It's the wrong species of raptor! Casting blunder by producers of award-winning movie

                                         

Jessie Buckley and Paul Mescal share a tender moment in the film

THERE have been awards this week for the film, Hamnet, set in Shakespearean England, but birders who see it will not be best impressed by some of the sequences.

These involve the use of a Harris Hawk in the falconry scenes.

This is an American species that would have been unknown in 16th Century England.

The bird in the film is 'Aztec' which was loaned to the film's producers by the Wye Falconry Centre where it was trained.

The centre also has in its charge native species such as Peregrine Falcon and Goshawk - so why was not one of these used instead? 

                                

A casting mistake by the film's producers - 'Aztec' the Harris Hawk