The Crown at Bildeston in the heart of Suffolk is a haven for the sportsman and as worthy of a dedicated weekend pilgrimage from afar as it is a post-work pint or Sunday roast for locals. Bildeston itself is unspoiled, and Crown guests are met on arrival by an inviting…
I’ve never been entirely sure about convertibles. I was put off in my younger days by a friend’s Alfa Romeo Spider. It was pretty with its Pininfarina styling but with the hood down your hair was parted in the middle by the wind, you couldn’t hear yourself speak and most…
Thai basil venison mince stir-fry with crispy egg recipe Ingredients 1 tbsp fish sauce 1 tbsp soy sauce 1 lime, zest and juice 4 spring onions, thinly sliced 1/2 to 1 red chilli, thinly sliced 10g ginger, peeled and finely grated 15g Thai basil leaves, roughly shredded 15g coriander leaves,…
Recipe for venison, fennel and anchovy salad Ingredients 200g venison fillet 1 tsp caraway seeds, roughly crushed 1 fennel bulb, trimmed and finely sliced 2 tbsp parsley, roughly chopped 1 lemon, zest and juice 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 8 jarred or tinned anchovy fillets, medium chopped A pinch…
Recalling exactly when you first set eyes on your house, your spouse or even a grouse is to be expected but I am slightly taken aback that I can clearly remember my first sighting of a breed of dog. So beautifully coloured and stunningly glossy was it that I was…
Whether taking to the heather of the Highlands in pursuit of the monarch of the glen or searching the woodlands of the Home Counties for a sorrel, stalkers need a rifle fit for the task. From utilitarian tools of the trade, built to absorb the toughest conditions the hill can…
Rizzini 550 RB ‘Sporting’ First impressions of the 550 RB ‘Sporting’ are of an unusually large and attractive rounded-bar side-by-side. It is no lightweight at 8lb 2oz but it is not intended to be. This is a gun primarily designed for competitive shooting. The overall weight, stocking and ribbing are…
Recipe for No-churn Cranachan ice cream Ingredients 700g raspberries 4 tbsp granulated sugar 150g rolled oats 25g salted butter 3 tbsp runny or gently melted heather honey 397g tin sweetened condensed milk 225g cream cheese 4 tbsp whisky 2 tsp vanilla bean paste 600ml double cream Raspberry ripple Place the…
Prue Leith is insatiable. One of her earliest memories is her father saying “never get between Prue and her victuals”. But this hunger and passion is for pretty much everything: gardening, the countryside, food production, fishing, The Great British Bake Off, universities, television, British Rail, cats, her dogs Tattie and…
One of the pleasures of being of a certain age is seasoned friendships and familiar landscapes. Since the early 1970s, when I stayed often as a schoolboy on a farm near Cirencester, one for me has been to return to South Gloucestershire to find little has changed and several of…
