Archive for January, 2018

Latest news.

Got involved in a photographic shoot for the Plantagenet Society – for their website and general publicity – and I include a photo from that session. It seemed rather strange to be trooping about on a Saturday morning in January in Medieval costume on a wet field! thank goodness for the invention of Wellington boots! anyhow it was fun. We do offer a medieval costume display to support the theme of an event – like for example Medieval jousting and the like. The bar of authenticity is set  high when its come to  historical costumes for re-enactment societies and groups – quite rightly so – so judge me primarily on my falconry display and not my outfit! I leave you with a photo of the session. I thank the Plantagenet Society and the photographer Pat Patrick for the picture. The falcon I took over was ‘Pippa’ who is a lovely tame falcon and ideal for the day.

2018 first falconry displays blog entry of the year.

Well we are into 2018 – it is always nice to enter the new year. Our Christmas displays went well although Boxing Day was wet in the afternoon so we spent our time in the Tudor Hall at Thornbury Castle where we flew ‘Bo’ our Eagle Owl. She always delights guests and it was real ‘Harry Potter’ stuff flying  up and down the Tudor Hall to guest outstretched gloved hands. We dashed outside to fly a ‘Pippa’ one of our Lanner Falcons and then ‘Arizona’ our Harris Hawk when the rain relented slightly with guests standing dry under the arch. Then we returned to the Hall which was lovely and warm and allowed guests to handle ‘Pippa’ and then ‘Pete’ the Kestrel – all in all despite the rain it was a happy afternoon. It is wonderful to have the Tudor Hall which is often in use for wedding banquets and the like. We continue our daily flying and on stand by for bookings. We will be in winter mode for another 8 weeks or so and then we will start to prepare for our Spring and Summer events – seems a long way off at the moment!

I am currently reading ‘My House of Sky’ by Hetty Saunders regarding the life and work of J A Baker. He wrote the book entitled the ‘The Peregrine’ in 1967. As anyone who knows me I am a long time admirer of the book having first read it in the  early 1970’s. I am reading it with much interest. It is based on his archive at Essex University which I visited a number of years ago – I will read on and report back.

I shall end my blog with a nice picture of ‘Bo’ taken at a medieval themed wedding some years ago – she is thirty now!