AMERICAN COOKBOOK

Half a century ago, nine young men from diverse backgrounds were assembled as a group.

For about a year they were in residence at a 19th century Baronial Mansion in Cookham, a village on the banks of the Thames between London and Oxford.

Their backgrounds ranged from Harrow followed by Trinity College, Oxford, to a stint with The Royal Horse Guards, to a double Phd in Medieval Literature and Linguistics, to a stevedore from Liverpool, a Hungarian refugee mathematician, a Motocross Bike Rider, a reconnaissance pilot formerly with The King's African Rifles, and a former Scottish Dominee recently resigned from the Kirk.

The selection and recruitment methods that resulted in this wildly unlikely gang being assembled were never explained - and I fear lost forever in in some dusty archive.

Moor Hall has since been sold, passing into private hands and is now a conference center for hire, as well as the home of The Chartered Institute of Marketing.

Red Kite over Moor Hall, Cookham, Berkshire. The great raptors are officially a protected species having been practically wiped out in Britain. A few pairs survived in mid Wales and over 50 years or more started to grow in numbers. They are now being re-introduced to parts of England - including this area of the Chilterns near Maidenhead