Innholdsfortegnelse for Apr-2018 i The Field

CLASSIC CARS TAKE TO THE ROADS Classic car owners are encouraged to take their cars out on 22 April for Drive It Day, organised by the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs. The Bicester-based charity StarterMotor is organising a route for students on the historical vehicle restoration course at two local colleges. The charity was set up to give apprentices access to classic vehicles. “We’re trying to stimulate the younger generation,” said David Cox, the charity’s manager. YOUNG GARDENERS COMPETITION This year’s Young Gardeners of the Year competition is being held at the first Ascot Spring Garden Show on 13-15 April. Students from six horticultural colleges will be creating show gardens on the garden terrace of Ascot’s grandstand. www.ascot.co.uk/spring-garden-show DINOSAUR GUN The Beesley Dinosaur gun, a presentation sidelock self-opener featuring…

RETIREmENT housing developer Churchill runs an awards scheme that recognises the ongoing achievements of the over-65s across all walks of life. Your correspondent, representing the youth vote, of course, was a judge at the Churchill Awards in February, which saw, among others, wins for Sir David Jason (stage and screen), Baroness Joan Bakewell (politics) and Sir James Dyson (business). Unfortunately, rock god David Gilmour of Pink Floyd, winner of the popular music category, could not make the ceremony to cries of “wish you were here” but I am seeing him on the snug side of The Half moon near Petersfield. Now these grandees of their art are not all about to move into a Churchill Retirement Living apartment but there is a big drive for the building of more homes…

“Not only was there a generous haul of tomatoes in the bag but a collection of lesbian porn” I’m worried about my begonias. Historically, they’ve been my greatest asset so I’m obsessive about their upkeep. However, I’m afraid, this year, they’re going south. Last winter, I dug up my bulbs, dried and wrapped them in tissue paper, bedded them in a Fortnum’s wicker basket and then, in April, replanted them so, come summer, they were glorious. This year, carelessly, I left them out (to be fair, they’re easily forgotten given that the one window that looks out to my roof garden is above the loo and it’s only men in the flat having a wee that see out there in winter). I’m not sure whether begonia care is something a…

Wearing the right watch is like a secret handshake. A flash of metal and leather on wrist tells the world everything it needs to know about you by the time your cuff falls and places you firmly in team Rolex, Patek or Omega. The same goes for unzipping a prickly tweed slip and lovingly unearthing the precious metal within. The first telling glimpse of the Purdey, Holland & Holland or Boss as it is extracted provides your fellow guns with, at the very least, a fairly good idea of whether or not they’ll be seeking you out for a chat over the 11 o’clock bullshots. Fine, handmade guns, much like vintage wristwatches, are so much more than just the sum of their parts. They are symbols of status, objects of…

SERVES 4 INGREDIENTS 1 piece of flare fat Sea salt flakes, for the scratchings The pork fat used for lard comes from two places: the back, where the fat is relatively hard, and the belly, which has a lining of soft fat. The latter, known as flare fat, is the easiest to render at home. It comes away from the animal in one piece and a butcher, given a decent amount of notice, will put it aside and sell it to you for a good price. Preheat the oven to 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4. Using a small, sharp knife, chop the fat into small pieces, about 1cm-2.5cm square. Alternatively, ask a butcher to put it through a mincer for you – but you won’t get scratchings at the end. Spread out…

WALLED GARDENS There is little more delightful to the English pastoral soul than a properly walled garden, encapsulating history and evoking nostalgia. They have sheltered soft fruits, propagated exotics and produced food for the table from medieval times to today. I used to love pottering and poking about in the old heated glasshouses, long defunct, that sat against our garden wall, day dreaming about the busy industry that once kept those old houses of England functioning. Many walled gardens were lost or became redundant during the 20th century as their status declined, however, there has been a significant revival in their fortunes. Jules Hudson celebrates these unique and enchanting spaces in his new book, which is divided into two parts. The first dissects the anatomy of a walled garden, the…

30 March-2 April Easter Egg Hunt Waddesdon Manor, Aylesbury, Bucks. Tel01296 820414;www.waddesdon.org.uk For details of all NT egg hunts, go to: www.cadbury.co.uk/easter – 1-2 Kelmarsh Country Show Kelmarsh Hall, Kelmarsh, Northamptonshire. www.kelmarshcountryshow.co.uk – 2 North Shropshire Hunt Point-to-Point Eyton-on-Severn, Shropshire. First race 2pm. Tel07890 450313;www.eyton-races.com – 8 Rare Plant Fair The Old Rectory, Quenington, Gloucestershire. Tel0845 4681368;www.rareplantfair.co.uk – 14 Bedale Point-to-Point Hornby Castle, North Yorkshire. bedalepointtopoint.co.uk – 14 The Grand National Aintree Racecourse, Liverpool. Tel0344 579 3001; www.randoxhealthgrandnational.co.uk – 14-15 The Great Shires Game Fair Three Counties Showground, Malvern, Worcs. Tel01392 421 500; greatshiresgamefair.co.uk – 17-22 Spring Decorative Antiques & Textiles Fair Battersea Park, London. More than 150 exhibitors showing ancient to contemporary works. Tel020 7616 9327;www.decorativefair.com – 18- 22 July Cedric Morris Exhibition Garden Museum, Lambeth Palace Road, London.…

CHURCH VIEW BARN GREAT ASBY, CUMBRIA There is full planning permission to convert these two linked barns, currently without roofs, into one three- or four-bedroom detached house. The stone barns are set back along a short driveway with a garden behind. The property is in the Westmorland Dales, part of the recently extended Yorkshire Dales National Park. Great Asby is five miles south of Appleby and seven miles north of Kirkby Stephen. The rear building was a threshing barn, dating back to the 18th century, while the front building, originally a byre and granary, dates from the 19th century. Agent: PFK Tel: 01768 352345 Guide price: £95,000…

Which countries produce the most matched pairs? Currently, both Italy and Spain could be considered hot-barrelled contenders but, historically, it has been England, or, perhaps more accurately, Great Britain that has walked off with the gold. “A change happened in England about the 1860s. Previously, gentlemen had walked through woods and shot pheasants as they flew away. Now it was the estate workers who did the walking, driving the pheasants towards the gentlemen.” So said Jonathan Ruffer at the beginning of his scrupulously researched book The Big Shots: Edwardian Shooting Parties. The development of driven shooting had far-reaching consequences, not least for the British gun trade. Game-shooting increasingly became fun and sports flocked to the partridge stubbles and grouse moors to take their share. The new arrangement, with its increased…

In spaniel field trials the ground is divided into two beats, each worked by one spaniel and handler, with three or four walking guns and two judges. The spaniel must hunt the beat thoroughly, quickly and effectively, without missing any game or game-holding cover – missing game is an eliminating fault. When flushing or bolting game the spaniel must “drop” immediately into a sit and remain sitting steadily until further command – chasing or catching unshot game, or being unsteady, are eliminating faults. When game is shot anywhere in the line, the spaniel must drop and remain steady – running in to the fall of the game is an eliminating fault. On command the spaniel must find fallen, wounded or running game whether marked in sight or “blind” without needing…

Under £1,000 Classic pieces from slightly lesser known makes. Longines’ pieces from the 1960s are still relatively underrated, despite having been a respected manufacturer since 1832. Its most famous model is the Aviator, which is an understated and stylish piece. £1,000-£3,000 Sports and racing chronographs in good-quality stainless steel. Omega Speedmasters are among the best of these and as a recognisable name with links to the Apollo 11 Mission, you get a lot of history and watch for your money. £3,000-£7,000 A good Heuer Chronograph, perhaps with a racing configuration such as the Camaro. Great looking and reliable sporty watches. £7,000-£10,000 It has to be a Rolex Submariner here, preferably a “Single Red” version, which is one of the rarest and thus one of the most…

François-Nicolas Martinet was asked to produce coloured illustrations of the collection of stuffed birds in the Jardin du Roi, for the Comte de Buffon’s Histoire Naturelle. Having acquired this experience, Martinet then began work on his histoire, showing birds in livelier poses and in their natural environments. Edited extract from Animal: A Beastly Compendium by Rémi Mathis and Valérie Sueur-Hermel. Published by Bloomsbury Visual Arts. RRP £30. Treasures from the prints and photographs department at the Bibliotheque Nationale de France…

I’M just back from Washington State and, goodness me, I drank well, really well. Indeed, I can’t remember when I last drank such consistently fine wine for so sustained a period in a wine region so new to me. The wines in America’s Pacific Northwest are stunning. Washington’s beer is pretty good and I had some fine whiskey, too, from Westland Distillery in Seattle. Rather too much, if I’m honest. Seattle’s a rather fun town and it’s easy to get led astray. Oh, and the coffee. The coffee’s bloody good, too. Of course, the whole of North America’s western seaboard makes superb wines, from Canada’s British Columbia down through Washington, Oregon and then California, the powerhouse of American wine and home to more than 4,000 wineries, which between them produce…

MOST VIEWED A year of Sporting Dianas One year ago, we launched our Sporting Dianas column with Field top shot Serena Williams. We have since featured inspiring women who are competing on the world stage, pursuing sporting careers, launching events, agencies, clubs and clothing lines. They safeguard their sports by championing other women and encouraging them to train gundogs, hunt sidesaddle or simply pick up a rod, rifle or gun. Here’s to many more (see page 117). #THEFIELDMAGAZINE From field to freezer to fork Readers are getting frozen birds to the table, taking inspiration from the February issue. The Deputy Editor’s husband made an impressive game terrine, one family cooked five-spice venison with “all ingredients sourced from local farmers” and another shared this picture of our “delicious” pheasant samosas. We…

MORE TO SHOOTING… I wholeheartedly agree with Jonathan Young’s Comment (There’s more to shooting than shooting, February issue). Anyone who has read the shooting press recently will have seen there is a groundswell of perception and opinion on the matter of huge bags and extreme-range birds. However, I’m afraid all the shooting magazines are guilty of printing glossy write-ups of days at well-known shoots that most of us mere mortals will never be able to visit, consisting of the same generic structure, high birds, fancy days and large numbers, both in terms of game and, presumably, cost. It is only a matter of time until game-shooting implodes on itself, unable to survive because of a minority action. Most of us run or partake in smaller shoots, where anything from five…

“There was a blur of white as she shot over to each of the struggling greylags in turn” THROUGHOUT the 26 years I’ve edited The Field I’ve witnessed some exceptional dog work. The superlative coursing inabilities of Viking the yellow lab remain memorable, as does the consistent scattering of game 300 yards in front of the guns by a pair of German shorthaired pointers. Unfortunately, I’ve not kept a record of the occasions I’ve witnessed an errant hound bolting for the horizon towing its corkscrew tether but they must run to treble figures. Dreadful gundog behaviour isn’t to be condemned outright, however. The owners’ bellowed oaths add Tabasco to a too-formal day and it’s surprising how often the real shockers – yes, you Viking – find game that’s been missed…

If no man is a hero to his valet, he can at least take some consolation in a terrier. Loyal, loving, often of unknown pedigree, bounding with character and sporting instinct, they have, for more than a century, also been the preferred canine companion of the great houses and “Top Dogs” of Britain. The Duchess of Cornwall has shown great style by adopting two terriers, Beth and Bluebell, from Battersea Dogs & Cats Home. At Edinburgh University, I had a rescue terrier called Thatcher that became a favourite in the various bars and inexpensive restaurants to which he was always admitted. Before me, a fellow student, Lord Michael Cecil of Hatfield House, paved the way with Johnson (named after the fighter ace), which went everywhere with him, although a line…

 The great bustard is a magnificent bird. Males stand over waist high, weigh in at about 40lb, and, when mating, lek like blackcock, puffing out their buff, white and black chests and dancing. They are entwined in British myth and legend. A great bustard appears in the county flag of Wiltshire. They are also a one-shot holiday meal, which is a big reason why the great bustard became extinct in Britain around the time of the development of efficient sporting guns in the middle of the 19th century. “The Victorians viewed the taxidermy cabinet as a good means of conservation” But now great bustards are coming back. The Great Bustard Group has created a population of more than 70 birds, living on Salisbury Plain, where they formerly thrived. They are…

NEW HOME FOR COUNTRY KIT Q As a shooting and fishing family we have amassed a good deal of fishing and shooting clothing and footwear over the years. As fashions change and people grow (mainly me), we have developed a large stock of surplus clothing. Is there a charity shop or similar in the UK that we could gift it to? PB, Jersey A Fishing for Schools is a charity that help pupils re-engage with learning, offering new qualifications and skills. Charles Jardine and the Countryside Alliance Foundation offer short courses for children aged 10-16 and say it would be incredibly helpful to have any country clothing for fishing or shooting. School groups rarely have the appropriate apparel for the intended tasks and as a charity Fishing for Schools has…

IN an earlier article for this magazine, I described an all-metal sporting gun made in Scotland. However, they were made elsewhere, too, particularly in Germany and Italy during the 17th century. The example shown here is Italian and dates from about 1680. Although plain, all-metal pistols were known in Europe in the late 16th century, it was during the next century that they reached their most refined form. Possibly the fashion was prompted by the all-metal guns of Scottish mercenary officers in the Thirty Years War (1618-1648), known by the French as éccossais pistols; either way, all-metal arms were clearly being made in Europe by the middle of the 17th century. Once they had adopted the practice, continental makers such as the Cloeter family, especially Jan Cloeter (circa1655-1680) of Grevenbroich,…

2015 CHATEAU STE MICHELLE COLUMBIA VALLEY RIESLING WASHINGTON STATE (£11.75, Great Western Wine) Deliciously apple-fresh, off-dry, mineral Riesling. 2015 EDNA VALLEY CHARDONNAY, CALIFORNIA (£13 if you mix six, Majestic) Ridiculously moreish Chard, full of creamy tropical fruit. 2015 THE SOCIETY’S EXHIBITION ZINFANDEL CALIFORNIA (£16, Wine Society) A stunningly fine Napa Valley Zin with impeccable pedigree. 2012 FIRESTEED PINOT NOIR, OREGON (£17, Wine Direct) Sophisticated, complex and gloriously approachable. 2011 DOMAINE CARNEROS BRUT, CALIFORNIA (£21, Roberson Wine) First-rate champagne-method fizz part-owned by Taittinger. 2014 BARBOURSVILLE CABERNET FRANC RESERVE VIRGINIA (£25, Oxford Wine Company) Cab Franc with a dash of backbone-giving Petit Verdot and utterly scrumptious.…