A lovely sunny start to the day made even more special as my lovely macaw buddies called in to say Hi. For about 5 mins. it was blissful as we sat in the garden chatting macaw style, and sharing treats – when suddenly they became spooked. I’d heard a quad bike earlier but presumed it was the shepherd. Meanwhile, the birds kept looking into the distance, and I knew they were not happy and were preparing to go. I couldn’t see or hear anything untoward, but then Blue (our rescue peacock) started to alarm call, and a few mins later my macaw buddies took flight. Then all became clear.

The sound of a horn in the distance, hounds yelping, the Portman hunt, plus quad bikes moving closer through nearby woodland.

Nature never ceases to amaze me. Birds are sensitive creatures and the macaws and peacock heard and sensed the danger way before we did. So instead of a creative and relaxing morning in the studio, we then spent an hour or so, chasing thro’ woodland checking that the badger setts in the vicinity had not been blocked. The Portman hunt are a bldy pain! Whilst following the rider and quad bike trails, it was also obvious that they were most definitely not, as my mp @awmurrison insists, following the scent of an oily rag .