I will be practicing so I can beat Mel soon
Watch out for the new "illegal" AFB at next year's Jungle Jaunt....lol
I think a great place to start is with a recurve. There are a lot about, and you can pick up take-down recurves for about £60-70 from some of the archery suppliers. We have been using some from
www.thearcherycompany.co.uk for teaching beginners and corporate bods - they are quite good.
You have to realise that you need to buy a bow of around 30lb draw (assuming that you have about a 28" draw length) and you will outgrow it with use - but you can always sell it on.
Once you have mastered it and shot around for a while, you will have a better idea of what style you want to shoot and can save up for your dream bow
Hope that helps....let me know if you need anything else.