ICONIC STYLE
Shooting 30
fashion What do you do with a jumper that has fed a large family of moths? If you’re a first-class shot and possibly ducal then, of course, you continue wearing it, says Jonathan Young
One of the odder aspects of country life is the addiction to knackered clothing, especially in the shooting field – a truth epitomised by the Prince of Wales’ old Barbour coat, a tapestry of patches held together by love and the original zip. To some, it looks like something rescued from a scarecrow, but to shooting types it whispers, subtly, “He’s one of us.” As easily as a Man United shirt declares the wearer’s affiliation, a battered ensemble of tweeds and gumboots tells everyone that you are home team, someone who can distinguish a redleg partridge from a grey one, handle a gun well, and keep exact count of how many pheasants were dropped in the kale on the last drive. But while the kit may look as though it’s lost a wrestling bout with a blackthorn hedge, you can guarantee it’s of the best quality
and probably bespoke. And at one stage, many seasons ago, it was actually rather smart. So, given that everything has to be horribly new at some stage, what do keen game shots buy and from whom? Given that you need to be fairly invisible to the birds, warm and dry, most people start with the shooting coat. They were once made of heavy waxed cotton, but today, they all have a waterproof membrane and you can chuck them in the washing machine. The best have bellows pockets for cartridges and can withstand heavy rain. Popular models for men include Barbour Bransdale, Musto Highland and Schoffel Ptarmigan, and for women the Schoffel Rockingham, Musto Burnham and Harkila Stornoway. Gumboots come next, as every other type of footwear just won’t cope with the standard mud and
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Above These days, shooting coats like the Barbour Bransdale can be chucked in the washing machine if you slip on a cowpat
muck of Britain in winter (though leather boots work well on August grouse moors and September partridge stubbles). Mostly, they’re green, with those made by Le Chameau and Aigle ever popular. My favourites, however, are Gumleaf, which are extremely
