Once, the flow of buyers out of London was driven by the promise of educating children at a country prep school. Is this changing? Arabella Youens investigates.
On the right track: although their child’s school will be the priority for many parents moving out of London, most will still want to be within 15 minutes of a train station with good links to the city.
The once-solid market for parents wishing to move out of London to educate their children in the green and open spaces of a country prep school appears to be splintering. Although estate agents report that there is a continual flow of buyers registering their interest for houses within an easy distance of prep schools that lie within a comfortable commute of London—such as Cheam near Thatcham, Elstree near Woolhampton and Highfield near Haslemere—the picture of demand is more complicated than it once was.
Helicopter parenting
James Mackenzie, who heads up the country-house department of Strutt & Parker (020–7318 5190), says that the approach of parenting these days when it comes to prep-school-aged children is a far cry from when he waved goodbye to his own parents at the departure gate, at the age of six, with his trunk and the ‘UM’ (Unaccompanied Minor) label hanging off his new uniform.
‘Speak to any agent selling family houses in Bath, Bristol, Oxford or Cambridge and you’ll be told the market is flying. The reason for this is twofold: first, it’s vital these days that you’re there to see the cello recital or the school play—there’s 100% focus on the child. Second, few parents with young children want to park themselves somewhere remote in the countryside now, in the knowledge that, sooner or later, they’ll have to act as a taxi service into town.’
He’s also seen this logic apply to more local markets in places such as Cheltenham and Marlborough. ‘It means that the children can do prep at school—no one wants that battle on a daily basis with mum—and then come home after.’
The London option
Mark Parkinson of Middleton Advisors says he’s seeing it all at the moment (020–7370 4242). ‘There are still the requests from families who want us to find houses in classic commuter- belt hubs around Basingstoke, Henley, Didcot and Amersham. In these scenarios, we’re typically asked to find a house that lies within 15 minutes from the school and 15 minutes from the station.’
He continues: ‘However, despite the fact that the market in London has been much quieter of late, I’m also seeing some parents who are choosing to remain in London, both to retain their equity in the city market and because they enjoy having all the action on the doorstep, who are educating their children in the city and then planning to send their children to board in the countryside at 11.’
Mr Mackenzie sees another reason why the flow of parents out of the capital isn’t quite as strong as it once was: ‘Some London-based parents are educating their children in the city. Whereas once the draw to a country school would have been the opportunity to play sport, nowadays, with the pressure of getting exam results, school is seen principally for education and sport is catered for by the mushrooming number of clubs. Every sport in London now has an academy of excellence.’
Escaping the pressure cooker
Parents who are choosing to make the move to the countryside and put their children into a classic country prep school, such as Port Regis in Dorset or Dunhurst near Petersfield, are doing it to escape the pressure-cooker environment of London private schools, says Philip Harvey of Property Vision (01344 651702).
‘What buyers are often looking for is a school that can rival the London institutions, but which avoids the immense pressure that pupils in the city so often struggle with and has plenty of green space and fresh air for their children to enjoy. Although such a move normally takes buyers a while to decide upon, I know of two separate clients who have elected to move to Arundel on a whim—Windlesham House’s sterling reputation has played no small part in that,’ he explains.
Here's our pick of the latest properties for sale by the sea.
Devon, £1.25 million Combe Wood House, Salcombe Regis, Sidmouth
A charming and splendidly refurbished 16th century farmhouse adjoining National Trust land with spectacular views over the Combe to the sea. Savills (01392 455 755) and Humberts (01404 42456)
East Sussex, £650,000
Oxenbridge Cottage, Iden
The former home of the artist Paul Nash—who painted Landscape at Iden from the house—it over- looks the Rother Levels and is not far from Rye. It has four bedrooms and a half-acre garden. Phillips & Stubbs (01797 227338)
Dorset, £275,000
3, White Nothe Cottages, Holworth
This former coastguard’s cottage was built in the 1900s and forms part of a terrace of six standing on a headland looking out towards Weymouth. It’s in need of thorough modernisation.
Jackson-Stops & Staff (01305 262123)
Cornwall, £585,000
6, Sea View Place, St Ives
Set in the heart of St Ives is this three-bedroom house, which forms part of a terrace of stone houses that directly overlook Bamaluz beach. A wide terrace runs across the rear of the house and enjoys lovely views. Lillicrap Chilcott (01872 273473)
Norfolk, £1.295 million
Little Wilbur, Holme-next-the-sea
Stunning contemporary coastal five-bedroom house with easy access to the beach. Striking design and meticulously appointed in Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, close to Holme Reserve. Jackson Stops & Staff (01328 801 333)
Cornwall, £390,000 Chymbloth Way, Coverack, Helston
A picturesque and extended, detached four-bedroom character cottage with views over Coverack, the south Cornish coastline and miles of open ocean. Lillicrap Chilcott (01872 273473)
The CLA has announced that it can no longer underwrite the Game Fair.
In a serious blow to rural industries, the CLA has announced that it can no longer underwrite the Game Fair, a huge and much-loved annual gathering of country folk which is rotated around some of England’s greatest houses.
There will now be a consultation period. The landowners’ lobbying body has thrown down the challenge to other countryside organisations to see if a way can be found to continue running it. In 2016 the Game Fair was due to return to Ragley Hall, where there has been considerable investment in infrastructure.
It is understood that the 2013 event at Ragley Hall, which was blighted by a heatwave, the 2014 running at Blenheim Palace, the flagship venue with footfall of around 140,000, and this year’s Game Fair, which was less well supported, at Harewood in North Yorkshire all lost significant income. In 2012, the Game Fair was cancelled due to rain.
The financial difficulties come despite the presence of thousands of tradestands all paying considerable space charges, spectator entry charges of £35 and a high profile in the media—this year it hosted the Today programme.
The CLA’s director-general, Helen Woolley, said the decision to end the association with such a traditional event was a difficult one. ‘Unfortunately an increasingly crowded summer calendar of outdoor events has contributed to falling attendance. This has led to the event failing to generate enough income and has made it financially unsustainable,’ she explained.
‘Over the last three years the CLA Board made the decision to invest in the Game Fair because of our strong desire to turn the event around. We have been able to make this investment because of our otherwise robust financial position. However we can no longer ask members to allow their subscriptions to underwrite the losses the event makes.’
Blenheim had already announced that it would no longer host the Game Fair, a decision influenced by the fact that it has a new event for next year, organised by BBC Countryfile and the National Trust.
As the milk industry suffers, Tom Levitt reports on the rise of the microdairy.
The prevailing narrative of the milk industry is a depressing one. Supermarkets sell milk as a loss leader, consumers have become used to buying it as a cheap, basic product and, for dairy farmers, the margins can be frighteningly small. Their only solution, say industry experts, is to scale up: increase their herd size, cut costs and produce as much milk as they can, as efficiently as possible. For smaller, family-sized farms, with little capital to expand, this inevitably means an exit from dairying.
Tragically, in a country with a long tradition of milk production and the perfect conditions for grass-based dairy systems, we are perilously close to dropping below 10,000 dairy farmers in England and Wales (the current figure is about 13,000)—a drop of 20,000 in 20 years. Scotland has only 900.
However, those vulnerable farmers are discovering an alternative, which allows them to stay in milk production, increase their margin and reconnect consumers with the traditions of dairy farming and the almost forgotten joys of creamy-top milk. It’s called microdairying: farmers bypassing the major processors and supermarkets and producing, bottling and selling their cows’ milk themselves.
Half a century ago, the countryside was full of dairy farmers bottling and selling some or all of their own milk locally, but the growth in supermarkets and the switch to refrigerated lorries sounded the death knell for many. No milk company is going to send a lorry down a small country road every other day to fetch a few hundred gallons of milk.
In 2006, the Norton family, who run a 60-cow herd near Norwich, were on the brink of quitting. ‘The milk price had been so low that we had to do something,’ says Emily Norton. ‘We looked at selling the cows or increasing the herd size, but that would have ruined the balance of our mixed arable and livestock farm.’ They installed a pasteurising and bottling plant and now sell almost half their milk within a 20-mile radius.
‘We’re bringing back something people can’t get in supermarkets,’ adds Nick Snelgar, who started his business from scratch last year in the village of Martin, Hampshire. ‘No one can do it as fresh as us. We can milk the cows at 9am and have it on your doorstep by 9am the next morning.’ He plans to have a herd of 17 cows by the spring, enough, he says, for a viable business. ‘We were told the only people who can make money out of dairying are mega companies. I don’t believe that’s true and I aim to prove it.’
Although there are no figures on the number of UK microdairies, farmers and industry experts are already excitedly talking about rep- licating the success of microbreweries, which number more than 1,000. ‘There’s no reason why we couldn’t see microdairies all over the country,’
Susan Garbett and her husband, Julian, who run a 40-cow, free-range herd at Holmleigh Dairy in Gloucestershire, were also considered ‘too small to survive’. ‘It was just uneconomical to bring milk tankers to us,’ she explains. They now deliver milk in recyclable glass bottles to 600 local residents. ‘People appreciate that it’s a local product. They drive past our fields and see the cows that provide their milk every week.’
It’s not just about local provenance. Milk from most microdairies is being sold unhomogenised. Even the semi-skimmed varieties are sold with the creamy top, a treat the younger generation has been educated away from, says Sid Betteridge, who runs Mabel’s Farm dairy, a 40-cow microdairy near Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire.
‘We’re bringing back something people can’t get in supermarkets,’ adds Nick Snelgar, who started his business from scratch last year in the village of Martin, Hampshire. ‘No one can do it as fresh as us. We can milk the cows at 9am and have it on your doorstep by 9am the next morning.’ He plans to have a herd of 17 cows by the spring, enough, he says, for a viable business. ‘We were told the only people who can make money out of dairying are mega companies. I don’t believe that’s true and I aim to prove it.’
Although there are no figures on the number of UK microdairies, farmers and industry experts are already excitedly talking about replicating the success of microbreweries, which number more than 1,000. ‘There’s no reason why we couldn’t see microdairies all over the country,’ says Mr Snelgar. ‘Milk is far more relevant to people’s daily lives than beer. It’s a staple food. People may see it as boring or tasteless, and it’s true that it’s become that way, but we can change that.’
He’s not alone in his optimism. ‘Just as with bread and beer, milk has huge potential for innovation,’ points out food-chain expert Clive Black, head of research at Shore Capital Stockbrokers. ‘There’s a growing market for exclusivity, taste and localism. People are well informed now by the internet, travel and education and want choice and individuality.’ NFU Dairy Board chairman Rob Harrison agrees: ‘People want to buy from someone they know. They don’t necessarily want their money to go to big companies, so the opportunity is there to create your own local brand, support the local economy and keep cows in the countryside.’
The microdairy model is already attracting new entrants, such as Josh Healy, who runs a 12-cow organic operation near Oxford. He delivers his milk in glass bottles to about 250 regular customers, most of whom are within five miles of the farm. ‘I think a lot of dairy farmers enjoy not having to think about selling the milk and concentrating only on the production, but we are able to make quite good money on 37 acres.’
Mr Healy says microdairies can help shift public perceptions of milk as a cheap, standardised product. ‘The difference in the quality is remarkable. It feels strange to call both what we produce and what’s on most supermarket shelves by the same word. Craft brewers feel the same about their beers, I’m sure.’ Emily Norton agrees: ‘We’re lucky to be able to drink what these animals produce. We should be shouting about that and reminding people that milk is a superfood and not just white water.’
What is a microdairy?
A microdairy can have 10–60 cows, although larger ones are usually unable to sell all their milk themselves and keep a regular contract with a processor. A herd of about 50 cows would provide enough milk for more than 500 households.
Most microdairies are not certified as organic, although many advertise themselves as having a free-range herd kept mainly outside. The milk is usually sold at a premium on supermarket milk, but is often price-competitive against that sold in local shops or through the few remaining doorstep deliveries.
Although comparisons have been made with microbreweries, the challenge of producing milk is much greater. Microbreweries are unlikely to grow their own crops, but a dairy farmer has a herd of cows to look after. There’s also a processing unit to manage plus, crucially, a distribution and marketing operation. And there’s far less time to get milk to customers before it becomes worthless.
Several farmers have successfully applied to grant-making organisations, including The Prince’s Countryside Fund, to help with start-up costs. Others have had success with crowdfunding, offering local residents the chance to invest in ‘cow bonds’, which allow farmers to buy new stock, paying the investors back their original sum plus interest, as well as supplying them with milk.
The nocturnal barn own is still mysterious, but nesting figures are encouraging.
One of Nature’s most thrilling sights is that of the barn owl looming wraith-like out of the dusk on a hunting foray. This beautiful, yet elusive creature has been the good-news avian story of 2014; a mild winter and abundance of voles, its idea of a slap-up supper, have led to bumper breeding figures.
The statistics were bound to be an improvement on the disastrous breeding season of 2013 during a bitter March last year, regional volunteers had dismal reports of dead birds and empty nests but, even so, the BTO’s 2014 figures, with 17.2% bigger clutches and 43.6% more fledglings, are extraordinary and the best since records began.
Tyto alba is probably the most universally loved bird in Britain; it attracts a network of dedicated enthu-
siasts who provide nesting sites and observation, is popular with land managers because it eats rodents and is a genuine beneficiary of Government schemes to increase field margins.
‘The barn owl ticks all the boxes,’ says ecologist Dave Leech, who heads up the BTO’s Nest Record Survey. ‘It’s charismatic, has great cultural significance and has been one of the real conservation success stories of the past half-century through agri-environment schemes and people providing nest boxes.’
The Barn Owl Conservation Net-work’s ringing data has gone through the roof: in May 2013, only 20 barn owls were ringed this year, the figure was 428. June saw an even more remarkable year-on-year rise, from 183 to 1,814.
One study area, about 8km (five miles) square, in the fens near Bourne, Lincolnshire, supported 12 adults and 38 young. In some areas, up to 65% of owls produced a second brood a volunteer in Montgomeryshire recorded the same female six weeks and three miles apart, on nests of four and five chicks respectively, having left her mate in charge of the first brood.
The barn owl’s enemies are cold, hunger, traffic and lack of nesting opportunities, due to barn conversions and old trees being blown down. However, its nocturnal lifestyle makes it one of the most difficult species to survey. ‘Mild weather has obviously helped, but even though there are ecologists working full-time studying vole cycles, there is no definitive answer to why it’s been a good barn-owl year,’ comments Mr Leech. ‘What we need is for people to carry on the good work observing barn owls and providing nest boxes, and for another countrywide survey to take place.’
Kestrels and tawny owls (left) also had a healthy breeding season, with, respectively, 22.3% and 23.3% more fledglings; wrens and robins had their best results for five years, song thrushes and blackbirds did well and bullfinches bucked the trend for finches with record productivity.
The wood pigeon was the main hard-luck story; the birds were badly affected by Hurricane Bertha, which hit at the height of their breeding season, in August chick numbers were down by 63% per nest.
l The BTO has an online winter raffle, with a birdwatching trip to Spain as first prize. It costs £1 to enter; the closing date is February 9, 2015 (www.bto.org).
England's one day woes continued in the series against Sri Lanka, writes Christopher Clark.
England fans went into the one day series against Sri Lanka with low expectations. We anticipated a hammering, but with England there is always that vain hope that at one day cricket they may finally turn the corner. That corner was not turned in Sri Lanka.
England lost the series 5-2, and the two victories were rain affected. The first victory was a duckworth-lewis inspired win. The 2nd win was a glimpse of how England could bat in sub continent conditions, when they chased down 240 in 50 overs.
However the five Sri Lankan wins were thrashings. Sri Lanka rubbed our noses into the dirt, and England were made to look second rate. So what can we read into this series defeat:
1. Alastair Cook should not be in the side
Everyone knows this, it may even be the case that some of the players in the side think this now. His batting is now fraught, and the tension he brings with him to the crease is rubbing off on other players. Mooen Ali normally composed at the crease, has lost his wicket to some awful shots. In the back of Mooen’s mind, is that it is up to him to get the run-rate going, as the captain does not have the skills to bat that way in one day cricket.
Also as the captain always has to play, it has led to some of England’s best players in the series moving from the positions in which they had given their best performances. In the final game of the series, James Taylor was moved from number 3 to number 5 to ensure that Cook and Hales could play. This also led to Ravi Bopara, consistently England’s best one day batsman, inexplicably being dropped.
It is not only Cook’s batting which is under question, it is also his negative approach to captaincy in the field. England took early wickets in each game, but once Dilshan and Sangakkara for example, hit a few boundaries, Cook retreated. The key to restricting runs in one-day cricket is to keep on taking wickets, and stop partnerships building. Cook’s plan is to restrict the runs for the first 35overs, then hopefully pick up a few wickets when the opposition tee off. This plan would never work. It was noticeable in the game Cook missed, and Eoin Morgan was captain, that the fields were more aggressive. Morgan backed his bowlers, they responded, and England won the game.
2. England’s back up seamers are not good enough
In the 7 match series England bowled 71 wides. That’s 10 wides a match. We were giving the Sri Lankan’s 1.4 overs extra a game. For a side as poor as ours, it is giving the opposition an advantage we cannot afford to give.
Whilst Chris Woakes ended up top wicket taker in the series (14), his figures flattered to deceive. He was invariably bowling too short and wide. On the hard bouncy tracks in Australasia he will be taken apart. He needs to learn to pitch the ball up, and give it a chance to swing.
Chris Jordan has undoubted potential, but cannot be trusted to bowl an over without giving away a wide or a no-ball.
Steven Finn towards the end of the series was beginning to find the menacing pace and bounce, we know he can deliver. For some reason he was dropped/rested for the last day. Finn should be used as an enforcer in one day cricket. Used in short sharp spells, his job is to un-ruffle settled batsman, though under the current Captain he will never be used like that.
Harry Gurney appears a likeable guy, but he is not international class. He won’t be going to the World Cup, but may re-appear in the English summer, as he may offer something in overcast conditions.
Ben Stokes is the conundrum for England. He bowls quick, and bats in an aggressive manner. However he has gone from England’s brightest hope at the start of the year, to a shadow of that. His bowling at times was shambolic and embarrassing. Whilst batting he looked completely devoid of confidence.
Stokes has that X-Factor however, and I would still take him to the World Cup. England don’t have many game changers, Stokes is potentially one of those.
Stuart Broad and James Anderson cannot come back into this one day side quick enough, but I fear if either of those get injured, England could be chasing some huge totals in the World Cup.
3. Eoin Morgan needs to improve
The vice captain had a terrible series with the bat, and scored 90 runs throughout the 7 games. Not good enough. Interestingly he scored 62 when he captained the side in Cook’s absence. Could Morgan thrive with the extra responsibility of captaincy? I am desperate for him to be given a chance. Eoin Morgan will play in the Big Bash league in Australia over Christmas and the New Year, where I fully expect him to find his form, and expect him to come into the World Cup in prime form.
4. Mooen Ali should be the only spinner in the side
Mooen Ali at times turned the ball more in the sub-continent conditions, than the plethora of Sri Lankan spinners (Herath, A Mendis, Senayake, Dilshan). He did not disgrace himself at all, and is more of a wicket taking threat than Tredwell. James Tredwell is a solid citizen, and reliable, but on those flat tracks in Australia, he will be destroyed! His slow loopy bowling will be feasted upon by the likes of Warner, Finch, De Villiers, McCullum (this is turning into a long list!). Mooen has proven that he bowls the odd unplayable delivery, and can be trusted to bowl 10 overs if required.
5. Finally James Taylor has been given a chance
Taylor has been batting excellently for a number of years in County Cricket, and once he was finally selected in the 4th One Dayer, he responded with an excellent 90. He dovetailed superbly with Joe Root in the middle order throughout the remaining matches; their positive running between the wickets and artful batting was a delight to behold. He seemed to have made the number 3 position his own in his handful of matches, but a shambles of a selection in the final game saw him shunted down to number 5. Apart from Joe Root, England’s batting was a sorry mess in the last game.
England move onto Australia in the New Year, to build up for the World Cup, and this is the side I would love to see play. However we all know this isn’t going to happen.
Mooen Ali
Hales
Taylor
Root
Morgan (c)
Bopara
Buttler
Woakes
Broad
Finn
Anderson
Remaining squad members – Stokes, Tredwell, Jordan, Bell.
A new review concludes that more could be done to control grey squirrels.
The Forestry Commission and Defra have announced a more rigorous approach to controlling grey squirrels. Their review, undertaken at the behest of former Defra Secretary Owen Paterson, concludes that more could be done to address the threats posed by grey squirrels to woodlands and to red squirrels, which they infect with the deadly squirrel pox. It recommends a specific management prescription within countryside stewardship schemes, revision of the good-practice note on culling greys and research into new traps, chemical agents and the impact of predation by pine martens.
CLA president Henry Robinson backs this more robust approach, but reiterates a call for the relicensing of warfarin, ‘by far the most effective tool in controlling grey squirrels’.
Overseas statesmen and a freezing British public alike came to pay their respects at Sir Winston Churchill's funeral, 50 years ago this month.
It was television’s finest hour. The broadcast of Sir Winston Churchill’s funeral, which took place on January 30, 1965, united the nation, just as the Coronation had done 12 years before. Many readers will remember the grainy pictures on small screens, accompanied by Richard Dimbleby’s voice, as resonant as a funeral bell. Others will have been at the event itself. It was remarkable how many young people could be seen among the crowd lining the route from Westminster Hall to St Paul’s, in, as Dimbleby put it, the new haircuts, fashions and styles.
It was a bitterly cold day. Although the servicemen taking part in the procession showed iron discipline standing to attention as they waited for the coffin to be placed on the gun carriage, members of the public, wrapped in blankets, stamped their feet; some collapsed.
Everyone had a sense that the ceremony marked the end of an era and that seems even more the case now. The television pictures show a different London: soot-blackened, mostly low rise, its riverfront lined with wharfs rather than millionaire’s flats. Dimbleby’s sparse and dignified commentary speaks of an age before sound bites. Ladies going into St Paul’s are wrapped in furs.
When The Queen told the then Prime Minister, Harold Macmillan, that she wanted Churchill to have a State funeral, Churchill was gratified. A State funeral was a rare honour for a commoner there had not been one on a grand scale since the death of Wellington in 1852. Indeed, the candlesticks that stood over Churchill’s coffin were those that had been specially commissioned for Wellington and not used since.
He didn’t take a keen personal interest in the arrangements, beyond hoping, as his daughter Mary Soames remembered, that there would be ‘plenty of bands’. No doubt he was confident that the full panoply of which the nation was capable would be deployed. He would not have been disappointed.
The committee, codenamed Hope Not, was chaired by the Earl Marshal, the Duke of Norfolk, and, meeting secretly at the Admir-alty, pulled out all the stops. One problem that they had to resolve was who would walk behind the coffin? This honour was accorded to the close male members of Churchill’s family and his loyal private secretary of 13 years, Anthony Montague Browne, representing those who had worked for him.
‘I feared marring things by weeping,’ recalled Montague Browne. However, the pain caused by the aftermath of an operation for a slipped disc proved, during a slow march of two miles, ‘a helpful distraction’. Even today, reliving the event through the medium of fuzzy television film, people of a susceptible disposition may find their eyes moistening.
The route presented many obstacles, starting with the narrowness of the gate from New Palace Yard, through which the gun carriage and its escort had to pass at the beginning of the procession. This was followed by the physical difficulty of carrying the coffin up and, particularly, down the steps of St Paul’s. The precision with which all the necessary manoeuvres were performed, to the accompaniment of solemn music, emphasised the feeling of the day: everything that could be done to show honour to the memory of a great Englishman was done.
Old men came, including the frail Earl Attlee. So did many people, such as representatives of the Danish Resistance, who had been inspired by Churchill during the Second World War. All together, six sovereigns, 15 heads of state and representatives from more than 110 countries attended. Towering over Levi Eshkol, Prime Minister of Israel, came President de Gaulle. ‘In the great drama,’ the sometimes immovable French-man wrote to The Queen on Churchill’s death, ‘he was the greatest of all.’
They were greeted on the steps of St Paul’s by the heralds, ancient and bareheaded, in tights and tabards—a rare splash of colour on a sombre day. No tradition was neglected, however arcane. The Lord Mayor of London was accompanied by his Swordbearer, in the fur Cap of Maintenance, and the City Remembrancer. The Lord Mayor carried the Sword of Mourning, wrapped in black velvet, before The Queen.
However, if anyone’s memory evokes the funeral as a great imperial or Commonwealth occasion, like the Coronation, it plays him false. Churchill loved the British Empire. He came to manhood reporting the South African wars, during which he escaped imprisonment by the Boers. He invoked ‘our Empire beyond the seas’ during the Second World War and adamantly resisted the attempts of Gandhi, ‘a seditious Middle Temple lawyer, now posing as a fakir’, to get independence for India. But no Commonwealth troops took part in the procession.
Nor, for that matter, was there more than one woman. Churchill had opposed female suffrage; he could not imagine them fulfilling a useful purpose in public life and growled disparagements at the first sitting female MP, Nancy Astor. The sole female who marched in the procession was a representative of the Westerham branch of the British Legion.
Instead, the funeral expressed another facet of Churchill’s personality. His mother was American and he saw Britain’s post-War destiny as allied with the United States. He wanted the Union Flag to alternate with the Star Spangled Banner on the flagposts of the Mall. Alert to the theatre of the occasion, as well as knowing a good tune when he heard one, Churchill had The Battle Hymn of the American Republic included as one of the hymns. To American commentators, the seat of Empire a selfish despotism, as they had previously seen it was forgiven, having been transformed by a different narrative: the bulldog nation that stood alone in 1940.
To Dwight D. Eisenhower, paying tribute during the BBC broadcast, ‘Winston Churchill was Britain’. And so the funeral helped shape a new identity for Britain, subverted, Churchillians might think, eight years later, when Britain joined the European Economic Community.
Not everything that Churchill hoped for in his obsequies came to pass. His wish was to be buried on the croquet lawn at Chartwell. That caused consternation in some quarters, in the belief that such a resting place would lack reverence. Instead, a steam locomotive, Winston Churchill, took the coffin to the little station of Hanborough, Oxfordshire, and thence to the churchyard at Bladon, the village to the south of the park at Blenheim Palace.
Hanborough, however, is on the Worcestershire line, for which the usual railway station would be Paddington. How was it that the Port of London Authority launch went instead to Waterloo? Churchill is supposed to have insisted that it was the only station that could be used, if President de Gaulle outlived him. I would like to think that story is true.
England are rejuvenated under Eoin Morgan writes Christopher Clark, but Australia and India will prove to be a class apart.
England after an inevitable series defeat away to Sri Lanka before Christmas, finally dispensed with the services of Alastair Cook as One Day captain. Whilst this was the right decision, it was at least 6 months too late.
Now under the stewardship of Eoin Morgan, England are in Australia to prepare for the World Cup. What England need are some confidence boosting victories to get themselves in the right mindset for the 50 over World Cup which starts in February 2015.
Unfortunately for England they are in a tournament with two of the best one day sides in the World. The sides will play each other twice, and the top two sides will play each other in a one-off final. Those two sides will be Australia and India.
England will be looking to take some positives from this tournament, and before the competition starts, let’s have a look at what they will be:
More aggressive field placements from the new captain Eoin Morgan
The return to fitness of Stuart Broad
James Anderson spearheading the attack
What sets Australia and India apart from England, is that both the Aussies and Indians have game changers in their sides. Australia will open with David Warner and Aaron Finch. Australia will be aiming for 80+ in the opening powerplay from those two. Likewise India have Dhawan and Rahane hopefully blazing a trail for them.
England, now that Cook will no longer be opening, had been expected to have Alex Hales and Mooen Ali opening the batting. Alex Hales played in the Big Bash to gain some form for the one-dayers, unfortunately his spell with the Hobart Hurricanes was unproductive. In England’s warm up game, Hales didn’t even play. Ian Bell opened with Mooen Ali. It will be interesting to see if England go for safe and steady Bell, or are prepared to back the explosive, but erratic Hales.
England’s middle order batting is equally as good as their opponents in this tri-series, but what will let England down in this competition and the World Cup, is that there is no strength in depth to their bowling.
Whilst Chris Woakes, Chris Jordan and James Tredwell are steady County performers, it is highly unlikely that any of this trio would get into any of the top 4 international sides in one day cricket. During the World Cup these three bowlers are going to have to bowl approximately 20 overs a game. The better sides in the World Cup will be looking to score at 6 to 7 runs an over during these overs. Potential game-breakers.
England will give the new ball to Anderson and Broad in the tri-series, tried and tested at this level. However it has been a while since either had real success with the white ball, so England will be hoping that Steven Finn, on the hard bouncy Australian wickets can be the wicket taking bowler he has always promised to be. Under Eoin Morgan, England will be going all out to get wickets. With their limited attack, they know they won’t be able to stop the flow of runs. If Anderson, Broad and Finn don’t pick up wickets, England could be on the end of some tough run-chases in this tri-series.
The next few months promise to be a festival of cricket for fans. However there won’t be much fun in supporting England.
Which party will best serve the interests of farmers?
English Countryside
Last week’s annual Oxford Farming Conference, which gives politicians a chance to address farmers, scientists and agricultural businessmen, provided an opportunity for MPs of different hues to woo the farming industry four months ahead of the election.
Defra Secretary Liz Truss would not be drawn on further rollout of the badger cull, despite the disease being prevalent way beyond the two pilot areas, notably in Cheshire. ‘I’m prepared to do whatever it takes [to eradicate bovine TB],’ she said, without elaborating. She told delegates: ‘It is not easy, but we will do the right thing even if the protest groups don’t like it.’
In the second of four pilot badger culls, shooters in west Somerset exceeded their target of animals culled and there is anecdotal evidence that the disease may be receding, but those in Gloucestershire fell short. Miss Truss says the area ‘reflects the challenges of extensive unlawful protest and intimidation’. Her opposition number, Welsh MP Huw Irranca-Davies—who opposes the cull, despite Wales being blighted by bovine TB said that, if Labour is elected, the cull will be halted.
Politicians shared their views on genetically modified (GM) crops on the eve of the European Parliament vote on whether member states should be allowed to make individual decisions about growing them currently, trials can be blocked by a single state. Miss Truss comments: ‘I think GM technology has a role to play in the UK. It could mean that crops can be produced with less water and fewer pesticides and I think our farmers need those opportunities.’
UKIP MEP Stuart Agnew, a Norfolk farmer who knows about the pressure on those running GM trials, was the most gung-ho and revealed that his party wants a free vote on the issue. Mr Irranca-Davies agreed that GM crops ‘could provide some of the solutions’, but argues: ‘We cannot have a situation where it’s GM or nothing there should still be a role for international governance.’ Scotland’s Environment Secretary Richard Lochhead remained cautious. ‘The jury is out,’ he commented, expressing fears for his country’s ‘Green credentials’.
Mr Lochhead revealed nervousness about the Tories’ proposed referendum on Europe because of Scottish farmers’ heavy reliance on Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) payments. ‘Opting out of farm support means opting out of farming,’ he says, describing the referendum as a ‘£20 billion gamble’ and ‘the biggest threat to British farming’.
Research produced for the conference by The Andersons Centre concludes that Britain is lagging behind many other countries in terms of agricultural efficiency, even though our farming practices are often kinder. And, despite environmental campaigner George Monbiot’s coruscating attack on ‘exceedingly rich farmers’ receiving ‘millions’ from agri-environment schemes and on the ‘sheep-wrecked’ hills of Wales, James Bullock from the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology concluded his presentation by saying that, in fact, if diligently applied, the schemes can increase both productivity and public good.
Prof Bullock concludes: ‘Most of our biodiversity blue butterflies on chalk grassland, hen harriers on the uplands is a result of traditional agriculture and sustainable grazing levels. There is no one size that fits all we even once came out against rewilding as an experiment in terms of biodiversity. Multiple solutions are the ways ahead. No one’s right and no one’s wrong.’
New electronic tagging rules could cost farmers more than £1.8 million, says Julie Harding.
The compulsory electronic tagging of all lambs could cost Britain’s farmers in excess of £1.8 million, says the NFU. In a ruling introduced on January 1, every lamb less than 12 months old will have to sport an electronic tag (EID), even if it’s destined for the slaughterhouse. Previously, two-thirds of lambs were tagged with non-electronic plastic tags. Adult sheep and goats were already subject to compulsory electronic tagging, but in 2010, lamb producers were given a derogation by Defra to continue using non-electronic batch tags in certain circumstances.
‘We argued that there was no real benefit to the industry in terms of traceability when a lamb is bound for slaughter. However, for other parts of the industry, such as livestock markets, the move to EID would make reading tags easier,’ says the NFU’s Tom Fullick. He estimates that the new law will add about
£1,000 to a farmer’s bottom line on the sale of 2,000 lambs. ‘This will reduce farmers’ ability to weather fluctuating lamb prices and input costs.’
The good news is that EID will give improved data at markets and, in 18 months’ time, there will be a complete dataset. ‘We can use this to approach the European Commission and ask for tolerance in the legislation, which currently requires records to be 100% correct,’ adds Mr Fullick.
Defra has also announced that cattle farmers within the badger-cull areas will receive bespoke advice from the Animal and Plant Health Agency about the current local level of risk of the disease.
Christopher Clark previews the flagship event of the international cricket calendar.
The Melbourne skyline and the Melbourne cricket ground at sunset.
Australia and New Zealand host the 2015 World Cup, across 44 days of one-day international cricket. Fourteen of the top cricketing nations take part in the tournament, however there is an argument that the format is to long (for example, the football World Cup only lasts 32 days). A tournament in which a team (England) plays six matches in the first month and theoretically only have to beat Afghanistan and Scotland to qualify for the quarter finals must be flawed.
Alastair Cook the former England ODI captain suggested that the much derided ICC Champions Trophy is the best one day competition “because it only lasts two weeks”. However despite the long group phase of the competition there is still plenty to be excited about. There are three teams entering the tournament on top form, hosts Australia and New Zealand, and South Africa who contain the best batsman and bowler in the world.
Bubbling under these three are teams like Sri Lanka, India and deep breath, England who on any given day can give the three favourites a real game. Throw into the mix the Pakistanis and West Indians who can veer from the sublime to the ridiculous from one game to the next, there is plenty to be excited about.
The 2015 World Cup is split into top groups of 7, which are as follows:
Group A Australia
Bangladesh
England
New Zealand
Sri Lanka
Afghanistan
Scotland
Group B India
Pakistan
South Africa
West Indies
Zimbabwe
Ireland
United Arab Emirates
Each team plays each other once, and the top 4 qualify to play each other in the quarter finals.
When it comes to the World Cup’s England’s default setting is one of underachievement. They have been runners up on 3 occasions, the last of those more than two decades ago, when the tournament was last held in Australasia (1992). A quarter final should be a formality this time around, and if they can avoid South Africa in the quarter final, then there is no reason why they cannot make the semi-finals. Group A is by far the stronger of the two groups and England will have tougher matches in their groups, then their prospective quarter final opponents. Ian Bell was surprisingly selected ahead of Alex Hales in the tri-series tournament to open the batting, however Bell excelled. He has given England’s innings a fluent and technically sound start. On his day, Ian Bell is one of the best batsmen in the world, and England will hope that he continues this form into the World Cup.
England’s star man Whilst Broad, Woakes and Finn pitched in with plenty of wickets in the tri series, James Anderson is undoubtedly the leader of English attack, and his temperament and economical bowling will be key, when Australia’s, New Zealand and Sri Lanka’s attacking batsman look to explode in the opening 20overs.
England’s one to watch Jos Buttler has the potential to be the next great wicket-keeper batsman. In a generation where his peers Kumar Sangakkara and Brendan McCullum come to the end of their career, Buttler is at the start. His deft touch, dynamism and power have a chance to cause real damage for England, in the latter overs of matches.
…and the rest:
Group A
Australia World Champions in three of the last four World Cups, Australia will be the team to beat. Blessed with as an explosive opening pair as the world game can offer (Warner/Finch), backed up by a strong middle order, getting plenty of runs shouldn’t be an issue. They have an army of seamers, to wreak devastation and havoc in the opposition, their only weakness is they have no front-line spinner. However with their seamers and the pitches in Australia, this is a minor weakness.
Australia’s star man David Warner – Belligerent and magnificent. His power at the top of the innings makes for compelling viewing, and he is a real box office player.
Australia’s one to watch Mitchell Starc – Bowling at 90mph this left arm fast bowler has perfected bowling at the beginning and end of one day innings. Expect him to take plenty of wickets.
New Zealand Sliding under the radar has always been the New Zealand approach, but this tournament they are now one of the favourites, led by the excellent Brendan McCullum. The batting has plenty of firepower, and the bowling whilst not having a world-beater are workmanlike and effective. With Daniel Vettori adding guile with his spin bowling expect the Kiwis to come close.
New Zealand’s star man
Brendan McCullum – The best captain in world cricket, his aggressive and fearless captaincy has inspired confidence throughout his side. Meanwhile his batting remains as irrepressible as ever.
New Zealand’s one to watch Kane Williamson – The glue in the New Zealand batting line up. Whilst his team mates tee off at one end, Williamson pushes the ball around at a run-a-ball. A hugely under-rated player.
Sri Lanka Their victory in the 96 World Cup changed the way one day cricket was played. Their aggressive style approach is now the blueprint for every side. Two runners up spots in the last two tournaments, show their pedigree. However this is an aging side, and time may finally be up against them.
Sri Lanka’s star man Kumar Sangakkara – One of the true greats of the modern game. Sangakkara will be aiming to end his one day cricket with a real flourish. An expert gloveman, a batsman that oozes class.
Sri Lanka’s one to watch Suranga Lakmal – On the Australian bouncy wickets, expect this tall paceman to cause opposition real trouble.
Bangladesh On the sub-continent Bangladesh are always a threat. However in pacier conditions their batsman may suffer, and their bowling is not strong. Although a side which contains Tamim Iqbal, Shakib Al-Hasan and Mahmudallah should never be under-estimated.
Bangladesh’s star man Shakib Al-Hasan is the third ranked all rounder in one day cricket, and his slow left arm bowling is impressive in 50over cricket.
Bangladesh’s one to watch Tamim Iqbal – When this guy is in full flow he is a class act. However hugely inconsistent,
Scotland Scotland under Paul Collingwood deserve great credit for qualifying for their third world cup. They will be aiming to beat Afghanistan and Bangladesh, and will obviously have one eye on the game against England.
Scotland’s star man Preston Momsett – The captain scored 139 in the final of the qualifying tournament, and he will need to produce more of the same.
Scotland’s one to watch Paul Collingwood – ECB officials will be watching Collingwood’s coaching performances very closely, with one eye on his role in future England coaching set ups.
Afghanistan
If you’re looking for a fairytale story, then look no further. As recently as 2008 they were playing in Division 5 of the World Cricket League, but they have climbed the ranks to become one of the stronger Associate teams. Whether they can test the established teams is debatable, but they are a welcome addition.
Afghanistan’s star man Mohammed Nabi – The experience all rounder will have to produce with bat and ball if Afghanistan are to have any impact
Afghanistan’s one to watch Aftab Alam – Took wickets against Zimbabwe in 2014, he will need to chip in here as well.
Group B
India Third favourites in the betting behind Australia and South Africa, however they have had an awful few months. They have been in Australia for 80 days playing a combination of tests and one-dayers primarily against Australia, and have not won a match. Confidence is fragile, and they start up against Pakistan and South Africa. If they lose both of those, heads certainly will drop. India have undoubted world stars, but will hold no fears for their prospective opponents in the quarter finals
India’s star man Virat Kohli – The new Indian superstar. He already has an incredible 21 one day centuries, and he’s easy eye on the batting will be a joy to watch.
India’s one to watch Umesh Yadav – Yadav bowls quick, not necessarily accurately, but he offers genuine pace. After the injury to Ishant Sharma, he could prove key for India.
South Africa South Africa enter every World Cup as one of the favourites, but invariably they choke at the vital moment, most memorably in that epic semi final against Australia in 1999. South Africa boast the best batsman (AB De Villiers), and best bowler (Dale Steyn) in the game. Like the Australians they have a stellar line up, and the lack of a top line spinner is the only weakness.
South Africa’s star man AB De Villiers – The greatest cricketer in the game. The current No 1 ranked batsman in the world has the all-round game to lead South Africa to their first World Cup triumph.
South Africa’s one to watch Kyle Abbott – Whilst as not as quick as Steyn and Morkel, Abbott has developed the vital skill of being able to bowl at the end of the innings. His temperament may prove vital in tight matches
Pakistan Enigmatic. They have talent to burn, but they do not always deliver. One game likely to hit 350, the next likely to get out for 120. You never know what you’re going to get. However they did win the World Cup last time it was held in Australia…so you never know.
Pakistan’s star man Shahid Afridi – Explosive batting, dangerous leg spin bowling. Afridi’s change of pace and accuracy will be key for Pakistan in restricting their opponents.
Pakistan’s one to watch Mohammed Irfan – The tall pace bowler should be a threat in these conditions. However with Pakistan, you never know.
West Indies Beset by problems between their own board and players. The following first choice players are not going to the World Cup; Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo. Under inexperienced captain Jason Holder, West Indies have some firepower, but internal fighting may cost them dear.
West Indies’ star man Chris Gayle – Gayle saves his best performances like the rest of his team-mates for the 20/20 competitions, however in his last World Cup he may want to go out with a flourish
West Indies’ one to watch Jason Holder – How will this young captain manage this team of mercurial players. A real test for the inexperienced quick bowler.
Ireland If a push for full Test status is the Irish aim, then a good showing in this tournament is imperative. With 4 sides qualifying for the quarter finals, Ireland will be looking to prey on the West Indies weaknesses. With experienced county players in their line up, they have a chance to upset the apple cart.
Ireland’s star man Ed Joyce – A stylish batsman, a prolific run scorer for Sussex, Joyce could squeeze Ireland into the knockout stages
Ireland’s one to watch George Dockrell – Four years ago bright things were expected of Dockrell, it never quite happened. Could this be the Irishman’s moment now.
Zimbabwe In the past Zimbabwe would have been the team all the big sides wanted to avoid, the prosperous side of the late 90s has given way to a side battling to keep it’s head above the water. A recent thrashing by Bangladesh hardly inspires confidence.
Zimbabwe’s star man Brendan Taylor – The wicket-keeper batsman is Zimbabwe’s most experienced player, and his knowledge will be vital when the side will undoubtedly be under pressure.
Zimbabwe’s one to watch Solomon Mire – An explosive hitter, his big hitting style could cause damage.
UAE In their second World Cup, they will be hoping to improve on their last appearance, when they only won one game. A favourable start against Zimbabwe and Ireland may assist them, before they have to play the big boys.
UAE’s star man Khurram Khan – In just nine international matches, he already has one century and two fifties.
UAE’s one to watch Aaqib Javed – Ex Pakistani world cup winner Javed will be looking to inspire his side to victory.
Country Life asks whether the Game Fair has any chance of surviving as the CLA calls a consultation period to explore the future of the event
Shockwaves are reverberating through the countryside after it was announced last week that the 2016 CLA Game Fair at Ragley Hall has been cancelled. The landowners’ lobbying body says that it can no longer underwrite the much-loved annual gathering of rural folk that has been rotated around some of England’s greatest estates since 1958.
This will be a serious blow to many businesses and it represents the significant loss of a platform for field sports and farming. The CLA has called a consultation period in which other organisations and estates are invited to explore ways of running another fair; COUNTRY LIFE and sister magazines are closely involved.
It has been a heartbreaking decision. It seems that the event never recovered from the cancellation, through rain, in 2012: Ragley Hall in 2013, which required expensive infrastructure, resulted in a deficit of nearly £300,000.
Surprisingly, the 2014 show at Blenheim Palace, usually the banker venue, lost even more, and the numbers didn’t stack up at Harewood House this year either, despite spectator entry charges of £35 and a high media profile—it hosted Today. There were fewer tradestands, notably in Gunmakers’ Row, and regulars seemed unprepared to travel north.
‘Unfortunately, an increasingly crowded summer calendar of outdoor events has contributed to falling attendance, which has made it financially unsustainable,’ explains CLA director-general Helen Woolley. ‘Over the past three years, the board made the decision to invest in the Game Fair because of our strong desire to turn the event around. We could do this because of our otherwise robust financial position. However, we can no longer ask members to allow their subscriptions to underwrite the losses.’
Blenheim had already announced that it would no longer host the Game Fair because it has signed a long-term contract to host Countryfile Live, organised by the BBC’s Countryfile with the National Trust and other bodies, on August 4–7, 2016. Some tradestand holders are debating whether to switch to the new event, at which the audience is likely to be of a different profile.
Owen Williams of the Redspot Artists group, which spends more than £20,000 on its Game Fair stand, is considering what to do. ‘I do need to satisfy myself that the audience is right for my sporting art,’ he explains. ‘The Game Fair was my main area of sales, but many of us have seen this coming. It has lost sight of its USP, which used to be country sports, and the progressive change in exhibitors has made it more like a county show, so it’s no wonder it had difficulty competing against the likes of the Great Yorkshire Show.’
Dylan Williams, managing director of the Royal Berkshire Shooting School, thinks the likelihood of its presence at Countryfile Live is ‘between nil and zero’. He adds: ‘I was incredibly saddened by the news. It’s like the Lawn Tennis Association cancelling Wimbledon. However, hopefully something better will come out of it and the field-sports world can create an event that retains the cerebral element of what the Game Fair was.’
The gunmaker Purdey didn’t attend this year’s Game Fair, but was planning to return in 2016. Executive chairman James Horne thinks the company is unlikely to go to Blenheim, but is waiting to ‘understand the format’.
He says: ‘The Game Fair is a forum that will be missed enormously, but the formula has to be carefully examined. We need a show that’s commercially viable for exhibitors and visitors, which is a challenge in an increasingly digital age. Although it’s laudable to move it around the country, Blenheim is the only location that’s any good.’
Clean for the Queen this March and get the country tidy for the Queen's 90th birthday
The Prime Minister has lent his support to Clean for The Queen, a Country Life initiative in which villages, schools, businesses, urban communities and special-interest groups are being urged to sign up to helping rid the whole country of litter before Her Majesty’s 90th birthday on April 21 and official celebrations in June. ‘I’m delighted that West Oxfordshire [my constituency] is joining the UK’s biggest anti-litter campaign,’ says David Cameron. ‘It really is a special event and has provided great momentum for communities to gather together and do our bit to clean up and get our country looking fit for a queen.’
Campaign director Adrian Evans hopes to get one million people joining in for a dedicated weekend of clearing up on March 4–6. The idea for Clean for The Queen was born in a conversation between Country Life Editor Mark Hedges, Melissa Murdoch of the Garfield Weston Foundation, which is generously supporting the campaign, and the team from Keep Britain Tidy.
It’s backed by Environment Minister Rory Stewart, who says he hopes the weekend will protect wildlife, improve the quality of streets and public places and leave a legacy of a cleaner Britain, as well as television presenter Kirstie Allsopp and bodies including the RSPB, the CPRE and the WI. Employees of Macdonalds, Wrigley, Greggs and KFC will be joining in the clean-up.
Special-edition litter bags will be available next month, through local authorities and some Waitrose and Costa branches. To find out how to organise a local litter-picking session, visit www.cleanforthequeen.co.uk
London Mayor Boris Johnson is also supporting Clean for The Queen and is donating 100 special kits with litter-pickers, gloves and bags. Grants of up to £1,500 are available for his Capital Clean-up scheme (www.london.gov.uk/cleanup); last year, 4,600 volunteers contributed 17,000 hours, clearing 315 tons of waste in London.
Two plots of land have come onto the market with incredible views out to Polzeath Beach and Padstow Bay
Two plots of land with full residential planning permission for large family homes have come onto the market, both with amazing views out across Polzeath Beach and Padstow Bay. Alternatively the site could be developed as one plot into a larger main home with secondary accommodation and leisure facilities.
As it stands, the two houses which have already been granted permission were designed to offer properties of a similar size and feel. Planned in an upside down style, the houses have their living areas on top of the bedroom accommodation and will be built with lots of glass to make the most of their views.
Conceived with modern open-plan living in mind, the stand-out space in each property is the generous open plan living/dining/kitchen, which leads out to a wooden decking area in one house and a large terrace in the other. The master bedroom suites will come with dressing rooms, and each house offers a further three bedrooms (one en-suite) and a family bathroom.
These properties are designed with entertaining in mind; both plots are situated in a prime waterfront location with extensive views over the beach, coastline and open sea.
These houses offer an incredible opportunity to purchase a very modern and exciting house designed by Rame Architects in the beautiful Cornish village of Polzeath just three miles from Rock.
After the uncertainty of the independence vote, Scotland is back in business.
Fig 1: In the ‘top drawer’ of Scottish sporting estates: Tillypronie in Aberdeenshire. Offers over £10.5m
In contrast with 2014, when Scotland’s Independence Referendum brought the market for Scottish sporting estates grinding to a halt, there is little sign of a similar knee-jerk reaction taking place in the wake of the Brexit vote on June 23. In fact, some leading Scottish agents maintain that the post-Brexit decline in the sterling exchange rate has reawakened interest among overseas buyers—always an influential element in this rarefied marketplace.
As Rob McCulloch of Strutt & Parker (0131–226 2500)—who earlier this month launched the prestigious, 12,000-acre Tillypronie estate (Fig 1) near Tarland, Aberdeenshire, at a guide price of ‘offers over £10.5 million’— explains: ‘In a normal year, I would expect to see about 20 sporting estates launched on the market in Scotland: in 2014, there were only seven. Last year, there were 19 and this year looks like being another average year, with 20 or so estates being offered for sale, and 13 either sold or under offer, although with September a key period, we won’t be able to draw any firm conclusions until the year end.’
With its first-class driven game-shooting, the unrivalled setting of its mansion house and gardens and its majestic position straddling Deeside and Donside on the eastern fringe of the Grampians, Tillypronie rightly belongs in ‘the top drawer’ of Scottish sporting estates, with something for everyone, the agents say.
At its heart lies imposing Tillypronie House, a spectacular 11-bedroom mansion built in 1867 by Sir John Clark, the diplomat son of Queen Victoria’s physician, Sir James Clark. Not only did Her Majesty lay the foundation stone, but she often visited the house with her friend and confidant John Brown. Other notable visitors included the American writer Henry James, who described it as ‘this supremely comfortable house—lying deep among the brown and purple moors… [with] the glorious view of sweeping hills and gleaming lochs that lies forever before the windows’.
James’s appreciation is shared by Philip Astor, the current owner of Tillypronie, who has enjoyed this ‘truly magical place’ since inheriting it from his father more than 30 years ago. Historically, the estate boasted one of the most prolific grouse moors in the Highlands, with a regular average of 2,000 brace a year in his father’s day in the 1960s and 1970s, and Mr Astor has worked hard in recent years to restore the grouse moors to something approaching their former glory.
He is also proud to have developed the renowned high-bird Towie pheasant shoot, within the steep-sided valleys of three tributary burns feeding the River Don. Tillypronie also offers roe-deer stalking, rough shooting and duck-flighting, trout fishing on a number of lochs and salmon fishing on the Don.
Fig 2: The 4,175-acre Fettercairn estate in Aberdeenshire. Offers over £15m
Vendors of highly priced Scottish estates—and their agents—will be encouraged to hear that the 4,175-acre, residential, farming and sporting Fettercairn estate (Fig 2) in Aberdeenshire has gone under offer, following its launch in June for ‘offers over £15m’ through Savills. For sale as a whole, or in four lots, at its heart is a grand, 22,880sq ft, Jacobean mansion, created around a 17th-century core, by William Burn in the 1820s and Robert Lorimer in the 1890s, and beautifully renovated by the present owners.
The sale includes 22 further estate houses, 1,345 acres of arable land, 281 acres of pasture, 1,840 acres of rough grazing and 562 acres of commercial and amenity woodland.
Following the sale in lots, through Savills and CKD Galbraith, of the Cayzer family’s 5,400-acre Kinpurnie estate in Angus after it failed to find a single buyer at its original £29m asking price, Savills (0131–247 3720) and Davis & Bowring (01524 274430) are joint agents in the sale of the 21,768-acre Tulchan estate (Fig 3) on Speyside, whose guide price of ‘offers over £25m’ makes it the most expensive ‘whole’ Scottish estate currently on the market.
Fig 3: Serene Tulchan on Speyside has 21,768 acres. Offers over £25m
Described as ‘a sporting Utopia’ and ‘simply one of the best all-round sporting estates in Scotland’, Tulchan occupies a glorious position on the edge of the Cairngorms National Park and is easily accessible by road, rail and air. Running through the estate is Scotland’s third longest river, the majestic River Spey, whose eight miles of double-bank fishing has earned Tulchan Water the accolade of one of the finest stretches of fly water in Europe.
In addition, the estate offers red-and roe-deer stalking, two driven grouse moors, hill-loch fishing and an ‘esteemed’ driven pheasant shoot. Overlooking the Spey valley at the heart of the estate is Tulchan Lodge, a 13-bedroom Edwardian shooting lodge built by George McCorquodale in 1906 and ideally suited to large house parties, with alternative accommodation provided by the modern stone-built, six-bedroom Knocktulchan Lodge and a number of holiday cottages scattered around the estate.
It’s all vested in a limited company, Tulchan Sporting Estates Ltd, which is wholly owned by the vendors, Derbyshire businessman Leon Litchfield and his wife, Gillian, who bought the estate in 1993. Transfer of ownership will be effected by means of a sale of the shares in the company, whose assets also include a productive in-hand farm, five let farms, extensive natural woodland and forestry and various development sites.
Fig 4: Handy for Glasgow or Edinburgh: the Leckie estate in Stirlingshire Offers over £3.38m
Evelyn Channing of Savills is also handling the sale of the historic and picturesque Leckie estate (Fig 4) near Gargunnock, Stirlingshire, previously owned by former Scottish Secretary Sir George Younger, 4th Viscount Younger, who died in 2003, and, following the death of his widow, Diana, is now being sold on behalf of their family.
An ancient and originally much larger estate owned by the Crown, Leckie was granted to Malcolm
de Leky in the 1350s. The Leckies remained in possession until 1668, when the estate was sold to the Moir family of Craigarnhall, in whose hands it remained until 1906, when it was purchased by the 1st Viscount Younger, who came from a long-established Scottish brewing family.
Beautifully positioned in relation to both Edinburgh and Glasgow, Leckie enjoys a wonderfully peaceful setting with magnificent views to the west and north towards the Trossachs. Following the sale of the former main estate house, the new, five-bedroom Leckie House was built in 1962 and, from 1992, was the Youngers’ much-loved family home.
The present, 1,546-acre estate, comprising Knock-O-Ronald Farm with a four-bedroom farmhouse, a cottage, farm buildings, 1,000 acres of pasture, rough grazing, woodland and lochs and an established pheasant shoot, plus farmland, a grouse moor and a further cottage, is for sale at ‘offers over £3.38m’ for the whole, or in four lots.
Fig 5: Sporting heaven only 50 miles from Inverness: the Gruinards estate in Sutherland. Offers over £1.5m
Buyers who yearn for space and solitude can find plenty of both in Sutherland, where the diverse, 4,057- acre Gruinards estate (Fig 5) near Ardgay, 50 miles north of Inverness, is for sale through the Edinburgh office of Goldsmith & Co (0131–476 6500) and Bell Ingram in Bonar Bridge (01863 766683), at ‘offers over £1.5m’.
A substantial mixed Highland sporting estate with a traditional Victorian shooting lodge in the heart of Strathcarron, Gruinards stretches from the banks of the river Carron across rich grassland to heather-clad moorland and the mountains beyond, however, being within an hour’s drive of inverness, it’s relatively accessible from most major UK hubs.
The main estate lodge, completed in 1897, was designed in Baronial style by A. Maitland & Sons and built from stone quarried in the grounds. it features a prominent four-storey tower with battlements, enhanced by some beautifully crafted stone-masonry. The interior reflects a similar level of craftsmanship in the pitch-pine panelling, plasterwork and fireplaces of the principal rooms.
The house was extensively renovated in the 1980s, when it was rewired throughout and had a new central-heating system put in. Bathrooms were also upgraded and, more recently, a new kitchen was installed.
The formal gardens surrounding the house include a number of mature trees and shrubs, a large variety of rhododendrons, and an en tout cas tennis court cleverly concealed within a nearby walled garden.
Elsewhere in the grounds, a former curling pond and a Victorian water garden evoke the more leisurely pursuits of a gentler age, although more robust sporting opportunities are readily available on the hills, lochs and woodland of the estate.
UK branded one of the world’s worst countries for Nature in ‘insubstantial’ report.
The natural world needs our help as never before,’ warns Sir David Attenborough in his forward to the depressing State of Nature 2016 report, realised last week, which found that the UK is ‘among the most nature-depleted countries in the world’, ranking 189th out of 218 assessed. One in seven of our wildlife species is at risk of extinction and more than half (56%) are in decline.
The study is infinitely more thorough than the inaugural report three years ago, pooling data from more than 50 organisations—twice as many as in 2013—including the RSPB, BTO, National Trust, Natural history Museum, Plantlife and Wildlife Trusts, to monitor 9,670 species (up from 3,148 in 2013). However, farmer and writer Robin Page of the Countryside Restoration Trust believes that the report paints ‘an incomplete picture’ and he’s not alone. ‘Three organisations that should have been included were not consulted—the Countryside Restoration Trust, the GWCT and Songbird Survival,’ he says.
Despite the Wildlife Trusts’ Director for England Stephen Trotter’s assertion that ‘this is not a fight with farmers—farmers are part of the solution to the problem’, this time, the finger of blame is pointed squarely at the ‘intensification of agriculture’ and its policy-driven new technologies used ‘at the expense of nature’. NFU Vice President Guy Smith argues that this ‘makes little sense’ as, in the past 25 years, ‘British agriculture has not intensified’—quite the opposite has happened. He adds: ‘We’re the generation of farmers that have embraced conservation, but, mysteriously, that never seems to be recognised by the wildlife NGOs.’
‘It seems unfair to overlook this,’ agrees James Spreckley, head of the Agricultural and Landed Estates team at law firm Lodders, especially as many farmers ‘embrace this responsibility at their own cost’ and ‘are expected to operate in a challenging economic environment which takes no account of this role’.
Two-thirds of farmers have signed up for agri-environment schemes, 30,000km (18,641 miles) of hedgerows have been revived and fertilisers and pesticides are used less than ever before. As a result, greenhouse-gas emissions from agriculture have decreased by 16% since 1990. ‘Other causes acknowledged in the report, such as urbanisation, climate change or increasing predator pressure, need greater attention,’ adds Mr Smith.
Back in 2013, the study was criticised for neither consulting the gamekeeping community nor investigating fully the severe effect of predation on wildlife. This repeated exclusion, says a spokesman from the National Gamekeepers’ Organisation, shows that ‘its authors simply do not understand the finer points of wildlife management’. He laments that ‘casual readers will go away with only half a story’.
‘Numbers of badgers and buzzards, for example, have all increased in the past 20–30 years,’ adds Mr Smith. ‘Sometimes, the wildlife lobby would rather turn a blind eye to that, like Nelson at Copenhagen.’
Mr Page goes even further, commenting that as the study largely ignores predation and overpopulation, it is ‘superficial, insubstantial and just a PR exercise’.
The report does admit that, although about 75% of land in the UK can be classed as agricultural, its analysis focuses on enclosed farmland, which covers 40%. Climate change is acknowledged as the most significant long-term threat to Nature globally, but, in the short term at least, its benefit outweighs the detriment, with increased wintertime survival and more southern species expanding into the north than northerly species lost. However, rising sea levels and warmer waters are clearly threatening. Other culprits are hydrological change, a decrease in traditional forest management, such as coppicing, which affects woodland habitats, and the abandonment of practices such as grazing, burning and cutting, crucial for the maintenance of heathland and grassland habitats.
The report notes that public spending on UK biodiversity has fallen by 32%, from 0.037% of GDP in 2008 to 0.025% in 2014–15. CLA Deputy President Tim Breitmeyer is of the opinion that farmers and environmental and wildlife groups must work together, especially as, from 2020, new policy is inevitable: ‘We encourage Green groups to acknowledge that farmers are best placed to continue to deliver biodiversity improvements and to share their ideas and experience in formulating policy to deliver a better state of Nature for our nation.’
State of Nature: the figures
In terms of species decline, the worst areas are the lowlands (down 60% between 1970 and 2013), followed by coastal areas (58%), uplands (55%), freshwater, wetlands and woodland (53%), farmland (52%), urban (47%) and marine (38%)
Our off-beat Christmas pudding recipe is perfect for those who suffer from egg allergies - and just as good for those who don't.
It’s ‘Stir-up Sunday’ this weekend, and there are any number of recipes out there to help you make a beautiful pudding for Christmas Day.
But for those who can’t tolerate eggs, it’s a little harder. This recipe solves that problem; it was first published by Country Life almost a decade ago, having been handed down through the generations to one of our contributors.
It’s just as good today as it’s ever been – regardless of whether you have an egg allergy or not!
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My grandmother had to adapt her traditional Christmas pudding recipe to create this one, as my uncle was allergic to eggs. Her unbeatable version of the seasonal pud is light and moist—and the key ingredient is the grated carrot.
The Ingredients
½ pound breadcrumbs
½ pound raisins
1tsp ground ginger
1tsp salt
1tsp mixed spice
¼ pound suet
2tbsp milk
¼ pound brown sugar
¼ pound lemon or mixed peel
4½oz golden syrup
4oz grated carrot
2tbsp brandy or rum
The Method
Prepare the fruit and chop the peel. Grate the carrot. Mix the spice, salt and ground ginger and the breadcrumbs together in a bowl. Add the rest of the dry ingredients and mix.
Warm the milk in a saucepan and dissolve the syrup in it. Add the spirit and mix it in thoroughly, and then add the mixed dry ingredients.
Fill two greased pudding basins to the brim with the mixture and cover them with grease-proof paper. Put the basins in a double boiler and steam for eight hours.
Once done, remove and store in a fridge or larder. On Christmas Day, steam the pudding in the basins in the double boiler again for three hours before serving.
Best served with double cream, brandy cream or brandy butter—or all of the above!
Good-news stories involving railway companies are as rare as... well, as trains running on time.
Commuters board a vintage Belmond British Pullman train at Ashford International station in Kent for a surprise journey to London.
Commuters waiting to board the morning train from Ashford to London on Thursday were no doubt in dreary moods as they stood on the platform in Kent.
With winter weather now biting Britain, they could be forgiven for bemoaning the fact that they still had another two days of work, and another four lengthy rail trips, before they could get their weekends started.
But as the clock approached 7am, they got a rather astonishing – and utterly magnificent – surprise.Instead of the usual SouthEastern rolling stock, a Belmond British Pullman train turned up instead.
Luxury vintage train Belmond British Pullman arrives to take us to London Victoria in style pic.twitter.com/14KwLSwVcY
The beautiful old train, just under 100 years old, is the sister of the Venice Simplon-Orient Express – and from the images, seems equally luxurious.
Some of the cannier passengers knew what to expect – a social media campaign by the train company had advertised the stunt ahead of time.
But many turned up for the service to London Victoria entirely unaware of what to expect.
“I turn up every day, stand in the same spot and wait for the same train,” regular commuter Tamzin Crook told the BBC.
But instead of battling for a seat, Tamzin and her fellow passengers were treated to a three-course breakfast enjoyed to the accompaniment of live music.
David Cameron's surname turns out to have a rather unpleasant etymology - but Mo Farah's seems spot on after yet another wonderful year for the British athlete, as George Young finds out.
David Cameron announces his resignation as Prime Minister in the wake of the UK vote on EU membership.
David Cameron probably thought he’d had suffered enough insults for 2016. But one more is on its way – his name itself is actually an insult: ‘crooked nose’.
The people that the ex-prime minister has to ‘thank’ for this news are a group of researchers from the University of the West of England, who have spent the last six years looking into the most common surnames in Britain and Ireland.
It turns out that 19% of surnames are in fact derived from nicknames – and one of those, Cameron, translates in early Scottish Gaelic as something like crooked nose.
The results of the study have been incorporated into the newly-published edition of the Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland, which details the linguistic origin and geographical distribution of 45,600 frequent family names in Britain and Ireland – whether locative, like 50% of the nation’s most common surnames, or otherwise.
Each entry includes the current and 1881 frequencies of the name, main location of origin and wherever possible, an explanation based on previously unknown records from the 11th to 19th Century.
Interestingly, the directory’s chief etymologist, Professor Peter McClure says that “the modern appearance of a family name is not always a good guide to its origin.” Professor McClure cites the example of Edgoose which rather disappointingly “has nothing to do with geese but is a sixteenth-century pronunciation of the name Edecus.”
The project, largely funded by the Arts and Humanities Research Council, also explains foreign surnames in Britain and Ireland. For example, Patel – one of the most common Indian surnames in Britain with over 100,000 bearers today and until now, unexplained in the Oxford publication – is a status name from a Hindu and Parsi word for a village headman.
Other surnames unexplained until now include two of particular interest to football fans: Redknapp (as in Harry) means ‘redhead servant’, while Vardy (as in the England and Leicester City striker) means, rather charmingly, ‘have a fair day’.
The Oxford Dictionary of Family Names in Britain and Ireland has just been published in four hardback print volumes for £400. An e-book version is also available, and the dictionary will also be accessible for free via public libraries that purchase the resource.
What’s in a name?
Here’s our pick of the most interesting names in the list:
Redknap (or Redknapp) – This name does not appear in previous dictionaries; it is probably a nickname from Middle English red ‘red’ + knappe ‘boy, servant’, for a boy or servant with red hair or a ruddy complexion. However, in some cases, Redknap may be a locative name, from Middle English red + knap ‘hillock’.
Campbell – This Scottish surname originated as a nickname from Gaelic caimbeul ‘crooked mouth’. Through folk etymology, it was often represented in Latin documents as de campo bello ‘of the beautiful field’, which sometimes led to the name being translated into Anglo-Norman French as Beauchamp.
Hislop – Previously, this name has been incorrectly explained as coming from an unidentified place in northern England; it is actually a locative surname of Scottish origin. It comes from a minor place called Hislop in Roxburghshire, which is on the banks of Hazelhope Burn, a tributary of Falnash Burn, which feeds into the river Teviot. The place-name, as well as Hazelhope Burn, derives from Middle English hasel ‘hazel’ + hop ‘deep enclosed valley’.
Palin – This is from a late Middle English development of the surname Paulin, itself from the Middle English personal name Paulin, a diminutive form of Paul. Some previous dictionaries have incorrectly explained this either as a locative name from Palling in Norfolk or Poling in Sussex, or as a relationship name from Welsh ap Heilyn ‘son of Heilyn’.
Farah – This surname has two sources, an English one and a Muslim one. The rare English name is a northern pronunciation of the much commoner Farrer, an occupational name from Middle English ferrour ‘ironworker, blacksmith’, itself a borrowing of Old French ferreor. The Muslim name cpmes from the Arabic faraḥ ‘joy, happiness, delight’. The sort of feelings you might get from, say, winning a couple of Olympic gold medals…
