BB’s Christmas Port

[Tench Dreamer]

What a fantastic story. I've always enjoyed BB writings and art.

Saw the last episode on TV of Brendon Chase in 1981( 14 years old then), and at that time that was it. You would have to pray that out the beyond on TV land a series of repeats would be shown. I bought the paperback in Smiths and I think it may have been the proper book I read and there have been hundreds since. It was in this story that BB describes watching Tench in the Blind pool.And that set me off too..hence my name on here

At that time time I picked up all his wildfowling books...My Dad and uncles were wildfowlers. BB wrote a column every week in the Shooting times .

But back to the original story ..what a kind and nice thing to do going back and showing thanks

[Fredline]

What a fantastic story. I've always enjoyed BB writings and art.

Saw the last episode on TV of Brendon Chase in 1981( 14 years old then), and at that time that was it. You would have to pray that out the beyond on TV land a series of repeats would be shown. I bought the paperback in Smiths and I think it may have been the proper book I read and there have been hundreds since. It was in this story that BB describes watching Tench in the Blind pool.And that set me off too..hence my name on here

At that time time I picked up all his wildfowling books...My Dad and uncles were wildfowlers. BB wrote a column every week in the Shooting times .

But back to the original story ..what a kind and nice thing to do going back and showing thanks

Brendon Chase HD.
https://vimeo.com/603176092

[Tench Dreamer]

What a fantastic story. I've always enjoyed BB writings and art.

Saw the last episode on TV of Brendon Chase in 1981( 14 years old then), and at that time that was it. You would have to pray that out the beyond on TV land a series of repeats would be shown. I bought the paperback in Smiths and I think it may have been the proper book I read and there have been hundreds since. It was in this story that BB describes watching Tench in the Blind pool.And that set me off too..hence my name on here

At that time time I picked up all his wildfowling books...My Dad and uncles were wildfowlers. BB wrote a column every week in the Shooting times .

But back to the original story ..what a kind and nice thing to do going back and showing thanks

Brendon Chase HD.
https://vimeo.com/603176092

Thanks ... I was able to catch up with it in around 2010 with You tube ... But thanks again because the vimeo is better quality

[Mr B]

What a lovely write-up that was and a rare privilege to meet the man himself and be kind enough to give him as a present I lovely bottle of fine port, how nice is that!

Well done and thanks for sharing that.

Mr B

[Hovis]

.
He was so prolific, writing across quite a few genre: children’s books, travel,shooting, wildlife & conservation, fishing and novels such as Manka the Sky Gypsy, Wild Lone and Lepus the Brown Hare. I was lucky in discovering BB as a child, but books like Down the Bright Stream and The Little Grey Men must surely appeal to anglers of all ages.

Firstly what a great story. Makes me hugely jealous you met the man and he was so sporting.
I too read BB to my own children both little grey men, the pool of the black witch and brendon chase have already been read - must buy some of his other titles to read to them.

[Martin James]

Chris I enjoyed reading your story of meeting BB, he was without doubt a great writer artist also a knowledgeable countryman, he spent a lot of time in the conservation of butterflies, especially the Purple Emperor in the forests of Northamptonshire, the Purple Emperor is the second largest British butterfly, at one time almost extinct in many parts of the country. BB was certainly a true gentlemen, who are hard to find these days. His book The Little Grey Men published in 1942 was the winner of the Carnegie Medal of Honour. I will never forget my very valuable times spent in the company of BB, also my fowling times spent on the Wash, another great fowler of those day was Kenzie The Wild-Goose Man. The Sutton Bridge area was where many of us keen fowler’s would meet, roughing at weekends in old sheds, also a barge, most times we were wet, cold and hungry, but we got on with the sport. My interest was certainly made more exciting and interesting by BB with his writings and art work. Thank you BB for what you gave us as young anglers a fowlers.

[JAA]

I first came across BB’s writing when I was about six years old - in the form of the Bill Badger series of children’s books. My wife has a first edition Monty Woodpigs Caravan, unfortunately slightly chewed by one of her dachshunds. Anyway back to 1962. I consumed all the BB books in the children’s section of Market Harborough library and on a visit to my grandparents house l came across a BB book in their book case; it was Letters From Compton Deverell. Being only six l had assumed that BB was a children’s author, so it came as a real surprise to find that he wrote ‘grown up’ books as well. I asked if I could borrow it - I still have the copy now nearly sixty years later.

Jumping forward a couple of decades to 1982. I wanted to say thank you to BB for all his wonderful writing and beautiful scraperboard drawings that gave so much pleasure. l’d picked up that he was fond of port, so l bought a bottle of the best port I could find and just before Christmas called in at the Round House in Sudborough to drop it off. It was mid afternoon and he was putting his car away in his garage.

“Mr. Watkins Pitchford?” I enquired. He looked at me suspiciously and I explained that I had collected most of his books and wanted to thank him for his writing that helped define me and many other people. I handed him the bottle. He was very courteous and thanked me profusely. We got to talking about wildfowling and he described his experience of fowling in The Wash in the 1930’s. He told me about how the marsh had been changed by reclamation work. He wanted to illustrate the shape of the old sea wall at Shep Whites at Holbeach and as we were leaning against my old mk..3 Cortina that was in need of a good wash, he drew a map of the sea wall then and the sea wall now in the grime on the car roof. I didn’t wash my car for months…..

Wonderful story! I, like one or two here would have cut the roof out and framed it...

[RBTraditional]

What a marvellous recollection that is! BB was and indeed still is very much a revered and respected author and man, I’d have loved to have met him….