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The scavenging Milvus milvus

By
Editorial team
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The red kite is a popular conservation success story, says Dorset Wildlife Trust’s Jack Clarke, but the birds are still at risk from poisoning

Red kite images © Amy Lewis

The red kite has become an emblem of conservation success in the United Kingdom.
Once on the brink of extinction, these beautiful raptors and their impressive aerial displays have captivated the hearts of both conservationists and the public.
The red kite (Milvus milvus) is a medium-sized bird of prey known for its striking reddish-brown plumage, distinctive forked tail … and its impressive aerial acrobatics. In fact, it is that forked tail, combined with a wingspan of up to 195cm or more than six feet, which enables them to manoeuvre gracefully through the air, appearing to glide with exceptional agility.
Red kites are found in a variety of habitats – farmland, woodland, grassland and even urban areas. Although considered opportunistic hunters, occasionally hunting small mammals such as rabbits, red kites are primarily scavengers, feeding on carrion.
During April, females will lay a clutch of one to three eggs in a nest built by both parents. The nest appears untidy – sometimes built on top of old crows’ nests, and lined with sheep’s wool and random scraps of paper, plastic and cloth. Shakespeare referred to red kite nests in ‘The Winter’s Tale’: ‘When the kite builds, look to lesser linen.’ Though now considered a rural bird, red kites frequented the streets of Elizabethan London, feeding on scraps and stealing hung out washing for their nests.
During the incubation period and in the first few weeks after hatching, the male provides food for the nest. Chicks usually fledge after 50 to 60 days, and the parents typically care for them for another two to three weeks once they have left the nest.
Previously widespread throughout the UK, their population declined dramatically in the early 20th century due to both habitat loss and persecution from landowners. Thanks to successful conservation efforts and re-introduction programs, red kite numbers have made a remarkable recovery – there are now an estimated 4,400 breeding pairs throughout the UK. However, this now-protected species still faces many challenges.

Still a problem
Relying heavily on scavenging, red kites are particularly vulnerable to illegal poisoning – as reported previously in the BV. Birds also often fall victim to poison baits intended for foxes or crows, as well as rodenticide poisoning due to feeding on the dead rats they scavenge. Simple actions by landowners, such as refraining from using harmful pesticides, disposing of waste responsibly and avoiding disturbance near nesting sites, are all essential for the survival of this species in the UK.
A good place to spot soaring red kites in North Dorset is on the hills of Fontmell Down nature reserve (also worth a visit just for the stunning views over the Blackmore Vale). Listen for the red kites‘ mewing calls and marvel at the aerobatic theatrics of this marvellous bird..

To find out more about the wonderful wildlife found on our nature reserves in Dorset, visit dorsetwildlifetrust.org.uk.

Growing up with a depressed parent – a complicated journey

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Editorial team
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An anonymous Dorset Mind writer describes how navigating life with a depressed parent has shaped her – and how she’s working to heal herself

TRIGGER WARNING:
THIS ARTICLE CONTAINS THEMES THAT COULD BE DISTRESSING, INCLUDING THOUGHTS OF SUICIDE. PLEASE SEEK SUPPORT VIA SIGNPOSTING AT THE END.

I don’t claim to have a ‘bad dad’, nor even a bad relationship with him. It’s just … complicated … And always has been.
My dad suffers with a long-term health condition and also depression. He has done for the best part of my life, and I grew up accustomed to having a depressed parent, though not understanding the effect that had on my own personality.
I witnessed a lot of short fuses. I can still feel the fear that cemented me to the spot after I’d done something wrong.
My dad never screamed at us – it was what he wouldn’t say that gripped me.
From a young age I tried to accommodate this uneasy presence in the house. I learned to tiptoe around, to stay far from trouble, keeping myself quiet and unnoticeable – a habit which has followed me into my adult life. I also had terrible anxiety as a teenager which will likely always haunt me.

Disquieting memories
I hold no resentment for the way I’ve turned out, but as an adult I’ve started to shake off some of the lasting effects of my dad’s temper. I realised I cared far too much about pleasing other people, and that I was struggling to stand up for myself.
When I look back on certain memories, I immediately have a sense of complete discomfort – which is how I’d describe a lot of my childhood.
Obviously, it wasn’t all bad memories, but that’s the problem with having a depressed parent: it affects everything. I’ve struggled with depression myself and I know it is extremely hard to see things clearly when you’re that low – my deeply depressed dad is excellent at pretending he isn’t.
Now, with the benefit of maturity and distance, I can see as clear as day which parts of me are a direct result of my dad’s mood swings. A lot of my teenage anxiety was caused by the lack of stability – as an already very nervous 12-year-old, I overheard him quietly threaten suicide to my mum.

At least he’s not …
It’s become so important for me to recognise that compared with a lot of my peers, I did have a difficult upbringing.
Everyone has different relationships with their parents, but I can’t help feeling sad when I see my friends casually video call and chat with their dads – as though they are friends.
But I am so grateful to my mum
who has been the most incredible presence and wonderful force in my life.
Somehow, there’s always the “at least he’s not …” conversation. And I agree – it could have been so much worse.
However, I owe it to both my child and adult self (who remains an adamant people pleaser) to see my family life for what it was.
I never wanted to be a product of my dad’s mental illness and the first step to moving away from this learned behaviour was simply recognising it – when it happens, what sets it off and how it makes me feel.
Recognising my own reaction to my dad’s actions helped me to determine what I should do with the emotions I was absorbing from him. I found I took in a lot of his anger, often then passing it on to someone else.
I have also learned how to stop being so complacent and agreeable in order to avoid confrontation, which was a huge part of growing up for me.
I was once told by a teacher in Year 7 that I “seemed to fade into the background.” I think about that comment every time I feel out of place in a conversation, or when I feel myself slipping back into the timid girl I was growing up.
It’s sometimes exhausting, attempting to reverse an entire part of my life. But for the most part, I’ve finally grown into my authentic self.
I just wish I could go back in time and give myself a hug.

Support for you:

Visit Dorset Mind for local mental health support and to discover ways to keep mentally healthy
Young Minds have support for young people and parents.
Call Samaritans for free 24/7 emotional support on 116 123
Dorset’s mental health Connection is a 24/7 helpline open to all ages. Dorset residents or people visiting Dorset can call 0800 652 0190 or NHS 111
Please call 999 if someone is in immediate danger.

Harts of Stur triumphs – four wins at Housewares Awards 2023

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Editorial team
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Harts of Stur, the family-owned department store based in Sturminster Newton, has added four more awards to its trophy cabinet at the Housewares Awards 2023.

Happy Harts. Some of the Harts team celebrating their recent awards success

Organised in partnership with Housewares magazine, the awards celebrate the outstanding achievements of the housewares industry, applauding innovation, dedication, and excellence among manufacturers and retailers.
Harts impressed the judges with its robust online presence and also its excellent and diverse in-store offerings, such as the garden department and Harts Coffee Loft. The department store retained its title as Best Online Independent of the Year for the second year, receiving specific praise for its seamless e-commerce, fast page loading, the user-friendly navigation, mobile optimisation, and also for the clean website design.

Sam Belcher with his award for Salesperson of the Year.

It’s always a team award
It was Harts’ first time winning Independent Retailer of the Year, awarded for their expertise across the retail spectrum, including aspects like store design, product range, customer service, marketing, promotion, and innovation.
Additionally, Harts’ recent store redevelopment and display creativity earned them the joint Best Retail Display of the Year award (alongside Woodbridge Kitchen Company). Sam Belcher completed the award quartet by winning Best Salesperson of the Year – recognising his adaptability, product knowledge and sales skills.
Upon the announcement, David Conduit, purchasing director, said, ‘We are over the moon to receive these prestigious awards. Harts is and always has been a team effort, and these awards recognise the contribution all colleagues make to ensure we stay ahead. We never like to stand still – we’re already working on enhancements, both online and in-store, that will hopefully see us as award challengers again next year!’
Harts’ success doesn’t stop here – they are also finalists in the eCommerce awards, the results of which will be revealed in September.

3 days, 12 cyclists,215 Miles … and £11,000 for Teddy20!

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Editorial team
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In an extraordinary display of determination and solidarity, 12 adventurous cyclists took to the roads in June, covering 215 miles across France, Belgium, and Holland as they cycled from Dunkirk to Amsterdam.
Their three-day journey was raising funds for Teddy20, the Blandford-based children’s cancer charity.
The feat was not only about physical endurance but also a shared commitment to an important cause.
The team of cyclists – Owen Newton, Alice Jewer, Matt Wilkey, Kevin Strafford, James Blackham, Lewis Fish, Robert Smith, Jonny Pyke, Simon Stranger, Gary Johnson, William Fyfe, and Andrew Rodden – include many with personal stories of the way in which Teddy20 has supported themselves or a loved one.
They pedalled their way through picturesque landscapes and historic towns, and the team’s fundraising total currently stands at more than £11,000!
Making a difference
Teddy20 is committed to supporting young cancer patients and their families, ensuring they never face the battle alone. The funds raised by the cycling team will make a huge difference, providing essential support, financial help, and emotional care to those affected by childhood cancer.
Along the journey, the cyclists not only pushed their physical limits but forged unbreakable bonds, supporting each other through every challenge. Their camaraderie transformed a gruelling task into an unforgettable shared triumph. They were backed up by a supportive crew, including Brian Wareham, Jill Budd, Adam Gonthier, and Sophie Ferry, and sponsored by various local businesses. Teddy20 has expressed profound gratitude to the cycle team, back-up crew, and sponsors.
The team’s fundraising page remains open until the end of August.

  • If you’re interested in signing up for the next Teddy20 Charity Cycle Challenge contact [email protected] to get your name on the list.

    Sponsored by Wessex Internet

It’s gouda brie a good day

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Editorial team
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In 1999 Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival launched with only three cheesemakers. Now, there are more than 20, and so much more too

If you visited the first Sturminster Newton Cheese Festival in 1999 you would have found a couple of large Scout tents on the Recreation Ground. These were home to the food traders at the time – just three cheesemakers there. The cheese was mainly down at the Creamery, operated by Dairy Crest, situated in Station Road. But times move on – the Creamery might have closed but the Cheese Festival has continued to grow.
Now there are two very large marquees housing over 20 cheese makers alongside a host of other local food and drinks traders, plus outside food catering. Whether your preference is for a sharp cheddar or a pungent blue there will be a cheese to tempt you.
Once you’re all cheesed out, how about an olive, Cornish pasty, slice of cake, piece of chocolate or a biscuit (or two)? You’ll find all those and more, plus Dorset gin and vodka, in the food marquees which hum with activity from the moment the gates open.


In the next marquee there are the crafters – offering everything from candles and leatherwork to art and jewellery. Stop a while and watch the Dorset Lacemakers or the Dorset Coppice Group demonstrate their ancient skills. And the local groups and charities woud love it if you stopped to chat, lend them an ear and let them tell you about what they do.
For the young – and young at heart – there is Punch & Judy and the ever-popular Strawberry Jam. All kids shows are free for all to enjoy.
Add in the Real Ale & Cider Tent and some live music (including Nautical Graffiti, The Songsmiths and Ribble) and you have all the ingredients for a great day out – all that is needed is you!

Find the Cheese Festival!
9th and 10th September
10am to 5pm
Recreation Ground, Sturminster Newton

Discounted Early Bird tickets are available until midnight 8th September.
For the first time there is a weekend ticket – these must be purchased in advance from the website and will not be available on the gate.
Tickets and more information at cheesefestival.co.uk.
Follow
SturCheeseFestival on Fb SturminsterCheeseFest on IG for more news.

Reynolds Stone: Dorset’s legendary engraver

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Editorial team
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The renowned artist and writer was known for his distinctive engravings – always inspired by nature, he left a lasting legacy of timeless beauty

All images by kind permission of
The Reynolds and Janet Stone Estate

Our local church in Winterborne Tomson boasts a plaque engraved by Reynolds Stone in memory of AR Powys – the architect who was responsible for saving it from ruin in the 1920s. The distinctive style of engraving always impressed me, but I only paid more attention when my wife visited the house and garden at Litton Cheney where Stone lived for well over 20 years until his death. She spoke of its magical and ethereal qualities, and the beautiful unspoiled countryside of the Bride valley surrounding the house that had clearly so inspired him.
Named after his ancestor, the painter Sir Joshua Reynolds, Stone spent his childhood in Bridport, and was educated at Eton, where his father taught. He went on to Magdalene College, Cambridge, where he read history. With no clear idea about a career, he drifted into a two-year apprenticeship at the Cambridge University Press, where he was taught to appreciate letter design. An accidental meeting with Eric Gill led him to wood engraving and, after a spell at another printing firm, he became a freelance wood engraver, astonishingly without formal training.

The Waterfall is a boxwood engraving originally published in Tribute to Benjamin Britten on his Fiftieth Birthday (Faber & Faber 1963)

A hidden fame
He married photographer Janet Woods in 1938 and in WW2 worked as an aerial photographic interpreter for the RAF.
In 1953 the couple moved to the Old Rectory at Litton Cheney in West Dorset.
His work as an engraver and his expertise in lettering brought him many commissions – and considerable success – with a broad range of clients.
Reynolds’ designs were everywhere in post-war Britain: many have observed that you may not know his name, but you have certainly seen his designs.
If you travel with a UK passport you would have seen his royal coat of arms. He engraved the Royal Arms for Queen Elizabeth II’s coronation in 1953 and the official coat of arms for Her Majesty’s Stationery Office.
If you read the Times before 2010 you would be familiar with his masthead clock face design – and you might have paid for it with a £5 note in the 1960s that was designed by him too (below). The distinctive Dolcis shoe shop sign was created by him. He carved many remarkable memorials in stone, including those to Winston Churchill and TS Eliot, and for Westminster Abbey to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

The five pound note designed by Reynolds Stone in 1963

Reynolds Stone’s forte was white line lettering. Interestingly, unlike many of his contemporaries, the war did not change his approach to design.
He engraved dozens of bookplates (for Benjamin Britten and Hugh Trevor-Roper among others), most with the flowing Italianate swirls and flourishes that were distinctively his style. Engraving wood blocks is not easy, but Stone dismissed the difficulty, observing: ‘It’s rather like rowing. You have to put the oar in at the right angle.’
His work depicted the countryside, with its woods, glades, churchyards and ruins. His daughter Emma said: ‘The [Dorset] landscape seemed to suit his vision – the soft rounded hills and secret valleys, the lush greens, and perhaps above all the trees which feature so prominently in his engravings’.
Reynolds was partly inspired by Samuel Palmer, and was certainly no modernist. Among his best regarded work was his set of engravings, The Old Rectory, published in 1976. He illustrated many books, such as Herman Melville’s Omoo.
Sylvia Townsend Warner, another famous Dorset resident, wrote poems to complement a collection of his wood engravings called Boxwood. In his later years he illustrated A Year of Birds, a book of poetry by his friend Irish Murdoch. He also designed typefaces, including Minerva and one named after his wife, Janet. His skills were much in demand. Penguin’s head of typography Hans Schmoller said: ‘he might almost be described as the Engraver Royal’.
His prodigious output included writing – he wrote regularly for the Times Literary Supplement and The Listener – and he was also an accomplished watercolourist.

Reynolds Stone in his garden at Little Cheney

An eclectic society
The Stones’ home attracted many distinguished literary and artistic figures. Kenneth Clark, John and Myfanwy Piper and John Bayley were special friends, and Benjamin Britten, Freya Stark and John Betjeman were regular visitors. A photograph taken at Little Cheney of the Admiral of the Fleet Charles Lambe playing a duet with painter John Nash reflects the eclectic company the Stones kept.
His Dorset garden was a particular inspiration. His son Humphrey said in his 2019 memoir, Reynolds Stone, (Dovecote Press) that the ‘magical garden became his whole world. Here he could find the necessary solitude to pursue perfection in all he did.’
Reynolds had a protective passion for woods and wild things – never picking a wild flower and avoiding daisies when he mowed the lawn.
In her memorial address, Iris Murdoch said: ‘Good art shows us reality, which we too rarely see because it is veiled by our selfish cares, anxiety, vanity, pretension. Reynolds as artist, and as man, was a totally unpretentious being. His work, seemingly simple, gives us that shock of beauty which shows how close, how in a sense ordinary, are the marvels of the world”.

The Times masthead Reynolds designed in the 60s

Reynolds Stone, who died in 1979, was awarded the CBE in 1953. His work survives in the timeless appeal of his designs.
Rupert Hardy
North Dorset CPRE

Crumbs! It’s 50 years since that Hovis advert | Then & Now

By
Editorial team
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Exactly half a century after the iconic Hovis advert hit our TV screens, Roger Guttridge takes a stroll through the story of Dorset’s most famous street: Gold Hill

Gold Hill looking towards the Town Hall c1900

To paraphrase Sir Winston Churchill, never in the history of a Saxon hilltop town have so many owed so much to a humble loaf – and a load of old cobbles …
Put another way, not even a lead role in the star-studded 1967 version of Far From the Madding Crowd managed to thrust Shaftesbury’s Gold Hill into the national consciousness quite like that Hovis commercial.
It was 1973 when an aspiring producer and director called Ridley Scott cut one of his filmmaking teeth on Gold Hill’s steeply sloping cobbles.
To the sound of Dvorak’s New World symphony and an old feller reminiscing in a northern accent, he filmed a flat-capped bread delivery boy pushing his bike to ‘Old Ma Peggotty’s’ at the top of Gold Hill – before freewheeling back down the cobbles, legs akimbo.
The 45-second commercial (opposite) won a string of awards – and in 2006 was voted Britain’s favourite TV advertisement of all time.
The bread boy was played by 13-year-old stage school student Carl Barlow. He later recalled: ‘On that first day I must have gone up that hill with the bike 30 or 40 times. ‘And the same the second day going down – but that was more fun than pushing the bike up!’
Forty years later he returned to Shaftesbury to switch on the Christmas lights, and was again photographed on Gold Hill with his delivery bike.
In 2017, the retired London firefighter was back again to film a video promoting cycling – this time with an electric bike.
Will he be back again for the 50th anniversary?

gold hill advert of the boy, Carl Barlow, with his Hovis bike in 1973
Carl Barlow with his Hovis bike in 1973
Carl Barlow re-enacting the Hovis advert on its 40th anniversary
BNPS.co.uk (01202 558833) Pic: LauraJones/BNPS Carl Barlow yesterday recreated his famous scene from Ridley Scotts 1973 Hovis advert – Voted Britain’s favourite. The child actor who starred in the famous Hovis TV advert today marked its 40th anniversary by returning to the iconic cobbled hill to push his bike up it again. Carl Barlow was aged 13 when he won the starring role as a bakery delivery boy for the TV commercial that has been voted as the nation’s favourite. In the ad, the teenager was filmed struggling to push a bike laden with freshly baked bread up the steep hill to ‘Old Ma Peggotty’s house’, the last customer on his round. The advert, directed by Ridley Scott, was meant to depict a northern industrial town but was actually shot on Gold Hill in Shafesbury, Dorset.

Not just a bread hill
In 1978 the Two Ronnies produced a take-off sketch of the Hovis advert, in which Ronnie Barker is seen trudging wearily up Gold Hill with a loaf of bread to the same Dvorak soundtrack. As he finally approaches the summit, he comments in a northern accent: ‘Grandad always used to say ’twer a bloody long way to go for a loaf of bread.’ You can see it on YouTube here – cycling tourists continue to recreate the scene to this day.

No stranger to the silver screen, six years before the Hovis advert put jam on the bread and butter of Shaftesbury tourism, Gold Hill featured in several scenes in the film based on Thomas Hardy’s novel.
Gabriel Oak, played by Alan Bates, is filmed walking up the hill while Sergeant Troy (Terence Stamp) precariously leads his red-coated cavalrymen down the cobbles. In a particularly moving scene, a rag-clad Fanny Robin arrives, weak and exhausted, at the workhouse door, where a few hours later she dies in childbirth along with her baby, fathered by the same Sergeant Troy.
References to Gold Hill (or Goldhulle) date back to 1350 and in ancient times, sheep and pigs were penned there on market days. Following the destruction of the Abbey in 1539, the hub of Shaftesbury life moved a few yards to the east to the area where Gold Hill meets the High Street and the Commons.

The same scene in 2018.
Image:
Roger Guttridge

At the top of the hill were the town stocks and the ancient Gold Hill Cross, probably a preaching cross and one of at least six old crosses that were dotted around the town centre.
The Gold Hill Cross was removed in 1826 to make way for the present Town Hall.
The house top right of the pictures looking up Gold Hill was rebuilt around 1900 on the site of the old Lamb Inn and a forerunner of the workhouse.
It also housed the Gold Hill Museum for a few years before the move to the present site a few yards away in 1957.

  • All pictures from Shaftesbury Through Time, by Roger Guttridge (available from Gold Hill Museum and other local outlets).

Here we go again – Gillingham & Shaftesbury Show is back!

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Editorial team
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The rural day out is a celebration of community, countryside and tradition – and it’s a feast for the eyes, ears, and taste buds!

While the livestock, pristine rows of tractors and huge farm machinery signal it is very much still an agricultural show, there’s something about the Gillingham & Shaftesbury Show that is a lot more – even for those who have never set a wellied foot in a farmyard.
It’s the sense of community and the passion for the countryside that make it an unmissable event in North Dorset’s August calendar.

An eclectic mix that works
The G&S Show spans the generations, from a weather-beaten man giving a terse nod to a neighbour to an excited child leading a calf into the Main Ring for the first time.
Small children in long white coats carefully lead sheep around a ring, seemingly not bothered by the crowds. Others trot ponies through their paces or help parents feed and brush livestock.
Over in the marquees, perfectly-shaped vegetables compete alongside glorious dahlias in a riot of colours as inspirational flower arrangements filled the horticultural tent.
Fresh eggs are presented on plates, once again sadly unaccompanied by their feathered producers, thanks to Avian Flu. Wander into the Wool Village to see sheep being shorn while you learn about the value of British wool.

Steam to ferrets
The adrenaline will be pumping this year with the headlining SquibbFreestyle Motocross Arena Stunt Show in the Gritchie Brewing Co Main Ring.
And over in the Turnpike Ring, laughter always signals when the ferret racing starts – the furry creatures race down drainpipes, and it’s tails out first, not the nose, that wins!
The speed of the Shetland Pony Performance Display team is something to see as they hurtle around the Main Ring – hugely entertaining, it’s worth finding a seat to stop and watch them.
And the Terrier Racing is unmissable – regulars aren’t there for the dogs so much as for Harold Galpin’s commentary.
Over in the steam section there always seems to be someone working on the engines, polishing and making sure the paintwork was gleaming. And what a joy it is to see them rumbling into the Main Ring for a circuit or two.

A Grand Parade
The relaxed atmosphere of the day is at times juxtaposed with the strictest formality. Bowler hats in the judging ring, elegantly dressed ladies driving carriages, and pristine white-coated families leading livestock. Some things at the G&S Show have never changed.
Last year the Grand Parade made an important and oh-so-welcome return after a 15 year absence, and it’s back to stay – we strongly suggest you don’t miss it, 3pm both days.
And eyes to the sky on Wednesday morning when the Lightning Bolts Army Parachute Display team will land in the middle of the show.

All the Food
It’s at places like the G&S Show that you realise just how much food and drink is produced in the towns and villages of Dorset. From local beers to the gin distillers’ botanicals there’s a drink for everyone. And you certainly won’t go home hungry – expect hog roasts and ice cream stalls, endless choices at the fudge stand, local sausages and world foods. Make a picnic from tasty salami, a mountain of regional cheeses and there’ll be plenty of local bread and cakes.
The great thing about the G&S Show is that you never know who you might meet as you make your way round. You may bump into old friends and colleagues, and for generations of local farming families it’s a regular annual get together.
And if you’ve never been before, be aware you’ll soon be marking the third Wednesday in August on your calendar every year!

Quick show tips:

Advance ticket prices end on 15th August:
Family (2 Adults & 2 Children): £38
(Gate price £43)
Adult: £17
(Gate price £19)
Child (aged 5 to 15): £3
Under 5’s go FREE!
BUY YOUR TICKETS HERE

Gates open at 8.30am on both show days. They close at 8pm on Wednesday 16th, and at 6pm on
Thursday 17th August.

Be sure to download your ticket in advance – data signal on show days is always very limited!

The free shuttle bus runs between both Gillingham and Shaftesbury and Turnpike Showground.
Stops will be Lodbourne Roundabout and High Street (by the old Co op) in Gillingham and on Bell Street, Shaftesbury.

Polite dogs are of course welcome – they must be on a short lead, and NO dogs are permitted within the livestock areas, or in any marquees.

Bring a picnic! There are three designated areas for picnicking – we just ask that you don’t sit too close to marquees, so as to not block any emergency exits.

Save on plastic – bring your water bottle to the Show! Drinking water points sponsored by Battens Solicitors will be available around the Showground, and will be marked on the map.

A career in the skies – life as a test pilot

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Editorial team
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Former Royal Navy officer Chris Taylor, an acclaimed civil certification test pilot, explains the unique skill set required for the job

Chris Taylor about to test fly a Ryan PT22 aeroplane

When you jet off for your holiday in the sun, how often do you think about the work that went into making your flight safe?
Chris Taylor, who lives near Salisbury, has had a successful career as a Royal Navy officer, a test pilot, helicopter pilot and finally as an internationally-acclaimed civil certification test pilot. He has flown more than 400 different types of aircraft, and is arguably one of the best qualified and widely experienced test pilots working today, anywhere in the world.
With that kind of background, it is little wonder he has written three books about his career. When he came to the recent Sturminster Newton Literary Festival, the room was packed, and there were lots of questions from the audience!
How did Chris choose the career path that led him to becoming a test pilot?
‘I always wanted to be a pilot, ever since I watched lightning jet fighters over Anglesey on family holidays! In the mid 70s, Thames TV did a documentary about the test pilot school at Boscombe Down, and that was that. I got my PPL (private pilots licence) at 17 and I did engineering at university. When I graduated I joined the Royal Navy as a navigation officer before flying Lynx helicopters. I had a 20-year career in the navy.’

A Westland Lynx AH.5 – ZD559 – and the rolling platform at Boscombe Down

The best of the best
As a test pilot, Chris has flown many different types of aircraft, from ex-military jets to home-built aeroplanes. Is there one that stands out as the best aircraft to fly?
‘There is no perfect aeroplane. It’s like cars – there’s no one perfect car. But, if I could choose one aeroplane it would be the Sea Fury. With the Fleet Air Arm, the Sea Fury was the iconic fighter aircraft of the 1950s and it was the last of the big fighters.’
And what about career highlights?
‘Being a grandfather actually! I’ve had some good experiences. The most awesome flight I did was in a Variable Stability Harrier or VAAC at Boscombe Down. It was a modified Harrier from the 1980s. It was one of the research vehicles that eventually found itself in the F35 programme*.’

A special kind of pilot
There are lots of people who simply want to fly, but what skills are needed to become a test pilot?
‘First of all, you need to be an above-average pilot. You have to be very competent with your mental agility. You need to be analytical about what is happening around you. You must also be a good verbal communicator and be able to communicate with clarity and brevity.
‘At Boscombe Down we had many tools at our disposal, and would specifically fly an aircraft to determine the specifics. It’s not casual flight – you academically test things. For example if something is meant to fly at 90 miles an hour you ask why it isn’t reaching that speed.
‘Regular pilots will take six months to learn how to fly a single aircraft. A test pilot has to fly things to test them – it’s a bit like a rental car. When you rent a car, you sit there and look for the clutch, the brake and the basics, so you know how to drive it. Then you check for the specifics, including the computer programme these days. You look for what is different.’
‘I think some test pilots struggle to dial down their ability. They have to consider an average pilot in their first plane – would they be able to manage that? I look at the work that Winkle Brown did as a test pilot. He flew lots of aircraft, but wasn’t always able to dial down. Your job as a test pilot is to think “could a less experienced colleague do that?”

Chris Taylor with a Basset – The Beagle B.206, a 1960s British seven-seat twin-piston engined liaison and communication aircraft

Testing protocol
When the news broke recently about the submersible that imploded while travelling to see the wreck of the Titanic, it was obviously horrifying. However, the initial investigation has brought the use of experimental vessels into discussion – and, of course, not listening to testing experts.
Chris says: ‘It wasn’t a wise thing to do. In aviation you have aircraft that are fully tested – that’s what we go on holiday in. They are all rigorously checked, the systems are tested and it’s safe. It’s probably more dangerous getting to the airport!
‘I get to test experimental aircraft, and I take no one with me who is not operational and on the job. Four flew with me recently and we got into some quite dangerous things. Afterwards, we reflected on whether we needed all those people on board.
It would go against my principles to take fare-paying passengers on something like that!
‘That submersible was not approved and was conducting research. Taking fare-paying passengers on board in a situation like that is disastrous. There will always be thrill-seekers out there, but I don’t do that. I like to think it’s a wake up call for people who go out doing these things.’
Chris has written three books – a trilogy of his career. ‘My third book is on the computer right now!’ he says. ‘It’s the final version from the publisher. My most recent book is about the 20 years I spent in the Royal Navy as an operational Lynx and Wessex pilot. It’s a prequel to the prequel! The first book was about me the test pilot, and the second about my time as an experimental test pilot. I’ve documented my career so my grandchildren can read about what granddad did.’

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