A real piece of our heritage

Everyone agreed this was the biggest turnout in twenty years. Over a hundred Heythrop huntsmen and a crowd of wellwishers and supporters of at least a couple of thousand assembled outside the Fox on Boxing Day. One notable absentee was Gina Burrows who broke with an ages-old tradition of the Mayor welcoming the Heythrop Hunt on behalf of the townspeople and sharing a drink with the Master. She had some prior engagement apparently. Hmm. Pull the other one. It may have been just as well though because a rousing speech on horseback by Mr Langdale - greeted with tumultuous applause from the crowds - included the promise that hunting would get back to normal once "we have got rid of this appalling government". More like a political rally. The Heythrop were perhaps pushing their luck a bit. Gina might have found all that a bit hard to take. As far as we know David Cameron wasn't there in person but his spirit must have cheered at the sentiment. But do we know what Mr Cameron thinks about hunting Is that a policy he has told us about yet or not Its very confusing since most of us thought all this stuff had actually been banned already. The Police clearly thought that discretion was in order. With complete traffic chaos and motorist's tempers flaring there wasn't a single policeman in sight - even of the community support officer variety. Perhaps they were all out in the country waiting to arrest hunt saboteurs.

The hunt has raised 528 for the Penhurst School National Children's Home at Chipping Norton from a collection among spectators at its Boxing Day meet, which gathered in the town.