CLA Game Fair 2008
The long drive back from Scotland was hard going and we were both pretty frazzled on Sunday when we called at the Country Land & Business Association Game Fair, held at Blenheim Palace this year after last year's washout at Harewood House.
Was it the sun or the heat or did I think that something was missing this year? There was no shortage of people and no shortage of trade but when you have been to a few Game Fairs they all begin to look the same.
The same old faces were chairing the debates and hogging the panels. After hearing John Wilson demand a cormorant cull for the umpteenth time, it all begins to get a bit tiring.
The demonstrations I saw were OK but hardly eye-popping. Henry Gilbey is a fine fishing photographer but seeing him chucking a bass lure on a lily pond is not the most entertaining spectacle in the calendar.
Then there are the crowds. One thing I've noticed about hunting, fishing and shooting - it attracts all sorts, from Dukes to dossers. It was seriously hot on Sunday and still people brought their dogs. But at least the dogs looked better turned out than some of the owners.
Perhaps it was the temperatures making me feel crabby. But all those stands were just too much, leaving us grossed out on tweed and wellies. I couldn't help thinking I'd have rather been fishing.
Was it the sun or the heat or did I think that something was missing this year? There was no shortage of people and no shortage of trade but when you have been to a few Game Fairs they all begin to look the same.
The same old faces were chairing the debates and hogging the panels. After hearing John Wilson demand a cormorant cull for the umpteenth time, it all begins to get a bit tiring.
The demonstrations I saw were OK but hardly eye-popping. Henry Gilbey is a fine fishing photographer but seeing him chucking a bass lure on a lily pond is not the most entertaining spectacle in the calendar.
Then there are the crowds. One thing I've noticed about hunting, fishing and shooting - it attracts all sorts, from Dukes to dossers. It was seriously hot on Sunday and still people brought their dogs. But at least the dogs looked better turned out than some of the owners.
Perhaps it was the temperatures making me feel crabby. But all those stands were just too much, leaving us grossed out on tweed and wellies. I couldn't help thinking I'd have rather been fishing.
Labels: Blenheim Palace, CLA Game Fair, Harewood House, Henry Gilbey, John Wilson
posted by Richard Donkin at
10:17 PM
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