Who let the Labs out?
Patrick O’Reilly, BASC head of social science, draws on 40 years of rural work to explain why ministers should swap symbolism for real policy conversations.
‘Call of the Marsh’ premieres in Parliament
The people who look after Britain’s coastal marshes brought their story to Westminster yesterday (13 October), as BASC hosted a parliamentary screening of Call of the Marsh. This new documentary was filmed last January when BASC teamed up with The Origins Foundation and its founder, filmmaker Dr Robbie Kroger.
Co-sponsored by Robbie Moore MP, Shadow Minister for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, and Lord Glasman, the screening brought MPs and peers from four parties together with regulators, conservationists and wildfowlers.
Parliament sees vital work of wildfowlers
Filmed on the Ribble Estuary in Lancashire, Call of the Marsh takes viewers out onto the saltmarshes that wildfowlers know better than almost anyone. In their own words, they talk about the friendships, the wild food, the early mornings on the foreshore and the habitat they spend their lives caring for. The film won Best Documentary Short at the London Independent Film Awards in August 2026.
Wildfowlers such as Chris Kelly from Preston and District Wildfowlers’ Association and Andy Lee from Lytham & District Wildfowlers Association watched alongside young wildfowlers who are just starting out. It was a reminder that wildfowling is learnt on the marsh, a legacy that passes from generation to generation.
Wildfowling clubs help look after more than half a million acres of UK wetland and coastal habitat, almost entirely on a voluntary basis. It is vital work that rarely makes headlines.
BASC is proud of its wildfowlers and wants the film to celebrate them. It also sees the film as a starting point for collaboration, and the room reflected that. Officials from Defra, Natural England, the Joint Nature Conservation Committee and the Crown Estate sat alongside the British Trust for Ornithology, the Game & Wildlife Conservation Trust, WWT, filmmakers and academics.
Celebrating a tradition and a heritage
BASC chairman Eoghan Cameron thanked the wildfowlers and their families for opening their homes, clubs and marshes to the cameras. He said:
“For decades, wildfowlers have invested their own time, money and effort in protecting and enhancing these remarkable places. In doing so, they exemplify the values found throughout the British shooting community: stewardship, responsibility and a determination to hand on our natural heritage to the next generation in better condition than we found it.
“This also reflects one of the greatest strengths of shooting in the UK, which is self-regulation. The reserves, the voluntary bag limits, the restrictions on shooting days and the many other measures featured in the film weren’t imposed from above. They were developed by those closest to the land, because they understand that conservation and sustainable use go hand in hand.”
It was that difference that struck Dr Robbie Kroger, executive director of the Origins Foundation, which has made films about hunting communities in the United States, New Zealand and Spain. He had never been wildfowling, or seen a British marsh, before filming on the Ribble. He said:
“From the American perspective, it’s all about bag size. What I heard about wildfowling in the UK was the antithesis of that, and the antithesis of what everybody believes hunters to be. It’s about being part of the marsh, part of a tradition and a heritage. When I heard that story, I knew I had to tell it.
“I believe this film can reach people who don’t understand: those who, like me, have never been wildfowling, or who have never stepped outside the city. It will show them the true heart of who you are as wildfowlers, not just the science or the facts.”
Robbie Moore MP, Shadow Minister for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and co-sponsor of the screening, was among those it reached. He described the film as incredibly moving and said:
“I hope that government and policymakers, regardless of political colour, understand the extraordinary benefits that wildfowling can have, and that this is reflected in policy development in the future.
“The reality is, if the stories do not continue, if the conservation does not continue and if the shooting does not continue, with the benefits it brings to communities on the ground, then everything is lost.”
Film to tour venues around the UK
The Westminster event is one of a series of screenings that BASC and its affiliated wildfowling clubs are running throughout 2026 and into spring 2027. Next is a packed-out premiere event in Preston on 16 October for 160 guests, with attendees including representatives from local councils, press and other organisations.
Upcoming screenings:
- 16 October: ARC Cinema, Preston
- 29 October: Ilkley Rugby Club, Ilkley
- 11 November: Yatton, North Somerset, hosted by Clevedon Wildfowlers Association
- 16 November: Holbeach, Lincolnshire, hosted by Holbeach & District Wildfowlers
- 22 November: Chichester, West Sussex (venue to be confirmed)
- 23 November: Beccles, Suffolk, hosted by Alde & Ore Wildfowlers Association
- 25 November: Dunsilly Hotel, Antrim
Call of the Marsh will be made publicly available after The Game Fair 2027. Until then, anyone who would like to know more or attend a screening is welcome to get in touch with us.
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