The Gentlemen: Shooting, Etiquette and CGI Ducks

What does The Gentlemen actually get right about a driven shoot?

Season two of Guy Ritchie's Netflix series opens with a grand shooting party at the Horniman family estate. There are aristocrats, international guests, matching guns, loaders, helicopters, business deals and some fairly questionable CGI birds.

Spoiler warning: this episode discusses the opening episode of season two of The Gentlemen.

But if this was your first glimpse of driven game shooting, how much of it resembles the real thing?Jake Woolf, Avian Sandercock and Sam Turner go through the shoot scene and separate the television flourishes from the surprisingly authentic bits.

They look at why shoot days are such social occasions, the difference between an invitation from a mate and the shooting equivalent of a corporate box, and why the gamekeeper remains in charge regardless of how wealthy or important the Guns might be.

There is also etiquette, loaders, picking-up teams, gun choice, hot pegs, the final bag and what someone going on their first driven day should actually expect.

And because a Guy Ritchie crime drama cannot be allowed to pass without consequences, Sam finishes with a quiz asking Jake and Avian to distinguish between varieties of pheasant and varieties of weed.


In this episode:

• What The Gentlemen gets right about driven shooting
• What television inevitably gets wrong
• Why a shoot day is about more than pulling the trigger
• Invitations, networking and the shooting equivalent of a corporate box
• Why the gamekeeper runs the day
• Shoot etiquette and knowing how to behave
• Guns, loaders and picking-up teams
• Greedy shooting and sporting behaviour
• What happens at the end of a driven day
• What to expect from your first shoot
• Why syndicates can be a good way into game shooting
• CGI birds and suspiciously summery shoot days
• Weed or pheasant?

Useful links:

• Netflix: The Gentlemen
• The Code of Good Shooting Practice
• SideCountry

Please note: If you are new to game shooting, seek appropriate instruction, listen carefully to the shoot briefing and always follow current firearms law and safety guidance.

Part of the SideCountry Network.

DISCLAIMER
Views are those of individual speakers and do not necessarily represent SideCountry, its presenters, contributors, partners or sponsors. For general information and entertainment only. Laws, seasons, access and guidance change; check official sources, obtain permission and act within your competence.