Pride, celebration, defiance and unity – this was the message across the country as tens of thousands of people showed their support for legal hunting – and now focus turns to the fight for the future.
Boxing Day meets traditionally draw huge crowds across the country but this year’s seemed even bigger, days after the Government confirmed that a consultation on how – not whether – to ban trail-hunting would come early this year.
“Boxing Day 2025 will live long in the memory of the hunting community, not merely for the large crowds and incredible scenes around the country highlighted across the media, but for the unmistakable sense that something profound may have shifted that day,” said Polly Portwin, head of the campaign for hunting at the Countryside Alliance.
“Those of us who stood shoulder to shoulder on village greens, in bustling town centres and on windswept verges where overflow parking spilled into fields, will know exactly what that shift felt like. It was pride. It was defiance. Above all, it was solidarity – an outpouring of support for our hounds, our hunts and the dedicated hunt staff who remain professional even in the face of relentless pressure.”
Ms Portwin said that the Government’s 22 December release of its animal welfare framework, which included reiteration of its manifesto commitment to ban trail-hunting, could have cast a shadow on Boxing Day meets.
“Instead, it acted as a spark,” she said. “From Cornwall to Northumberland, attendance figures soared and the message could not have been clearer: this community will not quietly fade away.
“We are under no illusion that politically we have a monumental fight on our hands. We have been preparing for this moment for some time, and under the leadership of Sir Ben Wallace, we are campaigning alongside the British Hound Sports Association to protect hunting’s future. The road ahead will be challenging, uncomfortable at times, and demanding of every one of us. But Boxing Day showed us something we must hold on to – we are not isolated voices crying into the wind. We are an extraordinary community, bound together by shared values, heritage and an unshakeable belief in what we do.
“This is not a cause we are creating from nothing, but an alliance already forged through years of shared adversity – and now is the moment to strengthen it, expand it and turn our collective resolve into lasting action. Boxing Day 2025 was not just a celebration of all that we hold dear. It was a call to arms.”
A quiet moment
Oliver Cornock, master of the Bicester Hunt with Whaddon Chase, told H&H the crowd on Boxing Day was larger than usual, and the feeling from the thousands of people there included defiance and anger – and one quiet moment of joy and power.
“Just as I finished an interview with the ITV team and was preparing to remount, a gentleman approached me with his young son,” he said. “He explained that his son was non-verbal, but that he adored coming to see the hounds at the meet. I introduced myself and asked the boy’s name; his father told me it was Oliver – my name too, I replied. He wore spectacles, and by way of connection I pointed out that I do as well.
“I asked whether he might like to stroke one of the hounds, and his father explained that he doesn’t usually touch animals. At that moment, a particularly woolly, very typically Bicester hound was standing nearby. I beckoned her over, stroked her, and pointed out how soft her ears were. Tentatively, the boy reached out. The look of joy on his face – and the sense of achievement and reassurance for both father and son – was incredibly moving.
“Against the backdrop of the headlines and heated debate surrounding trail-hunting this Christmas, this small, quiet moment felt especially powerful. It spoke to the extraordinary nature of these animals. Yes, they can cover many miles in a day’s trail-hunting, and yes, their pedigrees are long and distinguished – but their careful training and socialisation also give them the ability to connect with people and touch lives in the most unexpected and profound ways. Here’s hoping that they will be able to continue doing so for many more years to come.”
The next steps
Ms Portwin told H&H the focus is now on “what really matters next”.
“Preparing for the upcoming consultation, encouraging as many people as possible to sign up to our Action for Hunting initiative so we can contact them to take action when required, while making sure that every hunt continues to show that it is operating within the law,” she said.
“This is about harnessing the momentum from festive meets and standing together to secure the future of our packs of hounds.”
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