Obituaries

Michael Clayton, who has died aged 88, was a BBC war correspondent and presenter of the Today programme on Radio 4 when he was lured to edit Horse & Hound with the promise of a “company horse”; he took on the title in 1973 and for the next 21 years H&H, with a weekly circulation...

We said goodbye to our good friend and Joint Master, Symon Robinson who tragically and suddenly died at the very young age of 59. Not surprisingly, the church was packed with friends from both the army and the SDB who wanted to come and not only pay their respects to Symon, but also to give...

Tributes poured in for the very popular former Island Foxhounds huntsman Billy Connors. He was known by all that had the good fortune to meet him as one of nature’s gentlemen and family man. He loved life and was a great friend to so many people and above all he had a story for all...

With the recent passing of James (Maurice James) Barclay a large and probably irreplaceable void has opened in the world of hunting with hounds. I first met James when attending the Revesby show in Lincs shortly after he was appointed Master of the Southwold hounds. At the time he was riding a well put together...

Ireland has lost one of its best-known horsemen, Willie Leahy field master of the Galway Blazers from Aille Cross in Loughrea County Galway. In the nearly 70 years that I knew Willie he never changed, true to his dedication to the Traditional Irish Horse, Connemara Pony and the countryside where he was most content. He...

Professor W. R. Allen, Twink, the founding chairman of Vets for Hunting, which has now developed into VAWM, the Veterinary Association for Wildlife Management, died in hospital in Dubai after a short illness on June 6th. Twink was internationally renowned for his veterinary and scientific expertise, his passion for all things related to mammalian reproduction...

The Man, The Myth, The Legend. Men wanted to be him; the women wanted to be around him. He loved riding horseback, dogs, fast cars, and fat cigars. John Howard Dean III loving husband, father, son, brother, grandfather and Huntsman went to ride in greener pastures on January 16, 2021.  John was the loving husband...

The West Norfolk Foxhounds family has lost a staunch and loyal member in the passing of Mervyn Flood (14th December 1951—9th October 2020).  He started hunting with his great pal, Hugo the flashy chestnut cob bought from Ivan Hill as a keen but green thrusting machine, and thrust he did enjoying the best of Norfolk...

Roy Goddard passed away on 28th April after a short illness. He was born on 23-5-1929 in Reading to Harry and Gladis Goddard. Harry was also in hunt service and Roy became second horseman to the Bramham moor where his father was Huntsman Roy then moved on to be first whipper-in  at the Sinnington in...

Philip will be remembered for many things but none so much as his love of our sport, and his commitment to Hawke’s Bay Hunt. We can only begin to scratch the surface of what his contribution to NZ Hunting has been, but here is a little overview of the quirky, funny, sometimes accident-prone chap, we...