‘A gentleman on and off the field’: farewell to much-loved former master
Joe Scott Plummer, the former master of the Duke of Buccleuch, died peacefully on 6 December following a short illness, aged 79.
Mr Scott Plummer was always at the forefront of Scottish hunting – he was brought up in the heart of Duke of Buccleuch Hunt country in the Scottish Borders and part of a storied hunting family. The Scott Plummers’ hunting pedigree can be traced back many generations – Mr Scott Plummer’s grandfather Joseph founded the Lauderdale Foxhounds (known initially as Mr Scott Plummer’s Hounds) and his father Humphrey was chairman of the Buccleuch.
He was a successful member of the Duke of Buccleuch branch of the Pony Club and under the instruction of district commissioner Eildon Watherston, was part of the winning team in the inter-branch championship in 1962. He also competed in point-to-points and rode in team chases.
He learnt his hunting skills as amateur whipper-in of the Cambridge University Draghounds under Sir Hugh Arbuthnot in 1963/64, then as master and huntsman in 1964/65. After university, he remained in the south, hunting with the Grafton enjoying the arable and grassland country and thorn hedges taken at speed.
Returning to the Scottish Borders in 1980 with his wife Christine, Mr Scott Plummer joined the Duke of Buccleuch Hunt mastership in 1982, forming successful partnerships with huntsmen Lionel Salter, then Trevor Adams. With him as Saturday field master, the field had to be as bold as this fearless horseman, who always gave a great lead into every fence, across the country he knew so well and loved so much. He hated to go home early and, like everything in his life, he was the eternal optimist.
At the forefront of the team who fought the Protection of Wild Mammals Bill, he took the lead with fundraising efforts and helped write the new protocol for the control of foxes when the bill became law in 2002.
Mr Scott Plummer retired from the mastership after 25 years in 2007, he was hunt chairman 2015–2017 and continued to enjoy hunting with his family until the end of the 2022 season.
He gave a huge commitment and energy to everything associated with hunting, always the man to go to when a hunt matter needed clarification; his knowledge and enthusiasm will be sorely missed. A gentleman both on and off the hunting field, Mr Scott Plummer was well known for his impeccable manners and empathy – he never took the generosity of the farmers and landowners for granted. Hunting was his passion and life long friends were made throughout the hunting community across the UK.
He is survived by his wife Christine, his children Charles, Annabel and Guy and stepchildren Emma and Lucinda.
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