Horses are animals with which I have very little experience. I have only ever ridden one seriously. And really it took me for a ride, lovely animal that it was. I didn't have to do anything. Australia 1990. I was staying in Queensland on the Sunshine Coast. I won't go into it because it will only make you jealous and make me depressed that I haven't been back since. Anyway, the guy I was staying with, his brother, their mum and I travelled into the backwoods away from the coast to Ipswich - a town that makes Colnbrook look like LA and Brands Hill like Hollywood.
It was fantastic though. Christmas Eve! Boiling hot and the reason for our trek was to visit the guys grandfather who owned a farm out there. I was given a pair of his old jeans to wear. Well shorts were not advised for a beginner. I got onto the beautiful grey horse. I posed for a picture looking very unsure of myself. Then off went the horse for a nice stroll, then a serious walk around the valley.
We headed back through the rainforest on the ridge between Ipswich and Brisbane and when we got to their mum's house looking out above the city it started. A lightning storm the like of which I have never seen before and may never see again. Warm rain. Flashes of forked lightning hitting every tall building to be seen. It went on for hours.
Those two things helped make Christmas Eve 1990 one of the best days of my life before meeting secretary. The Christmas Day that followed was pretty good too. Full cooked breakfast. Tennis. Full Christmas dinner. All in 40 degree heat. Bonkers but brilliant.
But let me get back to horses. Or rather Binky, aka Alfie Moon. What a lovely chap. Only four. A bit twitchy at first but pretty good when he had got used to us.
The great grey beast I am talking about is owned by someone who stables him at the same place as a man who travels on the train to London as previous producer. Remarkable the things you can lay on if you speak to the right people. We needed some photos taken for the press and for our programme somewhere, somehow and the concept of Warwick and/or any other castle had gone by the wayside. So there we were. Sunday morning. A farm in Middle Green backing onto Langley Park. Director her, producer, the ginger one, Albert and Ysabell.
Now this sort of special photo shoot has evolved through the years. The most famous was the first, arranged by producer, which saw us go to London to take pics for Moby Dick - The Musical. Dressed as schoolgirls and teachers and school staff. Including two blokes dressed as schoolgirls. I was assistant director for the show so I got to be the deputy head. As it was my idea too... Previous director was the headteacher as he produced and directed the show. We went to the Natural History Museum to have our pictures taken by set man with the gigantic Blue Whale. All before the museum had opened to the public. We did Trafalgar Square, Herman Melville's house, the Cutty Sark and the Greenwich Meridian among the many stops on our tour.
Since then other trips have included a trip to the Portsmouth Docks for Treasure Island, to Taplow railway station for Stranded and all over London again for Dick Whittington. But you can read all about that one at allaboutdick.blogspot.com.
Back to our horse. When it came to it, director her was the only one of us to get on Binky. She had already suggested that, and when we were told that Binky was only four and had never had a large flappy piece of material - or in our case DEATH's cloak - draped across it's back we knew she was right. Director her has experience with horses and it showed. So up she got onto this 17 hand beast to then put the cloak on once she was up there. Along with DEATH's mask. With producer's sunglasses taped into them. Prescription sunglasses. It was a sunny day, but as producer is blind as a bat the prescription meant she could barely see a thing.
It was very convincing though. Despite the foot gap in height between stand-in horse-riding DEATH and real but firmly rooted to the ground DEATH. Then Albert and the ginger one and producer had their pictures taken next to and leading Binky. And Ysabell had her picture taken dressed in pink looking demure leaning on a fence. Not as her character of course.
After all that it was off for the second set build... I'll tell you all about eggs, sausages and bacon tomorrow. Oh and swordfights as well.
Thought for the day:
'Ride the range all the day
Till the first fading light
Be with my western girl
Round the fire oh so bright
I'd be the indians friend
Let them love to be free
Riding into the sunset
I wish I could be'
Jeff Lynne. Wild West Hero. ELO. Out Of The Blue. And yes, they were The Beatles of the 1970s. And if you disagree i'll sort you out.
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