Sitting Pigeon

More from our bowls correspondent, Bill Lush (see post below ). After hearing about his shark-fishing exploits, I asked him, foolishly perhaps, if he'd been involved in any other sports. "Oh yes," he replied. "I was a very good shot."

Apparently, back in the good old, no-nonsense days when you didn't have to make do with clay pigeons and could shoot real ones instead, Bill was tieing for first place in a big cup competition. It all came down to the last shot but when the trap opened, the pigeon didn't fly out (well, who could blame it?). Bill explained that in those circumstances, you could either ask for another trap to be set or for the recalcitrant to be coaxed from its hiding place. Bill chose the latter.

"And d'you know," he said, "this little red pigeon came out of the trap and walked off along the ground." He paused, looking vaguely sentimental. "So I shot it and won the cup."

With that, he donned his smart straw hat, tapped his walking stick on the floor and was gone.