One Wednesday in the middle of March there was great excitement because some of our fields and a local chemin were to be used to film some of the scenes in “Zone Libre”. The weather was perfect, big sunny skies and temperatures into the mid 20'sC. We watched from the top of the milking parlour steps as the large white vans arrived and parked in our neighbours field. A breakdown lorry arrived carrying a  vintage yellow and black bus with designer dirt, which was swiftly unloaded. We stood for a while as the scene unfolded and was shot, the bus making an attempt at driving up the chemin, we wondered if the engine would last the day as it roared and struggled to make the incline. There was a camera man in our front field and two actors. Remy's field on the other side of the road was filled with several cameras and their operators. As the day unfolded a small tented village was set up at Maine Michaud with several technicians based in residents gardens. There was a field kitchen and a running buffet for the cast.
We made our way along the road and saw that there was a black vintage car on the viaduct. We were able to walk along the viaduct and take some snaps of the car with its own designer mud. We were admiring the view and saw that we had an extra, very lively, addition in our field by the side of the river, which had been abandoned by it's mother Tia. With reluctance we left the viaduct and went to find Andrew so that we could bring the calf and Tia up to the farm.
The calf was caught by some agile running from Andrew and firmly attached to the bucket of the tractor. It was with great skill that we girls managed to herd Tia  to the gate where Andrew was waiting to let her across into the other field. Everything went smoothly, we shut the gate congratulating ourselves on a job well done. Tia then realised that she was on her own and parted from her friends, so she  doubled back on us and walked through the none existent fencing that the film crew and taken down and very kindly had not replaced! She then broke back  into the other field and trotted away to join her friends. We managed to bring her back to the gate a number of times but she was not having any of it. We made one final attempt of  walking her back from the farthest boundary of the field to the gate. We made a tight circle all intent on standing our ground. However she made a fast dash, Hilary had momentarily glimpsed her eyes and saw the intent and before she could tell Hannah to move and let her past she had bowled a very brave Hannah over, Tia ran off down the field. Hannah was unable to move and was in floods of tears, shaking with shock. Hilary  ran her experienced hands over Hannah’s legs and did not think that she had broken anything but Hannah's knee was very swollen. Andrew brought the car in to the field and we gently lifted her in to the front seat. It was decided to take her straight to the hospital at Confolens where X-rays were taken and the doctor confirmed no bones broken but just some soft tissue damage. By the time we returned from Confolens the filming had finished and every one was very disappointed to have missed it.