The Belstone Fox

The Belstone Fox is the nickname given to Tag, a fox cub rescued from the woods and adopted by huntsman Asher. The young fox is reared in captivity with a litter of hound puppies, including Merlin, with whom Tag becomes especially friendly. Asher and Tod are fascinated by Tag, who combines cool cunning and knowledge of human habitation to lead the pack and hunters in many a "merry chase." This gives the fox a status of local celebrity, enough to be published in magazines. Merlin, at first not interested in the hunts, becomes an active hound but protective of Tag. Asher, now an aging huntsman to the hunt club, was mildly protective of the fox until Tag leads the pack of hounds into the path of a train, killing many, and the club resolves to shoot the fox. Asher sees this as disturbing and against the natural order of life, and determines to bring down the fox in the approved manner, rather than with a firearm, however he dies from a sudden heart attack while attempting to do the deed. His once beloved fox and its friend Merlin sit beside their master until the rescue party comes.

• Eric Porter - Asher
• Jeremy Kemp - Kendrick
• Bill Travers - Tod
• Rachel Roberts - Cathie
• Dennis Waterman - Stephen
• Heather Wright - Jenny

Time Out called the film "a dismayingly literal and unimaginative version of David Rook's novel," ;[4] the Radio Times gave it two out of five stars, calling it a "workmanlike adaptation," adding, "Porter and Rachel Roberts acquit themselves adequately but the film ultimately impresses more for its wildlife photography than for its dramatic interest," ;[5] whereas TV Guide gave the film three out of four stars, writing, "Porter is solid as the hunter who brings the baby fox to the hound for nurturing. Hats off to the trainers and technical experts who let the animals steal the show." ;[6] and Britmovie described it as a "touching tale," adding, "Eric Porter as Asher and Rachel Roberts as his wife are first-rate." [7]

The movie has been released a few times in PAL format (changing the film runtime from 103 minutes to 98 minutes). A Region 1 American DVD was released in 2013 as the "40th Anniversary Edition." It is merely reformated from the PAL video and still plays faster, runtime at 98 minutes. The 2017 blu-ray from Network UK is the correct film speed transfer, runtime 103 minutes, but is Region B locked.

The cover art includes the captions "The Original Timeless Tale of True Friendship" and "The Story that Inspired The Fox and the Hound". The first may refer to a different movie altogether; the second is at odds with Disney's attribution to Daniel P. Mannix's novel, The Fox and the Hound (1967). David Rook's novel and the James Hill film do however bear striking similarities in outline to the earlier Mannix novel.

• The Belstone Fox at IMDb