Falconry Displays

Well I seem particularly verbal at the beginning of 2015! Actually I am waiting to go out and do a display later so I thought I would take this opportunity to jump on the band wagon and talk about  the book ‘H is for Hawk’ by Helen Macdonald.

I was aware of the launch of this book last year in Ross on Wye and the odd thing was the name Helen did ring a distant bell.

I had done a short spell at the National birds of prey centre in 1997/98 and had worked  briefly alongside a lady of that name. Anyway I will get to the punch line – I got the book for Christmas and there is an account of the release of a wild Goshawk back into Newent Woods. I remember that! which confirmed to me that it was the same Helen. I do recall her telling us about her experience in the middle east breeding falcons and something about Cambridge University.  So let me in I know her!

Actually the book seems to have gained its own momentum and is widely recognised as a modern classic.

I really enjoyed it having read some of  falconry related books that Helen mentions. She does distill well the contrast of her modern tutored way of training a hawk to that of T H White who was floundering using methods gleamed from old falconry books that he did not  fully understand and are now redundant anyway.

It was a great read I enjoyed it. I leave you with a picture of a Goshawk – not mine it was at the Falconry Centre back in the 1970s – the photo by Leigh Jauncey. Goshawks are not really suitable for display work – too nervous – so best left for falconers to fly in the field.