Innholdsfortegnelse for Sep-2018 i The Field

SINCE Peter Wilson’s tremendous success at the London 2012 Olympics, where he won gold in the Men’s Double Trap, many other British shooters have achieved great things. Ed Ling (Men’s Trap) and Steven Scott (Men’s Double Trap), who both won bronze medals at the Rio de Janeiro 2016 Olympics, are obvious examples. It is also great to report that success is not limited to the shotgun disciplines, with talented athletes in rifle, pistol and in the new, although not Olympic, discipline of target sprint also winning. For British Shooting, finding another Peter Wilson is about building and sustaining an effective performance pathway on which talented athletes can learn and develop. Through developing the Talent Pathway, Peter’s journey to Olympic Gold was studied in detail by British Shooting’s performance director as…

Until 16 Dutch Masterpieces from National Trust Houses The Holburne Museum, Bath. Tel01225 388569;www.holburne.org – Until 23 The Paston Treasure: Riches and Rarities of the Known World Norwich Castle Museum and Art Gallery. Tel01603 493625; museums.norfolk.gov.uk – 31 August-2 Chatsworth Country Fair Bakewell, Derbyshire. www.chatsworth.org/events – 1-23 Great North Art Show Ripon Cathedral. Free entry, all pictures for sale. www.greatnorthartshow.co.uk – 6-9 & 13-16 Heritage Open Days Hundreds of events around the UK; this year’s theme is “Extraordinary Women”. Tel020 7824 7180; heritageopendays.org.uk – 8 Ride+Stride for Churches More than 8,000 churches open UK-wide. Tel020 7222 0605;www.rideandstrideuk.org – 8-9 Sandringham Game & Country Fair Sandringham Estate, Norfolk. Tel01283 820660; www.livingheritagecountryshows.com – 9 Hampshire Country Sports Day Tichborne Park, near Alresford. www.hampshirecountrysportsday.co.uk – 9 Frampton Country Fair Frampton on Severn, near…

AUCHINELLAN ESTATE FORD, LOCHGILPHEAD, ARGYLL AND BUTE A residential and agricultural estate overlooking Loch Ederline. The main house has seven bedrooms and there is also a farmhouse, two holiday cottages and a bungalow. The amenity woodland provides sporting potential and the estate runs to 763 acres in total. Agent: GalbraithTel: 01786 434600Offers over £1.485 million URRARD ESTATE PITLOCHRY, PERTHSHIRE This is an all-round Highland sporting estate. Urrard sits on the east bank of the River Garry, extending east to the summit of Ben Vrackie. The sport includes an outstanding pheasant and partridge shoot, grouse, salmon fishing and red deer stalking. In total, 2,390 acres. Agent: Strutt & ParkerTel: 0131 226 2500Offers over £5 million COUL ESTATE AUCHTERARDER, PERTHSHIRE The centrepiece here is the C-Listed Georgian laird’s house with six bedrooms.…

TRUMPETTS FARM HERSTMONCEUX, EAST SUSSEX A Grade-II listed farmhouse in gardens and grounds of just under 2½ acres. It has five bedrooms, with a sixth bedroom, playroom or office on the second floor. The farmhouse has been refurbished but retains many original features, such as exposed timbers. Agent: Batcheller MonkhouseTel: 01424 775577Guide price: £1.5 million CHURCH FARMHOUSE LYMINSTER, WEST SUSSEX An early 18th-century, Grade II-listed, Georgian farmhouse overlooking open farmland. It has six bedrooms and there’s a barn with development potential. The grounds include lawns, mature trees, a kitchen garden and a tennis court, running to just under two acres. Agent: SavillsTel: 01798 345980Guide price: £1.75 million BUCKLAND HILL FARM WADHURST, EAST SUSSEX The five-bedroom farmhouse dates back to the 16th century and is Grade II-listed. There is also a…

Pulse the rabbit meat in a food processor until it is minced enough to just hold together (don’t overdo it or the kebabs will be dry). Using your hands, mix the minced meat with the sausage meat and all other ingredients, seasoning well with the salt and pepper as you go. Form the kebab mix into sausage shapes around metal skewers. Place on a hot barbecue for just a couple of minutes each side, until well browned on the outside but juicy and aromatic in the middle. Fabulous served with a simple salad of tomato, onion and the same herbs as included, with a spoon of natural yoghurt on the side. SERVES 4 2 large rabbits, meat removed from the bones 400g plain sausage meat 1 tbsp cumin seeds 1…

The original Mauser bolt gun – the Model 1871 and the various models of the 1880s and ’90s, culminating in the stronger and improved Model 1898 – was itself an evolution of the Dreyse needle-fire, inspired by the mechanism of a door bolt. This technology, of extraordinary significance in its day, allowed the Prussian Army to dominate much of Europe for decades. It stimulated us to produce the Lee-Metford and Lee-Enfields, and the Norwegians to reply with the Krag–Jørgensen, as adopted by the United States (which soon developed the Springfield M1903 – in effect, a copy of the Mauser ’98, with two forward locking lugs). The production of millions of military Mausers from the late 19th century and during both world wars led to a ready source of actions that…

The West Norfolk recommends: NORTH ELMHAM “We have had some very good runs here over the years, over the best country we have, with lots of ditches and uprights.” Nick Saffell MFH HOLME HALE “An unspoilt part of Norfolk, not fashionable but challenging and fun to cross. Big ditches, unkempt hedges and an old railway line add to the day.” Andrew Kendall MFH CASTLEACRE OR WESTACRE “These are in what we call ‘High Norfolk’, where one gets panoramic views of the surrounding countryside and can catch that timeless sense of tranquillity and continuity of man’s relationship with nature.” Tania Bullard MFH BAWDESWELL “it has a very welcome and healthy balance of support for all country sports throughout the seasons.” Toby Coles, former MFH GATELEY (OPENING MEET) “A beautiful part of…

THERE’S NO NEED TO USE EXPENSIVE GIN OR VODKA – the aim of compounding (the technical name for making sloe gin, and so on) is to extract the fruit flavours and for the finished drink to taste of the fruit as well as being alcoholic. An expensive gin with botanicals will be wasted in a compounded gin. Use a supermarket own-brand. SUGAR – be careful about following old recipes. Many you find on the internet revolve around a version that is measured in simple thirds: one pint of gin; one pound of sugar; one pound of fruit (sloes or damsons, and so on). This will result in an overly sweet and treacly sloe gin. When we make our large batches of fruit gins we add sugar only after the fruit…

The global market for sparkling wine is more than 2.7bn bottles. Of these, around 1.7bn are bottled under pressure from large, sealed tanks, such as prosecco, which now accounts for around 500m bottles annually. A further 1bn are “bottle-fermented” (otherwise known as the “traditional method”, which is the technique required by law in champagne, cava and for English sparkling wine). Of that 1bn, around 330m are champagne and around 250m are cava. Meanwhile, in 2017, the UK produced about 4m bottles of English sparkling wine and 1.9m bottles of still wine. The output of English sparkling wine is predicted to reach 8m-10m bottles by 2028, more than one third the market for Champagne in the UK today, which totaled 27.7m in 2017. Estimates suggest almost 3m vines have been planted…

Engraved caricatures played a major role in exhibiting the highly elaborate costumes worn by the “gilded youth” during the Directoire period. This 1797 image presents a goose clad in the costume of an “Incroyable”, who glares at the world with the haughty and aloof air of a dandy; he is ready to use his knobbled cane to fight off revolutionaries and Jacobins. 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…

THERE have been many different crossbows designed for a vast range of purposes, including war, large game hunting, target shooting or, in the case of this sumptuous example owned by the Royal Armouries, small bird shooting. It is known as a pellet or bullet crossbow. This crossbow is extremely delicate in form with the forepart of steel chiselled with foliate motifs, monsters, grotesque masks and birds all against a gilt background. The bow or prod is also engraved in a similar fashion, the style being reminiscent of the baroque, especially French baroque. Between the usual foresight pillars is a detachable slide for use when shooting bolts as an alternative to pellets or bullets. The upper face is inscribed “Trincks a Stasburg”. Christian Trincks was born at Edern, near Dresden, the…

THE MAN BEHIND THE MIKE There are a few people so closely associated with a sport that they become its sound. Ringing in the ears of many an aspiring Pony Clubber were the tones of Mike Tucker. He was the vocal backdrop to our pony-mad lives, the voice of equestrianism as a BBC commentator for 25 years. Whether it was the Olympic Games or any other equestrian event, Tucker shared his humour, knowledge and charm with those watching and listening. Jane Wallace’s book began as a collaboration but she was forced to finish without its main character after his untimely death. But Wallace has succeeded in creating both a biography and a tribute to Tucker, marshalling both Mike’s words and those of his friends and colleagues. The later chapters brim…

“As a child, eventually I did have a real pony but until then I made all my ponies out of Plasticine” EQUESTRIAN sculptor Juliet Cursham would have quite liked to go to art college. Instead, she travelled the world, from Australia to Nepal, Hong Kong and Brunei, mingling with maharajas and playing polo on elephants – all of which has turned out to be exactly the right training to develop her skills as one of our most popular sculptors, working in bronze, silver and even gold. Cursham cheerfully admits she was not well suited to the more conventional career her parents had planned out for her. “It was decided I would be ‘finished’ with a secretarial and cookery course. But I turned out to be the world’s worst secretary and…

SHOOTS PROMOTE GAME Bereleigh, Wemmergill, Drumlanrig, Castle Hill and Arden are among the 100 shoots that have joined the British Game Alliance, set up in May to promote the consumption of game. Subscriptions range from £100 to £1,000, and the money will be used to employ a PR consultancy to promote game to supermarkets and open new markets. SANDRINGHAM WINS PARTRIDGE AWARD The Sandringham estate in Norfolk is the winner of the 2018 Mills & Reeve Grey Partridge Award. Sir Marcus O’Lone, HM The Queen’s agent, and David Clarke, the estate’s former headkeeper, received the award from the law firm. Both retired this summer after 20 and 17 years respectively. During their tenure, grey partridge numbers were restored by 2012 to the level they were at in the 1950s. VINTAGE…

MOST VIEWED An inspirational issue To mark our 165th anniversary the June issue celebrated the Golden Era. It flew off the shelves and Fielders have continued to enjoy the stories about top shots and sporting heroes alongside archive pictures online. Now this history is inspiring the next generation. Bill Harriman shared the story of Annie Oakley in our Sporting Dianascolumn. “I must show this to my daughter, who feels enjoying shooting makes her weird amongst her peers,” said one Fielder. #THEFIELDMAGAZINE Passage to India In the August issue, we offered an insight into the golden era of hunting in India, including how British foxhounds were used to strengthen Ooty bloodlines. “An excellent article remembering Hurworth Shepherd ’01 and his passage to India,” one Fielder tweeted. “I was the kennelman/terrierman at…

WHOLE BIRD POLICY We have all read in the shooting press that our fraternity is under increasing pressure to ensure that gamebirds are not shot in vain. Whilst the skill and accuracy of a good shot is to be applauded, the birds that are shot must then be respected and put to good use. As a veterinary surgeon, I graduated taking an oath to preserve and protect animal welfare. My husband is a superb shot and was instrumental in introducing me to shooting and, thus, conservation and good shooting ethics. My husband’s family have operated and run a small game shoot in Leicestershire for nearly 40 years. It requires a small team of experienced guns and a dedicated team of beaters to maintain the ground, rear the birds and make…

TO succeed in modern politics it’s vital to support a football team. The Leader of the Opposition went as far as signing a parliamentary motion stating that “Arsenal is the best club football team in the world at the moment.” David Cameron has also declared his allegiance to the “beautiful game” but couldn’t quite remember back in 2015 whether he supported Aston Villa or West Ham. Blushes followed. I don’t care whom our MPs espouse, though it would be splendid to hear that Jacob Rees-Mogg whirrs his rattle for Hamilton Academical. I’ve never attended the footy having always had better things to do on a Saturday. Yet I was beguiled by the drama of the World Cup. Our chaps seemed decent sorts playing a clean game against those seemingly keener…

IF SHOOTING RABBITS YOURSELF, A SUCCESSFUL DAY CAN MEAN QUITE A GLUT. THIS ITALIAN METHOD OF PRESERVING OFFERS COUNTLESS OPTIONS. TRY IT AS THE BASE FOR A PASTA SAUCE, ON HOT TOAST WITH SEA SALT, PEPPER AND A SQUEEZE OF LEMON OR IN A SALAD, AS BELOW. Place all the ingredients into a saucepan and pour over the water until the meat is covered (you may need a little more or less depending on the width of your pan). Bring to the boil, then leave on a low heat to simmer for 1½ hours, until the meat is tender. Allow to cool in the cooking liquor. Remove the joints from the liquid. Shred the meat off the bones, keeping the pieces as big as possible, then place in a large…

JONATHAN YOUNG, EDITOR, THE FIELD HOMEMADE: JY’s Ginger Thing; take one bottle of French brandy, add jar of stem ginger and the syrup. Leave for 10 days. Strain through muslin. OFF THE SHELF: Bols Apricot Brandy (4) ALEXANDRA HENTON, DEPUTY EDITOR, THE FIELD HOMEMADE: I’m not sure I can claim bullshot, as pouring vodka into tinned consommé seems a bit of a cheat, although it is delicious. Other than that my (or largely my mother’s) hedgerow gin is a complete delight. Not as one dimensional as pure sloe gin, we use sloes, elderberries, brambles, haws and anything else the home hedgerows can provide, and steep in gin. The exact combination remains a closely guarded secret. OFF THE SHELF: Grant’s Morella Cherry Brandy Liqueur (1). A friend…

DRAWS NEAR Q I am looking for a type of antique filing cabinet for a new office-cum-gun room. Not exactly sporting related, I know, though I am sure I will keep a few country-sports-related items in it. I am a modern furniture man by nature but feel that perhaps now is the time to buy something that is in keeping with other items in the room. Do you have any suggestions? RWR, County Durham A An ideal cabinet would be a Wellington Chest, traditionally in dark wood and named after the Duke of Wellington’s victory in 1815. They are tall and narrow with drawers. Some have only seven drawers, one for every day of the week, but there is a good selection of Wellington chests with more drawers. Ideally, the…

Curlew conservationist Mary Colwell is the first winner of the NGO Educational Trust’s Bellamy Award to come from outside the shooting world. Bristol-based Colwell is also the first individual woman to have won the award. The official estimate for breeding curlew in the UK is 68,000 pairs, but Colwell thinks the number could be 50% lower. The situation in Ireland and Wales is even worse, with numbers down 97% and 80% respectively. “Curlew are declining because nesting and feeding sites have changed, but also because predation rates are so high,” she said. “At some sites 100% of eggs and/or chicks are predated. This is an uncomfortable truth for the many organisations that are reluctant to openly discuss the need to reduce predator numbers in the breeding season. Curlew will only…

Sculptor Amy Goodman unveils her biggest commission yet this month: three life-size horses at Arborfield Green garden village in Berkshire. The horses – a gunner, a mare and a yearling – depict the past, present and future of equestrianism in the area. Developer Crest Nicholson commissioned the work to acknowledge the history of the site, an equine hospital and veterinary centre for the Remount Depot in 1904. The horses have been moulded and cast in rust iron resin, the colours of which will become richer as it oxidises over time. “It’s very evocative of the mud of the trenches,” said the Berkshire-born artist. Goodman won the commission last summer and said she “had a very clear vision” of the sculptures. A stocky Cleveland Bay gunner is seen rearing against the…

THIS must be a tough time to be a forecaster, commentator or compiler of indices. In an uncertain world, where would means wouldn’t and Brexit doesn’t mean Brexit, analysing any market or asset class comes with such a large asterisk it’s now called an Obelix. Prime Minister Theresa May is doing a reasonable impression of the big Gaul with the Brexit monolith on her back, tottering from side to side, not sure whether or where to put it down. And then there’s Donald Trump, the leader of the free world making Mrs Malaprop sound like a professor of English Literature. The President was truly born with a silver spoonerism in his mouth. I met Trump once manyyears ago. It was in London for a property story and, keen to find…

WRYTREE FARMYARD GREENHEAD, NORTHUMBERLAND A collection of agricultural dairy buildings and land set around a farm courtyard in south-west Northumberland about 1½ miles from the village of Greenhead. It is a residential development opportunity subject to the necessary planning consents. Some of the buildings are ripe for conversion. There is good access to the site with mains electricity and a private water supply to the yard. Under permitted development rights it may be possible to build five residential dwellings, with bed and breakfast accommodation another option. It is 40 miles from Newcastle. Agent: Finest PropertiesTel: 01434 622234Guide price: £495,000…

I HAVE never shaken off the September feeling of going “back to school”. Perhaps it’s got something to do with hunting – a new season kicks in and as horses waddle in from their summer holiday, you realise from your perilously-stretched-about-the-bum breeches that your own lazy summer might mean a new school uniform before term starts. This September is less like going back to school as starting a new one for me. In a vaguely foreign country; with pidgin tongue. You may remember my entrance exam to The Field was an affinity with wellies, an ability to discern a horse’s head from its backside. There was no paper on guns. I couldn’t have envisaged then that, two years hence, I’d be working with a shoot. And not just any shoot…

London’s famous makers have long made best-quality, bolt-action rifles. Recently, however, both Rigby (in association with Mauser) and Purdey have innovated. Holland & Holland continues to manufacture first-class, bolt-action magazine rifles, too. Here, the focus is on the guns still being built in London on the generic Mauser ’98 style, controlled-feed action, long the favourite of the London trade (and of most professional hunters to this day). In the opinion of many with extensive experience, it remains the best action for a sporting rifle because of its absolute reliability in extremis. THE NEW PURDEY Launched last year, the new Purdey rifle was sure to arouse a lot of interest. The famous company is best known for its premium-quality shotguns but it has long made fine rifles, too (though not in…

I’M acutely aware that I drink far, far too much. I try and convince myself it’s simply because of my job that I’m so ready to prise open a bottle of this or that at almost any time of day or night. The hideous truth is that I’m a lush, plain and simple, and get away without being vilified too much by Mrs Ray thanks to the fact that I’m paid to write about booze in its many delightful forms. It’s my job. Oh, and thanks to the fact that she’s a lush, too. Of course, I’m not helped by the fact that almost all our friends are lushes as well. Where they lead – and they know perfectly well who I’m talking about – I follow meekly. I’m just…

FIELD trials have long been the pinnacle of the competitive gundog world but their current popularity – they have never been more popular than they are now – may well be their undoing. According to the Kennel Club’s J Regs, the rules that govern trialling in the UK, “A Field Trial should be run as nearly as possible to an ordinary day’s shooting”, but such an ideal is not something that is easy to achieve when you have a field of 24 retrievers and their handlers, all anxious to prove their ability. Historically, trials were held at the invitation of the landowner, invariably someone who had a passion for both dogs and shooting. In contrast, today, most trials have to be paid for – and with pheasants or partridges costing…