid-life, while many women have visual issues that are never properly diagnosed. Age and gender apart, fatigue, ill-health and certain activities (computer work, for example) may affect eye dominance. If you have strings of inexplicable misses, if some targets always escape you, or if you have days when you cannot hit a thing, it is worth considering whether eye dominance may be the explanation. Similarly, if you experience any sense of visual confusion…

THE DEFENDER Burghley Horse Trials is an institution, this year running from Thursday, 31 August until Sunday, 3 September. It started almost by accident in 1961, following the last-minute transfer of a three-day event from Harewood after a suspected foot-and-mouth outbreak. Today, the competition is one of only seven prestigious CCI5* events in the world. Burghley also boasts the biggest first prize in the sport of eventing, as this year’s winner will take home £110,000. It is heaven for the horsey and hound crowd (the event tends to herald the start of the hunting year, as stubbles are cut and hounds begin their early mornings) and just as essential as a high point on the social calendar. Find great larks in the beer tent, card-melting shopping and, for serious eventing…

WE JUMPED in the old beaters’ wagon – it is an old livestock trailer with hay-bale seats running along the inside. As we sat down the excited dogs sat down obediently near their owner’s feet. Teasel, my labradoodle cross sprocker, hopped up on to my lap and licked my face. David’s dog Bertie’s (a golden spaniel) tail wagged wildly, hitting Dotty’s side who barked back. Dotty is another spaniel and is white with brown spots all over her. Suddenly, the blue Land Rover towing burst into life with a puff of grey smoke. As we bumped along the track Teasel leant into my chest and cuddled down. She doesn’t like travelling very much it scares her. When we arrived at the woods we were all extremely excited for the first…

RATHER more than a century ago, the correspondence pages of The Field were enlivened by passionate debates about the best breeds of dogs to work with grouse. With the eventual eclipse of the flatcoated retriever these discussions became less heated, but there are still many who have strong views on the subject. I asked a former headkeeper of a Pennine moor for his opinion. He thought for a moment, looked me straight in the eye and answered in broad Yorkshire: “There isn’t one. I’ve witnessed terrific work by almost any breed you can think of, and seen some of the best labradors in the business humiliated by one of my keepers’ spaniels. Regardless of breed, the best dogs are those that are both well trained and used to working with…

THERE are many examples of unusual firearms, especially those that combine two or more functions. Probably the most successful is the combined pocketknife and pistol made by Unwin & Rodgers. Previously the fashion for these combination weapons was to attach a blade to a pistol, initially fixed but by the early 19th century folding. Most of these emanated from Germany but it was in Sheffield, England that the idea of attaching a pistol to a folding pocketknife was born. From the late 18th century, cutler James Rodgers (circa 1758-1829) began producing fine cutlery and from about 1820 he had built a reputation for both quality and desirability. He also soon gained recognition for manufacturing what became known as the ‘Bowie’ knife, characterised by a clipped point and being of some…

From the archives Partridge driving by W Wilmer, 10 September 1892 SHOOTING is now conducted upon principles entirely opposed to the ideas of sport which prevailed in the earlier part of the century. Our grandfathers loved to hunt the stubble with their pointers – a stubble far different from that of the present day of close farming. They walked and worked with their dogs; every bird that was bagged was shot after much toil in the seeking, and the sportsman returned home pleasantly weary from actual physical exertion. What is partridge shooting now? The conditions of the sport are reversed. In Norfolk, Suffolk, Cambridge and Essex, the great partridge counties of England, for every bird that is killed walking up at least 50 are killed by what is now so…

FROM butterflies to bees, spiders and serpents, for thousands of years the beauty of the natural world has inspired jewellery. Whether the animals depicted have been chosen for their symbolic value or simply their aesthetic charms, the appeal of such pieces never dims.…

Eating out RESERVATION HITCHEN’S BARN Where? 12 Burley Road, Oakham LE15 6DH What? A small, award-winning, family-run restaurant in the heart of Oakham offering modern British cuisine from a menu that changes daily. The focus is very much on local ingredients. Neil and Louise Hitchen met while working at nearby Hambleton Hall, and, like their meeting place, this cosy, 40-cover restaurant likes to showcase game. Venison is sourced locally, while shoots at Thistleton and Lyndon provide the partridge and pheasant. Look out for? Loin of local rabbit, stuffed with black pudding and roasted with puy lentils, root vegetables and game sauce, while Neil’s twice-baked creamy cheese soufflé has near-legendary status among Rutland foodies. Wash it down with? Ciders and ales by a host of local breweries and presses, including cider…

The Field’s Game Fair party was, as ever, the must-have invitation of the weekend, hosted in association with Bonhams on Ragley Hall’s Rose Terrace, by kind permission of the Marquess and Marchioness of Hertford. Guests enjoyed a spectacular view of the showground having made their way through the gardens and past two of Bonhams’ covetable vintage models resting on the lawn: a 1954 Bentley R-Type Continental Fastback Saloon and a 1948 Land Rover Series 1. Since The Game Fair’s inception in 1958, The Field has been present at every show, promoting fieldsports, leading the conversation and not only supporting our community but introducing new people to it. This year was no exception: shooting stalwarts, Olympians, politicians, Field contributors and friends old and new rubbed shoulders at our stand and at…

SEPTEMBER can be a glorious month for salmon fishing. After weeks of potentially dry and dusty weather, reliable rains sweep in from the west and, finally, our rivers will again run high and cool. Spring and summer fish, which have been hunkered down in bad humour and uncatchable, wake from their torpor. Flies that have passed largely unseen and ignored are taken with enthusiasm and aggression, and the back end (as September to the end of the season is known) remains Scotland’s most productive fishing period. It is this time when the year’s full quota of fish are in the pools and any day when water levels are up and salmon are sloshing around should be cherished. From a fishing perspective, the autumn period is a movable feast. It commences…

FIRST things first: Victorian Turkish baths aren’t really Turkish. But they are reallyVictorian. In keeping with the entrepreneurial spirit of that period, they owe their development to certain key figures as well as to the spirit of an age that saw radical development in terms of engineering, architecture and medical care. But while once there were more than 700 Turkish baths in the UK, we’re now down to single figures. Those 700 covered the whole country: there were public ones and private ones; they were built in hospitals for pain relief and asylums for treating depression and countering mania; railway companies constructed them for their employees, and ocean liners, such as the RMS Adriatic, had them fitted. The majority were constructed during the reign of Queen Victoria, though their development…

BEFORE the advances in colour printing technology in the 1980s encouraged the expansion of high-quality, colourdrenched magazines and newspaper supplements, gardening columns in January and February mainly consisted of advice to readers about how to construct a garden shed, lay a path or choose a lawnmower. However, the opportunity to produce good-looking features, filled with alluring photographs of what was flowering at the moment, changed all that. Thus was the cult of the snowdrop born. Previously, this dwarf, winter-flowering bulb was mainly of interest to a tiny number of discerning, botanically minded gardeners who gathered in each other’s gardens in February, digging up and distributing anything new that had appeared – the snowdrop being both highly promiscuous and amenable enough to survive being transplanted ‘in the green’. Snowdrops were, and…

IN LATE 2001, Lord Strathcarron, my predecessor on this page, was treated to lunch at The Savoy by the Editor of the time, who had the unenviable task of telling his esteemed contributor and motoring legend that his column was about to be taken over by some upstart tenant farmer. “After 48 years, too,” Lord S told me with a twinkle in his eye when we met some years later, at a BMW launch in Seville. “The blighter could have at least let me get a half-century.” And now the time has come for me to close my tattered notebook for the last time, too, pressing the ‘lock’ button on more than two decades of car tests – nowhere near the illustrious record of the motorcycling peer but still a…

THERE is a fine line between wild and tame with any animal. Hours of patient training can fall apart as instinct takes over at a sudden flap of plastic or bolt of a hare. Yet nowhere is that line more precariously traced than with falconry. No domesticated animal can revert so quickly and successfully to fending for itself in the wild – but then a hawk, however well trained, is never truly domesticated. A horse or hound will visibly enjoy, indeed often reciprocate, an affectionate nuzzle. If you need that sort of validation from your animals, then it may be best to give birds of prey a wide berth. Nevertheless, for thousands of years man and hawk have forged an intimate partnership everywhere from China to the Middle East and…

DID YOU know that the only Olympic sport today where men and women compete together is in equestrianism, and that riding clothes – namely for hunting – are the first and oldest specialised sporting garments? It’s an extraordinary fact that American historian of modern British and European history Dr Erica Munkwitz relays on a Zoom call from New York. She chuckles at my surprise: “It’s something that really throws my sports historian friends but where else do you see specialised sporting clothing being created as early as in horse sports? The answer is nowhere.” This snippet of historical information isn’t just about fashion or “co-ed” sports, as Dr Munkwitz calls mixed competitive activities such as riding and hunting, but relates to the central role that women played in the arena…

A JEWELLERY box is a family history book with added spangles. Much like my own, my mother’s was a mix of regularly worn treasures tangled with broken brooches, snapped chains and pieces that hadn’t seen the light of day for years. A colourful pick-and-mix, decades-old hairwork mourning brooches and all, imbued with family secrets. At that stage if it sparkled, my sister and I coveted it. As we got older and my mother started to distribute the spoils, things got more interesting. Anything of value was carefully considered to ensure fairness. But just because your brooch is set with a few nice rocks, will you actually wear it? One of the pieces I inherited from a grandmother was a ring sprinkled with tiny old-cut diamonds in an orange-gold setting. It…

A motion to ban trail hunting on council-owned land in North Yorkshire, which was branded “anti-rural” and a “colossal waste of time” by a leading animal welfare campaigner, has been referred to committee for discussion. The motion, proposed by Labour councillor Rich Maw, states: “This council resolves to ban trail hunting, exempt hunting, hound exercise and hunt meets outright across all council land where legally possible, including any new tenancies where there are positive covenants attached to the land that currently require the council as owner to allow trail hunting events and formal gatherings.” However, during a full meeting of North Yorkshire Council on 19 July, chair Councillor David Ireton ruled that the motion would be referred to the corporate and partnership overview committee for further advice. Ahead of the…

Studies estimate that 1% to 5% of tick bites can lead to Lyme disease and, on average, between 2.5% and 5.1% of ticks are infected in England and Wales. However, the Government has warned that cases of a new disease – tick-borne encephalitis – have now been confirmed in the UK. The disease has been confirmed in Thetford Forest on the Hampshire/Dorset border, the New Forest and North Yorkshire. Symptoms include a high temperature, headaches and nausea, and could result in seizures or loss of movement in part of the body. Dr Meera Chand, deputy director at the UK Health Security Agency, said: “Our surveillance suggests that the virus is very uncommon in the UK and that the risk to the general population is very low.” However, she advised people…

♦ EMAIL CHARLOTTE.MACKANESS@FUTURENET.COM HOUNDSTOOTH DEERSTALKER TWOOL Made from Yorkshire-woven cloth, this traditional deerstalker has been treated with the latest environmentally friendly finish, ensuring it is showerproof and rain resistant – it’s elementary. Available in four sizes. ♦ Price £75 ♦ Tel 01364 654467 ♦ twool.co.uk WELLS DECK SHOE FAIRFAX & FAVOR A countryman’s favourite – with or without a boat – this comfortable deck shoe has been crafted from suede and features leather cord laces with metal ends and has a suitably nautical white sole. Choose from navy, grey and cognac. ♦ Price £165  ♦ Tel 01760 338199 ♦ fairfaxandfavor.com MOORE LEATHER JACKET DUBARRY Softest walnut-brown leather with a quilted lining and a stand-up collar makes for a smart, eye-catching coat that is also incredibly cosy. It has a two-way…

STAR BUY This is a Grade II*-listed Carolean country house with 59 acres of Hampshire parkland. Set in the heart of the Itchen Valley, the property is enclosed by chalkstreams and offers more than a mile of fishing on the River Itchen. The beat has a good variety of water and includes the Mill Stream with its single- and double-bank fishing. Shawford Park dates from 1685, with alterations and additions between 1912 and 1920. The house is built of stone elevations under a tiled roof, with sash and casement windows. There are 10 bedrooms and seven reception rooms, the latter featuring wood panelling, carved open fireplaces and elaborate architectural detailing. The house also has a self-contained annexe and the land includes ornamental gardens, a lake and a swimming pool. Agent:…

MY FATHER remembers wild grey partridges regularly bursting from cover and spooking his horse as he hacked home from days with the Hampshire hunt in the early 1960s. I’m sure many Field readers will, like him, recall the thrill of disturbing this beautiful native gamebird while out riding or walking-up a hedgerow. Go back further to the establishment of the GWCT Partridge Count Scheme (PCS), celebrating its 90th birthday this year, and the experience would have been even more universal, with annual reports being published on prospects for the wild partridge season in every county in Britain. Just as the song of the curlew is associated with the uplands, the partridge’s distinctive rasping call was part of the soundtrack of British farmland. Back then, as well as being the quarry…

IN A countryside underpressure from a sharp focus on farming, its relationship with the environment and biodiversity, and changing attitudes towards the way we use animals, the ability for us to adapt has never been so important if we are to preserve the country pursuits that so many of us hold dear. Henry and Louisa Cheape hail from beautiful Strathtyrum, in St Andrews, Fife. Both are ‘roll up your sleeves and get your hands dirty’ types who feel passionately not just about farming, rural businesses and local community but regeneration and conservation, too. Louisa also has a deep love of hounds. So passionate is she about them that, after the disbanding of the Fife Foxhounds, with Henry’s support she decided to set up her own pack of bloodhounds. “For many…

THIS month we look at a Grade 3 30in Miroku MK38 Sporter. Featuring Teague multichokes and 3in chambers proofed for steel, this competition gun has a single selective, inertia-operated trigger and a 10mm ventilated sighting rib. The comparatively reasonable bottom line is £2,880. Miroku has always offered value for money and enjoys a strong following among experienced shots. Years of reliable service have given it a reputation that belies its price point. Initial impressions are of a solidly made and tastefully decorated gun. Mechanically it is a typical Miroku, but this model is especially well presented. While the MK38 is designated a Sporter, the specification with regard to stock shapes, barrel length and choking would suit clays, pigeons, driven game or marsh. I would certainly not see this as a…

FOR MANY of those who have grown up in or near Rutland, Barnsdale Lodge will long have been a fixture. In my memory it played host to a hunt bash where I was taken with someone particularly unsuitable, but thankfully those murky days (well, they were also quite fun) are long past. The lodge too has recently thrown off its past. Hector Ross, chief executive of The Signet Collection, added this Rutland venue to his growing hotel portfolio earlier in 2023, joining The Mitre near Hampton Court and The Retreat near Newbury. Rebranded as The Barnsdale, the hotel has completed the first stage of refurbishment: 45 individually designed bedrooms, each named after a fish or bird, with interiors (orchestrated by Ross’ wife Samantha) that boast an easy elegance and have…

THERE are two exciting events happening in our household, according to our black labrador. First, it is clear from the extra training sessions and the various telltale pieces of kit coming out of the cupboard that her picking-up season is about to begin. Secondly, any plums in our orchard that we didn’t manage to pick are now dropping to the ground, which means she can have a cheeky snack every time the back door is opened. I, too, am rather excited. Partly for the same reasons (I prefer my plums plucked straight from the tree) but mostly because I particularly love cooking at this time of year. Over these few weeks there is such a variety of produce to choose from, as the last of the summer’s sweet, colourful ingredients…

BASC RECEPTION SUCCESS The BASC hospitality area was bursting at the seams for its Women in Shooting reception at The Game Fair. More than 100 representatives from all fieldsports and other women’s shooting groups enjoyed a delicious selection of game canapés and pink fizz while socialising and networking. “I’m delighted that this second Women’s reception has been so successful. We need to support each other, every initiative and every event we can to make sure we’re all doing our bit to encourage new women into the shooting world,” said Claire Sadler, BASC’s vice chair, who hosted the event. WWWF’S SCOTTISH DEBUT Scone Palace played host to the Women Who Work In Fieldsports for its first event north of the Border. Guests present at the Scottish Game Fair and those joining…

FOR MANY, the approach of a new shooting season is often accompanied by the bashful admittance that the previous one’s wayward shots were never worked on. For others, a desire to try shooting for the first time can be tempered by nerves about where and how to start. This is where first-rate tuition comes in. When looking for a coach, don’t be afraid to try a few until you are happy. What works brilliantly for one person may not for another. It’s a two-way relationship. You need to be able to understand one another in order to get the most out of your sessions. Find someone who you communicate well with and who will tell you what you need – not want – to hear. They should invite questions…