Tales of a London Poacher

We join Cleve Edmonston, author of Tales of a London Poacher, for a walk round the East End where he recalls his exploits with garden gun and airgun in the 1960s. This film first appeared in Fieldsports Britain, episode 67. To watch the whole show go to Fcha.nl/fieldsportsbritain67
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[@CrimeVid]

I spent most of my time in the fields and woods as a kid, no guns, just catapaults and wire and sometimes a couple of dogs, air rifles for pigeons. We got rabbits and those big noisy chicken things they let out by the million,pigeons and a few duck, Oh and a trout or two ! great times. Never saw a copper, mostly keepers and waterbailiffs, and they didn’t like running or being in water !

[@martinlong2804]

A tip always listen to the birds, after awhile, you will know when someone is coming 😎 don't forget your polarized glasses. When fishing.

[@indiana146]

I used a silenced folding 410 to poach wonderful gun Very quiet plus i could run like the wind

[@stevewilliams9311]

As a youngster I spent time with my dad and local poacher Bill Burch in Tenterden Kent . We would shoot or ferret on a Sunday morning then then go to the Vine pub the dogs would lye in front of the fire and the shotguns were propped up in the corner. I ended up as a gamekeeper at Eastwell park mid sixties aged 15. Today l am in the Eastern bay of plenty NZ and hunt pigs with dogs and stalk or spotlight deer . Ki Ora

[@manofkentcatapultsgunsando5069]

I used to shoot around Tenterden in the 1980s . Got my 1st Gun from Tenterden guns and tackle. Still shoot Clay's at willow farm .

[@Danny-outside]

Have they made it in audio book form? I spent too much time fishing rather than going to school 😅

[@lezchislett51]

Recently mentioned to my brother that we grew up in the last of the good old times where no one paid attention to these kind of activities. We could wander around your neighbourhoods with our air rifles picking off doves for the pot when we got home. Gone are the days when no one batted an eye when a hunter boarded a city bus with his shotgun on his way to his favourite spot or the taxi driver dropping his duck hunter passenger off at the local marsh. All fond memories now never to happen again.

[@eminemisdogshit4626]

This was probably done to put food on the table..not the commercial style modern poaching

[@eddiecash9417]

"Jimmy Oaching" is what we called it.... out with air rifles on a moonlit night for roosting pheasants for the pot, never took more than our fill of anything... Rabbit's n trout were and still are abundant in Kent and we managed to stay out later than most other kids as generally when you went home for your tea you wern't allowed back out, so we fed ourselves, stopped out and had tea late.... Good ol'days. Remember one time on a Sunday morning pulling down to a favourite pheasant pen in an old 850 mini, spotting the game keeper camped out waiting for us to show, saw the smoke from his fire and smelled his bacon cooking.... Waited for him to make his move around the wood, then followed him in at a distance, got our bird's and off to the local estate pub for a few jars.... Found one of my mate's one time while mooching around another wood sitting in a ivy hide with a game keeper sharing a hipflask and a smoke, they enjoyed it as much as we did, I'm sure. Don't get about so much now, but always got my milbro and half a dozen 44 cal led shot when out walking the dogs, still enjoy fresh caught grub if the chance arises.

[@jas20per]

I was taught how to poach game in the 1960s by what I would call a professional poacher who brought up four children on poaching proceeds here in Cheshire. All I will say is no poacher worth his salt would use a gun, that was the fastest way for the Estate Game keeper or Farmer to find you. A top line poacher applied his trade silently no matter what was being taken, because if you know there is s silent way to catch any game that also includes pheasants. The old time poachers name for a shotgun is a "Barking Iron" no more needs to be said!

[@jas20per]

@Tiernan Stanley-Wearen At that time poaching was not a commercial enterprise like it is today, It was more often than not done to make a few pounds keeping the local pubs and Restraints supplied with the makings of their "Game Pies". Also a brace of Pheasants left on the local bobby's door step ten days before Christmas and a brace of Ducks after, he had a good idea who put them there but no questions where ever asked. Gentler days back then no real cash to be made out of a clandestine country pursuit.

[@jas20per]

@Tiernan Stanley-Wearen I gave the clandestine art up many years ago in fact I no longer kill, rather to close to meeting my maker now though I do take the Purdey out and smash clay pigeon only though just to keep the Damascus stretched well it is a hundred and fifty years old now since it left the bench in Oxford street..

[@patchlolly979]

A lot of poachers become some of the best gamekeepers

[@Randomstuff-ri8mk]

My grandad used to poach rabbits and trout from the fields and streams around his home in county mayo. Once the gamekeeper caught him lamping rabbits and my grandad told the gamekeeper that the rabbits were scared of the dark. 😂

[@GG-jw8pt]

Same with my dad in kilkenny 👍

[@GG-jw8pt]

Same with my dad in kilkenny 👍

[@martinlong2804]

From Ireland I went to London in the eighty's. I had to bullstaffs small in size and lean. We would soak barely in wiskey the following day we would put the out and hide in a bush. Wait for the mallards to feed. When there head would drop.leave. Go of one of the dogs he would run out and catch a Mallard and bring it back to the bush, and of we go, only did about four times. Some thing we would do back in Ireland with pheasant. Great to listen to this man very interesting

[@samhancock268]

That actually works?

[@martinlong2804]

@@samhancock268 I know Sam , if need to grid , with a fishing rod, few seeds, and a good dog. You can't go wrong 😎 a pair of polarized glasses to the see the fish. And away you go. Have a nice day Sam .

[@sanjugeorge2786]

I have some friends who got dodos from mauritius which sell at very high luxurious prices. Anyone needs atleast one

[@charlesf9050]

very cool

[@pinocolada4254]

Such tales are from around Europe. My fathers cousins husband told he and his friends used to take out their fathers airguns and rimfires, carry them open thru the city of Arnhem to get to the banks of the Rhine. Shooting rabbit around the brick factory chimneys. Shooting woodies throughout the city. Rimfires were long banned outside clubs, licenses and whatever bybthat time. Nobody, not even the coppers bothered them as long as everything went without trouble. This was early '50's the city was trashed, working class city so any piece of meat was welcome.

[@manofkentcatapultsgunsando5069]

Shooting a sitting duck in the waterworks Hardly old school skilled poaching is it

[@paulmechaniow838]

They were just youngens we did the same plenty of duck around no harm done poaching is about getting things in the bag forget sporting.

[@lastofthemouchers8873]

@@paulmechaniow838 poaching is about the thrill. The greatest game of hide and seek.

[@jacobrans9269]

I've watched your vids. shit hot catty shooting my friend

[@indiana146]

@@paulmechaniow838 me and my pal every saturday morning well before sun up ferrets nets and my silenced folding 410 it was left to me by an old poacher in his will Id sooner have youngsters out taking rabbits than hanging round street corners

[@Arfabiscuit]

I used to poach rabbits on Hampstead heath had 100s of em great days .

[@skunkhead2007]

brilliant stuff i been a mostly salmon poacher in the north east for 39 years-also had me day with deer and hares ,birds etc but salmon is my thing..

[@HJDore]

James Hughes I’d agree that people who poach legitimate wildlife are scum and belong behind bars but those who poach vermin species I believe are alright and helping keep numbers down.

[@mrs.chandler9384]

Sudo Bash Poachers are pieces of shit. I’ve reported you to the authorities

[@indiana146]

@@HJDore what to you call legitimate wildlife ??

[@slomo1562]

I love this! It's as criminal as taking the King's deer but much better for those lads than other n'er do well activities they could have done or are so common today.

[@jonesyacdc]

Did he say water board men.😆😆😆

[@sanjugeorge2786]

Afyer i said there are dodos here there are no birds in 2 km radius rg hen a bird again no birds in 2 km2 radius and similarly

[@dennisstalker9968]

Good craik

[@paulworthington8666]

Britain used to such a great country before it started paying far too much attention to noisey little prat "activists" oozing "issues" out of every orifice, and wanting to ban freedom in every form.

[@pixie706]

And Mr Packham ??

[@danielbell5487]

His dad sounded like a freemason the power there have

[@shaunomercy3376]

Coppers are only human,it's surprising how many have a taste for pheasant and trout😉👍

[@cliveclerkenville2637]

What can explain the current hysteria around firearms among the police these days ? It’s rabid.

[@robertwhitehall1563]

This is a true life story i know this 100 pct

[@christopherhenderson5292]

Robert Whitehall your the legend whitehall rest in peace

[@kennethmackenzie8428]

Irish auction art

[@stuntmansynyster]

Good vid, good story, all round top bloke imho

[@neiltomkins4713]

Interesting chap. Prefer to see rabbits, pidgeons and foxes running around alive. But that's just my preference.

[@peterreid5315]

Those are all pests so no harm done

[@carlhughes9584]

​@@peterreid5315no humans like you are

[@serosedserio6531]

To an American in the western US, with thousands of acres of public land to shoot and hunt on, this seems very bizarre.

[@skunkhead2007]

political correctness and limp wristed nation dont help matters then we also have riparian land owners who usually are titled ie lords early duke barrons etc they all hate us;they call us the great unwashed - ya know what i say ? fcuk em ! ill fish and hunt deer/boars anytime i please....dont care whos land it is,caught every species of deer in theuk and now boars as they well back ! salmon though is my thing has been for 30 years-im lucky to have the two best salmon and sea trout rivers in the uk on my doorstep-the travel from home east coast to west is around 100 miles if that so 50 clicks puts me on the lake district areas and lancs head waters of lancs river-the humber rivers flow to about 20 or so clicks away but the tyne & wear are the top two in england and wales and hammer some scots rivers for numbers of atlantic salmon and sea run brown trout/lakers salmo trutta)

[@mrs.chandler9384]

Sudo Bash You are a piece of shit. Not your land, and you have no right. I’ve reported you to the authorities, you fat, ignorant, thieving, fuck.

[@hiddenknowledge2012]

This is why Americans shouldn't comment on the hunting and gun culture in the UK. Because there is none, it's very unpopular because there is literally no where to go. You are always within distance of a residential area. There isn't thousands of km of land to wander and hunt on here, you need a lot of money and know someone with land. Mainly and upper class sport. Getting caught with a gun of any kind here is instant prison time.

[@serosedserio6531]

Swurvin Media Americans, me included, love their freedom. You can join us if you want. There is still room.😉

[@jimfoley6261]

Who gives a shit about poaching

[@hairyfishcakes]

The focking animals 😂😂

[@robertward3038]

So great and boring