Published by Time Inc. (UK) Ltd The Field is a monthly glossy magazine dedicated to those brave souls who shoot, fish and hunt way beyond the call of duty. Since 1853, its staff has selflessly brought its readers the cream of rural life, be it pheasant shooting, dry-fly fishing or the distinct merits of Cheval Blanc. If you love field sports, errant terriers and very foxy friends at hunt balls, The Field is for you.
THE FIELD
We cannot let this fiasco be repeated • On 23 April, Natural England announced that three General Licences were to be withdrawn just 36 hours later, causing chaos in the countryside. Jonathan Young looks at the context and implications
Art in the field • Lionel Edwards’ watercolours have come to be regarded as the visual embodiment of those red-letter days with hounds, as Janet Menzies describes
Field Notes • Record nominations for ‘Rural Oscars’
Glanusk oaks on view for first time
In brief
The Naked, Strewth • A MONTHLY EXPLORATION OF THE BRITISH FONDNESS FOR REMOVING CLOTHES IN A GOOD CAUSE
Hen harriers on Salisbury Plain
#TheField • MONTHLY ROUND-UP OF WHAT’S HAPPENING IN OUR WORLD ON SOCIAL MEDIA
Why we must face up to our responsibilities • The 2018/19 season was dominated by discussion about bag sizes and the market for shot game. With these issues now in the public domain, what must we do to safeguard our sport?
New in the field • Our monthly guide to everything covetable in the coverts, tremendous on the Test and bang on in the butt
Letters
The Church’s more than one foundation • With the housing crisis worsening and homelessness increasing, there’s been a proposal from the pulpit. But will it convert the NIMBYs, wonders Rupert Bates
TAKE 3 – GREAT KITCHENS
Country estate of the month • WESTBURY FARM ESTATE, CHELTENHAM, GLOUCESTERSHIRE
WRECK OF THE MONTH
TAKE 3 – GEORGIAN HOUSES
Should we be taking a walk on the rewild side? • Tim Field looks at the implications of allowing nature to take its course – with a bit of help from some reintroduced predators
KNEPP CASTLE ESTATE
How to be less weedy • Natural talent will out, says Jonathan Young, but what can we mere mortals do to emulate the gods of pitch, court or covert?
A right do before “I do” • Getting in a flap about hen parties, Eve Jones thinks she’d prefer (if the day ever arrives) to stick her L-plate on a horse and enjoy it in Ireland
A sense of fair play • Gentlemanly conduct, selfless duty and chivalry were among the desirable qualities demonstrated by sporting prowess, which became a tenet of empire, as Allan Mallinson explains
Firearms to stop charging big game • Empire introduced new quarry and conditions, resulting in a range of guns featuring big bores, combination barrels and a no-nonsense design
FIELDSPORTS IN FAR-FLUNG PLACES • The Field’s archives date back to 1853. Here we present a collection of some of the talking points across the British Empire between 1870 and 1940
PUTTING VICTORIA’S NAME ON IT • Born 200 years ago, Queen Victoria bestowed her name to places and features throughout the Empire – and to some surprising modern creations
FURNITURE FIT FOR HEROES • In Victoria’s time, when a British officer went to war his creature comforts went with him, again and again
The women of the Raj • A passage to India was a culture shock for most memsahibs. How well or badly did they adapt to the changes in their lives?
UNCONVENTIONAL WOMEN
CURRY AND SPICE AND ALL THINGS NICE • For the young wife landing in British India, a whole new culinary education was called for
A hat to defy India’s dangerous rays • Deaths from sunstroke were not uncommon during the conflicts...