Cameron's Cotswolds Hunt - BBC Undercover
North West Hunt Saboteurs Association | 21.03.2008 19:08 | Animal Liberation | Ecology | Oxford
Police are probing David Cameron's favourite fox hunt amid claims it was exposed illegally hunting foxes by an undercover BBC team, on tonight's Inside Out, 7:30pm, BBC 1. They are also looking into allegations of assaults.
The footage will be available to view here after 7:30pm: 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/ondemand/england/realmedia/insideout/northeast/hunting?bgc=C0C0C0&nbram=1〈=en&nbwm=1&bbram=1&ms3=4&ms_javascript=false&bbcws=6&size=16x9&bbwm=1
One man has been arrested and may face prosecution next week, and police are viewing footage filmed by the BBC programme, which is being broadcast across the region tonight.
Film-makers shadowed hunt monitors in the Cotswolds as they followed a number of different hunts. But the most explosive footage they and the hunt monitors captured involved the Heythrop Hunt, which includes a large swathe of rural Gloucestershire in its territory.
That includes much of the constituency of Tory leader David Cameron, who has ridden to the hounds on numerous occasions before becoming party leader. Viewers of the Inside Out programme tonight will see hunt monitor Penny Little trying to film what is claimed are hounds making a kill in a copse near a lane.
The footage shows the pack of hounds streaming into a wooded area directly to the right of Penny's car, barking and whelping, descending on something hidden in a ditch, in a frenzied fashion. Seconds later, three men pull up next to Penny's vehicle on a quad bike, and one of them kicks her door shut, forcing the camera out of her hand.
It is understood one man, an employee of the Heythrop Hunt, has been arrested in relation to this particular incident, and was released on police bail until next Tuesday, after the programme goes out.
A few minutes later after the attack, another anti-hunt campaigner comes back from the woodland with what she describes as evidence of a kill:
"It’s fresh red blood that we found. We believe the hunt took away the carcass.
"But this is what we found and it’s bright red blood on this leaf and also on this twig here, and it was still wet when we picked it up."
Inside Out producer Robert Murray spent four weekends with hunt monitors Ms Little and Judy Gilbert.
"In one incident, Robert stopped to film on a public road where Heythrop supporters had gathered to watch the hunt," said a BBC spokesman.
"He saw a fox running across a field and the hounds changing direction to give chase. Then a Heythrop hunter is caught on camera asking 'where did it go back in?'"
Cotswold hunt monitor Gill Purser welcomed the programme. "It is only 12 minutes long so it only touches the surface, but it should give viewers a good idea of the appalling behaviour that the monitors are witnessing and experiencing every time they monitor a hunt," she said.
The Heythrop Hunt refused to comment on the incident because it was filmed by hunt monitors, not the BBC.
Police chiefs also took part in the programme, which was filmed over a month earlier this year.
Sources: Western Daily Press & BBC's Inside Out
Collaborated by Anony.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/ondemand/england/realmedia/insideout/northeast/hunting?bgc=C0C0C0&nbram=1〈=en&nbwm=1&bbram=1&ms3=4&ms_javascript=false&bbcws=6&size=16x9&bbwm=1 One man has been arrested and may face prosecution next week, and police are viewing footage filmed by the BBC programme, which is being broadcast across the region tonight.
Film-makers shadowed hunt monitors in the Cotswolds as they followed a number of different hunts. But the most explosive footage they and the hunt monitors captured involved the Heythrop Hunt, which includes a large swathe of rural Gloucestershire in its territory.
That includes much of the constituency of Tory leader David Cameron, who has ridden to the hounds on numerous occasions before becoming party leader. Viewers of the Inside Out programme tonight will see hunt monitor Penny Little trying to film what is claimed are hounds making a kill in a copse near a lane.
The footage shows the pack of hounds streaming into a wooded area directly to the right of Penny's car, barking and whelping, descending on something hidden in a ditch, in a frenzied fashion. Seconds later, three men pull up next to Penny's vehicle on a quad bike, and one of them kicks her door shut, forcing the camera out of her hand.
It is understood one man, an employee of the Heythrop Hunt, has been arrested in relation to this particular incident, and was released on police bail until next Tuesday, after the programme goes out.
A few minutes later after the attack, another anti-hunt campaigner comes back from the woodland with what she describes as evidence of a kill:
"It’s fresh red blood that we found. We believe the hunt took away the carcass.
"But this is what we found and it’s bright red blood on this leaf and also on this twig here, and it was still wet when we picked it up."
Inside Out producer Robert Murray spent four weekends with hunt monitors Ms Little and Judy Gilbert.
"In one incident, Robert stopped to film on a public road where Heythrop supporters had gathered to watch the hunt," said a BBC spokesman.
"He saw a fox running across a field and the hounds changing direction to give chase. Then a Heythrop hunter is caught on camera asking 'where did it go back in?'"
Cotswold hunt monitor Gill Purser welcomed the programme. "It is only 12 minutes long so it only touches the surface, but it should give viewers a good idea of the appalling behaviour that the monitors are witnessing and experiencing every time they monitor a hunt," she said.
The Heythrop Hunt refused to comment on the incident because it was filmed by hunt monitors, not the BBC.
Police chiefs also took part in the programme, which was filmed over a month earlier this year.
Sources: Western Daily Press & BBC's Inside Out
Collaborated by Anony.
North West Hunt Saboteurs Association
Homepage:
http://nwhsa.org.uk
Comments
Hide the following 3 comments
BBC!
21.03.2008 19:30
I will reserve judgment!!
ARA
so whats the opinion was it a good show?sounds very good
21.03.2008 20:37
sounded good, about time the licence fee & police taxes are used to stop the minority of gentry & their supporters continuing to act like hooligans &breaking the hunting laws & assaulting monitors
johnny
Same old
21.03.2008 21:19
In regards to the article though, its had the information extracted from two sources, and re-arranged and slightly edited so it gives a fairer account; so obviously the article doesn't actually portray how the BBC did or the press, but a fairer account in most peoples eyes.
It was just yet another example of animal abusers breaking the law, most people should recognise that they are criminals with a twisted agenda, not much else.
ARA