It was my first dog, Weimaraner Becky, that introduced me to the shooting world. I have been writing for the sporting press for over three decades and my article on French partridges was included in The Game Book – A Shooting Anthology. Living in Suffolk and married to a retired gamekeeper, I now enjoy standing in line while my husband shoots, having been there, done it and got the t-shirt!

Becky introduced me to all things canine, including agility, working trials, the show ring and film work including dramas for the BBC. The North Downs in Kent provided challenging work on shoots and prepared me for the rigours of walked-up grouse in the Cairngorms. On marriage to a gamekeeper, I moved to Hertfordshire where I became ‘unpaid underkeeper’, rearing partridge and pheasant from day olds, dogging in, beating and picking-up, providing a good source of topics to write about.

On early retirement, we moved to Suffolk with ferrets and four black labradors, one of which, Quince, twice won his Gamekeeping class at Crufts.

We soon made contact with several shoots, picking-up and working the game cart. With our last black labrador retired, my husband now has time to pick up his gun and we have enjoyed several seasons on different shoots in Suffolk, Norfolk and Essex.