Meadow Mill Tap on Wood & September Melody-ADDED NAMES

JohnW · Posted: Fri Feb 08, 2008 9:25 pm Post subject:

Mmm, what do you want to know I wonder? Let’s have a look at Hector. There are a number of small breeders in there of whom I know little. But there are also some famous dogs and people in there.

Two dogs you mention, Secret Song of Lawnwood and ShCh Lawnwoods Midnight Folly. The Lawnwood affix was the affix of Margery Satterthwaite. I never really knew Margery, but did know her husband. So give you an idea of the period, I was at a show at Harwood Hall, Upminster, and Margery’s husband was to judge “Best In Show”. Whilst waiting we got chatting about the boxing which had been on TV the night before and he told me that he had a program at home from the Henry Cooper Cassius Clay fight (Before Cassius Clay changed his name to Mohammed Ali)

Behind Secret Song is the bitch Brentville Marianne of Lawnwood and behind her is Tidereach Neptune and behind him you get my old friend Candlemas Rookwood Silver Moonlight. Owned by Mrs Kneller, Mo was an important stud in this area. The story goes that one day Mrs Kneller and her friend drove to the edge of a wood, parked the car and went for a walk with Mo. At a point in the walk Mo disappeared and they heard barking coming from the direction of the car. On getting back to the car, there was Mo, running round the car barking and inside the car was a trapped burglar!! He had heard the door open and had gone and “Sorted” the problem. Although regularly shown and becoming a champion, he also picked up regularly during the shooting season.

Secret Song’s sire was Ch Timspring Sirius. Not the first of last Champion Joan Macan made up before her life was cut short. Returning home from a show one day she was brutally murdered. To my knowledge no one was ever caught for the murder.

There is so much more I could say about the dog side of Tap On Wood, but I’ll leave that and go to the bitch side. His dam was Comedy of Errors at Meadowmills, who’s dam was Degear Lady in Waiting who’s sire was Sharland leader who’s dam was Sharland Lucky (now we are getting there) who’s sire was Foxhanger Mascot. Owened and bred by Lady Simpson, the wife of Sir Joseph Simpson, the then Chief Commissioner of Scotland Yard, Mascot won in the show ring and field, but achieved his fame was in working where he became CD Ex.

Mascot’s sire was Copperhill Cheerful and Cheerful’s sire was Mrs Wormald’s Knaith Banjo, the last ever Dual Champion! (A Dual Champion is a dog who becomes both a Show champion and a Field Trials Champion of which, in Labradors there has only ever been ten!)

Mascot’s dam was Foxhanger Lass. Lass’s dam was Foxhanger Gay, TD Fx, UD Ex, CD Ex. (Tracker Dog Excellent, Utility Dog Excellent and Companion Dog Excellent. All working Trials awards.)

Lass’s sire was FT Ch Whatstandwell Hiwood Brand and his sire was yet another of the famous 10, Dual Champion Staindrop Saighdear. With only ten Dual Champions ever it’s rare to find one in a pedigree. Foxhanger Mascot has two!!!

Looking at Hector’s dam’s side, to a large extent there is more of the same, but with a few additions. Looking at Lawnwoods Midnight Folly for example, he was the result of a mating of the late great Didi Hepworth’s Poolstead Pegg to Margery Satterthwaite’s Lawnwoods Fandango. All the Poolstead dogs names started with “P” and a quick look here will show Poolstead Pegg, Preferential, Postal Vote, Pictorial, Preface, Problem, Pussywillow, Prelude and Picadilly! (And I could find a few more if I bothered to go back a bit further!)

One last comment about Hector’s ancestors, Fandango’s sire was the famous black dog, one of the two dogs behind almost all modern chocolate Labradors, Ch Follytower Merrybrook Black Stormer!

So that puts a little flesh on Hector’s family tree. Now to the future. I’ve had a look through the membership lists of clubs I’m a member of and met a brick wall on Mrs Hunt, But I did find Mrs Ayling of Meadowmill’s present address and phone number. I’m always reluctant to place details like those on an open forum for all to see, but if you want them let me know and I can PM them to you.

Regards, John