This year, Roxtons welcomed a new team member: Shooting Consultant Max Cope. Since joining us in October, Max has hit the ground running, hosting at various estates across the UK and abroad as part of a very busy 2025/26 Season. Below he has given his perspective on his very first Season with us:
End of Season Report by Max Cope
I joined the team at Roxtons in October last year and was launched straight into the action.
Having been confined to the four walls of a cramped Gunroom in my previous role, the fresh air and natural light came as a welcome change!
My first foray was a tour of three Cotswold shoots with a team of eager Americans. These included Salperton Park, Farmcote and Badminton. An excellent cross-section for shoots in this region, which each bringing its own unique charm.
Salperton offers fast-paced partridge with unmatched hospitality – you could shoot this in your slippers! Farmcote is an immaculate traditional mixed shoot with beautiful rolling hills, the highlight being the elevenses spot – a purpose-built private pub named The Grumpy Dragon.
Badminton is a very special location that has made a strong impression. The 52,000-acre estate is steeped in history and is home to the Duke of Beaufort. For me, it represents some of the best sport in the region and is expertly run by head keeper Ben Darley. The ground is expertly kept, and the birds are driven with serious craft – I am yet to see a quiet peg here.
This is a quintessential English shoot where any gun can be tested, teams here can select whatever gives them pleasure in every drive.
Next on the schedule, I ventured north of to my ‘home’ shoot, Arden. Located 20 minutes from Helmsley, in some of the finest North York Moors ground. Personally, I find this hard to beat for proper Yorkshire pheasants. Even in early season October days, this can produce extreme birds that skirt the edge of shotgun range. The beauty of the presentation here is that birds are flushed in tiers. You have the option to shoot at 40, 50, 60 and upwards of 70-yarders, so one can work their way up throughout a drive.
This coming season, the shoot will evolve further to encompass much of the ground that made up the venerable Murton Grange. This was a powerhouse in the Helmsley shooting scene and left many a serious gun with a hole in their shoot calendar when it ceased operating in 2024. The new ground, now managed under the masterly Arden team, will add an exciting early season sport with fast-paced partridge and some breath-taking extreme pheasant drives later on.
Next, I journeyed ‘north of the wall’ to the renowned Drumlanrig in Dumfriesshire. This showed the best partridge I have ever witnessed. The deep, open glens represent some seriously dramatic scenery. There is an absence of man-made cover crops, and the birds are solely held in natural cover, this consisting of bracken, heather and white grass. The beating team cover a massive distance, to blank-in a wide area for each drive. I was introduced to the ‘Whirlpool’ on my first outing – this does exactly what it says on the tin. Guns are lined at the base of a valley, backing onto a babbling stream. The partridge are pushed down 3 separate glens that feed into 1, where the pegs are placed. At any given moment, 3 cuvees could be airborne overhead, making picking your bird a proper challenge! Not only is it tricky to get a line on each bird, but many require a double-take to confirm that they are not in fact sparrows! Bringing one of these down is enough to make your season.
Special mention must go to the force of nature that is Rab, the head keeper. Rab has to be the most enthusiastic man in the job I have ever come across. It is often said that he makes each gun feel as if it there first day at Drum, even if it is their 50th. He could have been a professional comedian, and many days finished not only with sore shoulders, but sore stomachs from the relentless laughter he imparts. One instance of his high jinx involved him attempting to convince me that member of our shoot party was simple farmer from ‘down South’, when in fact he was very notable figure!
A week in Exmoor came next on the agenda. This brought some excitement as I had never witnessed any Devon shoots before. I joined my colleague Rupert to co-host a group of American guns that turned out to be thoroughly entertaining and a pleasure to accompany. We attended Combe Sydenham, Molland and Haddeo. All brought their own charm and were each quality operations. The tight, deep valleys showed some epic birds the hospitality was off the charts. Unfortunately, I did not get the chance to visit Chargot, however all accounts painted this spectacularly – a shoot that made up the majority of our Exmoor lettings.
An honourable mention must go to Calroust, located in the Borders. Although I only attended a single day here this season, it left a lasting impression. The landscape was unique consisting of large open valleys covered in white grass and bracken. With the baron hills not presenting much noticeable cover, pine wood blocks are used to hold game. The precision at which birds were trickled from these from astounding, with drives lasting 45 minutes or so. Presentation was verging on extreme, however, enough was shown ‘in-range’ to make the shooting satisfying.
My shooting interest stems from a technical standpoint; I have always been obsessed with the ballistics and how different cartridge loads perform. Therefore, when ‘out and about’ I have been paying close nerd-like attention to the ammunition that our clients use and its effectiveness, when put in the right place! By far, the clear favourite for the high bird connoisseur was a 34gm or 36gm Eley Zenith Eco Wad in no.4, affectionally nicknamed the ‘Green Dragons’ by a particularly memorable chap. These do seem to consistently provide clean kills at quite spectacular ranges. However, not being a fan myself of ‘heavy loads’ I tend to go for loads in 32 grams or less and pay close attention to guns defying the ever-present peer-pressure to use ‘big bombs’. To my amazement, I witnessed the best kills of the season by two separate clients who chose Hull Imperial Game’s payload 28 grams of number 4. It goes to shows the bigger is not always better, as these guns were consistently folding birds at Drumlanrig’s highest pheasant and partridge drives.
Now the season is closed I can reflect on these amazing locations, and the rather large mileage tally I accrued travelling between them. My trip computer logged nearly 11,000 miles in just over 3-months and in measure of time, over 2 weeks solid that I was welded to my driver’s seat!
Work doesn’t cease now the 2025/26 season is over, we are busy filling days for next season, hosting partridge days in Spain, Doves in Argentina, Rock Pigeons in South Africa and Simulated Game Days throughout summer.
I have thoroughly enjoyed my first 4-months at Roxtons. The team has been extremely welcoming and helpful in getting me up to speed. The longevity of service in the team is one of the main factors that drew me to the role. I have been massively impressed with the level of professionalism, organisation and charisma for those that surround me, and I can only strive to match this someday. 2026 is a special year for us as it marks the 50th anniversary of the company. We very much look forward to welcoming our guests to our celebration taking place in London this June, which is set to be rather memorable.
