Three Little Pigs
BY ALLISON LEE When our three little pigs were big enough that they wouldn’t be considered prime prey for foxes or birds, we moved them outside into a paddock of their own. It must have been a little piggy heaven for them. I decided initially to put them in a small pen, and when they had become accustomed to being outside permanently, I would move … Continue reading Three Little Pigs
The Scottish Paradox: Vermin Here, Vanguards There
BY SIMON MACFAUL It’s a story that perfectly captures the cognitive dissonance at the heart of modern Scottish conservation. Across Europe, from the sun-drenched forests of Spain to the scrublands of Portugal, a quiet, antlered revolution is underway. Conservationists are strategically releasing herds of deer into vulnerable landscapes. Why? Because these animals, through their careful browsing, naturally reduce the dense, dry undergrowth that acts as … Continue reading The Scottish Paradox: Vermin Here, Vanguards There
Ruthless Charity
BY CHARLES ALDOUS How British Philanthropy Fails to Build Independence The British financier Sir Roland Franklin knew a thing or two about making money. His advice to his son Sir Martin was characteristically blunt: ‘Be generous in business, ruthless in charity’. It sounds counterintuitive until you realise it is exactly what Britain’s floundering charity sector needs to hear. Britain’s charity sector finds itself caught between … Continue reading Ruthless Charity
The Muggle Party
BY DOMINIC WIGHTMAN It is a truth universally acknowledged, yet whispered only in enlightened places, that the first-past-the-post British political system is a machine designed with one grim weakness: to periodically vomit into power a last-man-standing government of Muggles. Not the whimsical, wand-waving kind, but a far more desolate breed: the Labour Muggle. This unsightly creature is not born, but unexpectedly elected. Its natural habitat … Continue reading The Muggle Party
Unwanted Souls
BY IAN MITCHELL What to do with displaced people who no country wants – lessons from 1945 Is Government supposed to work for the people or are the people simply a resource of government? For most of “civilised” history, in most “civilised” countries, there has been a war going on between government and people or, more broadly, those people with public power and those without … Continue reading Unwanted Souls
No Solution as Policy
BY ALEX STORY “There is an enemy. There is a project which is detrimental to our country” said Keir Starmer to The Guardian last week. For the first time in his career, people nodded in agreement. Finally, the multitude thought, “he gets us”. After years of being ignored, humiliated, and branded, finally, the Prime Minister acknowledged what hundreds of thousands of flag carrying patriots had … Continue reading No Solution as Policy
A Prayer for Our Elders
VICAR Dear Readers of Country Squire Magazine, I trust that You are well and healthy. This week let us pray for our elderly: 1 Timothy 5:1-2: “Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers, older women as mothers, and younger women as sisters, with absolute purity.” Heavenly Father, from whom all wisdom and … Continue reading A Prayer for Our Elders
The Royal Scots Club
BY ROGER WATSON Just a ten-minute walk from the noise and tourists on Princes Street, on the fringes of Edinburgh’s New Town, sits a haven of tranquillity steeped in military history: The Royal Scots Club. I was introduced by a former military colleague and have been a lucky member for several years. Though I live a long way from Edinburgh, the Club has become my … Continue reading The Royal Scots Club
The Sockburn Worm
BY ALLISON LEE Those that live near the River Tees may have heard of Sockburn. For me, Sockburn is a stone’s throw away from the house I moved into at the end of 2024. However it was not until very recently that I learned of Sockburn’s legend. For a thousand years The Sockburn Worm was the most famous and feared dragon legend in the North of … Continue reading The Sockburn Worm
The Captive Release Blockade
BY BERT BURNETT Why ‘Official’ Conservation Fears Success In the rolling hills and managed woodlands of Britain, a quiet war is being waged for the future of our native species. On one side are the gamekeepers and land managers, whose hands-on stewardship has preserved the very landscapes we hold dear. On the other, a powerful coalition of once well-funded conservation charities who, from their air-conditioned … Continue reading The Captive Release Blockade
Arses and Elbows
BY ALEX STORY Some questions are difficult to answer, others not.For Starmer the seemingly easiest ones are the most difficult.During a press briefing with President Trump at Chequers a few days ago, Beverly Turner, an intrepidly enchanting reporter, asked a simple question: “Are we still a Christian country?”A patriotic man would have said: “yes”.He would have known, implicitly, that our laws, their application and our … Continue reading Arses and Elbows
Alea Iacta Est
BY STEPHEN PAX LEONARD Digital ID will mean crossing the Rubicon “Alea iacta est”, huffed Reggie as he took the last bite of his dripping crumpet. “Alea iacta est, alea iacta est”. “You wot my dear”, retorted the Housekeeper, Mrs Daddywood. “Alea iacta est”, (‘the die is cast’) – it is what Julius Caesar said when he crossed the Rubicon in defiance of the Senate. … Continue reading Alea Iacta Est
Progressive Wizardry
BY PAUL T HORGAN Child actors. These unfortunates are thrust into the adult (in the decent use of the term) world well before they are capable of dealing with it. It is usually at the behest of an ambitious parent and their vicarious desires based on the reflected glory of their offspring’s success. That, and, of course, money. The career of a former child actor … Continue reading Progressive Wizardry
Fabian Knotweed
BY DOMINIC WIGHTMAN Eradicating the Silent Invasion of the British State The Fabian Society’s emblem of a wolf in sheep’s clothing was a confession disguised as a joke. But the wolf is a blunt instrument, a recognisable predator. The truer, more insidious metaphor is botanical: Japanese Knotweed. This Asian perennial is the perfect analogue. Introduced to Britain by well-meaning Victorians for its ornamental appeal, it … Continue reading Fabian Knotweed
Resisting the Digital Prison of a National ID
BY SEAN WALSH To steal and misapply a line from Woody Allen in Annie Hall it’s looking like Keir Starmer’s notion of compulsory digital ID won’t even make it to the concept stage, let alone become a workable idea. Colour us unsurprised. Starmer’s saving grace, his accidental virtue, is a preternatural incompetence attached to an unmatchable personal detestability. He delivers policy in the same way … Continue reading Resisting the Digital Prison of a National ID
Digital ID Should Terrify Everyone
Dear Readers, Digital ID represents the most shocking assault on civil liberties the UK has ever seen and surely contravenes Article 8 (rights to privacy) of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). Digital ID is not the same as an ID card: these are two fundamentally different things. Britons already have ID: passports, National Insurance numbers, Birth Certificates etc. Instead, Digital ID sets out … Continue reading Digital ID Should Terrify Everyone
A Prayer for Countrysiders
VICAR In the quiet corners of our country, where rolling hills meet winding lanes, and village life beats with a steady rhythm, we find the heart of rural communities. Life in the countryside is rich with tradition and resilience but not without its challenges. Isolation, economic pressures, ignorant government policies, and the ever-changing demands of modern life test the strength of these close-knit communities. This … Continue reading A Prayer for Countrysiders
An American Learns English
BY DAVID CAMPBELL It’s a sentiment often repeated, and for good reason: “England and America are two nations divided by a common language.” As an American who has spent considerable time on your scepter’d isle, I can confirm this is not just a witticism, but a daily reality. Like many Yanks, my initial lexicon was gleaned from British television imports and the Harry Potter films. … Continue reading An American Learns English
Making a Meal of it at Ryedale Folk Museum
BY ALLISON LEE Nestled in the North York Moors National Park, Ryedale Folk Museum is Yorkshire’s leading open-air museum. Telling the story of the people of the North York Moors, more than 40,000 objects are beautifully displayed across 20 heritage buildings, some rescued from around the area. Buildings include a typical Iron Age Roundhouse, Medieval Crofter’s Cottage and an Elizabethan Manor House, as well as … Continue reading Making a Meal of it at Ryedale Folk Museum
On the Wisdom of Hedgerows
BY DOMINIC WIGHTMAN It is one of those unremarked truths, visible to anyone who troubles to look, that the character of a nation can be deduced from the state of its boundaries. I found this thought pressing upon me the other afternoon, halted by the spectacle of a common hedge sparrow at work. The scene was a Devon lane, bordered by a hedgerow of the … Continue reading On the Wisdom of Hedgerows