Category: Blog

Bye bye Bertie

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I have survived my busiest month of the year – significantly less fit (not around for ‘boot camp’ sessions), probably half a stone heavier (diet of sandwiches) and with a complaining liver…. but it’s done for 2017.

First up was Badminton, and whilst I missed my usual partner in crime, Ellie, Steph did sterling work and the rest of the team were on great form. It feels like a lifetime ago now, but I do remember Nina chivvying us all out of the Media Centre on the Thursday evening just in time to catch the back end of the Cocktail Party. Badminton House is spectacular, and it is a huge privilege to have a good snoop around the paintings whilst sipping fine champagne and being fed scrumptious canapés.

The total highlight, however, was that Andrew Nicholson FINALLY won, on his 37th completion (must do the sums to see how often he started and didn’t complete). I don’t think there has ever been a more popular winner, or more tears shed by so many people, myself included. Epic.

I got home to find that Angel Horse had patently been partying too hard in the field, and was in dire need of a string of massages from the magic-fingered Sophie. He really is old enough to know better. With no riding I could at least keep on top of work, slip in a sneaky flight or two and spend a memorable, alcohol-fuelled evening with old friends from Lincolnshire days… did we really drink an entire bottle of port?

Before I could blink I was off to Rockingham International and 4 nights in the Best Western, Corby. Rockingham is such a great event, and this year was no different despite a couple of days of truly dire weather. The best hour was undoubtedly the one spent in the aforementioned Andrew Nicholson’s lorry while he was doing a radio interview – very entertaining, he is one happy man.

No rest for the wicked and it was on to Houghton International. The weather was glorious – bar half an hour of such heavy rain everything had to be stopped; horses and riders couldn’t even see the fences – and the Germans were on fire, winning the Nations Cup and taking a 1-2 in the 3*. Luckily client Piggy French flew the UK flag by winning both the 1* and the 2*.

There was, of course, more camel racing, organised by the East Anglian Air Ambulance, and this time I WAS a jockey. I haven’t laughed so much in months – and while I rather let Bertie down (didn’t kick hard enough!), it was brilliant fun; I can live with being beaten by Andreas Ostholt. I also love the fact that Bettina Hoy literally leapt off her winning horse, and on to a camel as the professional rider in the final. Thanks to everyone who sponsored me, am chuffed to say I raised £3,600.

So that was May. I’m now looking forward to a slower pace of life with just Blaston Show at the end of June. I say ‘just’ – it’s the Show’s 60th anniversary so I’d best pull my finger out.

I do love a camel

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I’m happy to say, April was good. It kicked off with a 9 hour round trip to Hampshire on the hottest weekend of the year so far. Deeply frustrating to be stuck in a car for so long, but 24 hours with Katie made it all worthwhile. On the Sunday she had invited some of my best friends from college days (yes, back in the 1980s, I’m that old!) for lunch – I couldn’t ask for a better day.

Then on to Barefoot Estates Burnham Market International. Not many people know but I have a real ‘thing’ about camels… it started when I rode one around the age of 6, the first time I ever went abroad (which reminds me, at the time I was attending a convent in East Grinstead, St Agnes & St Michael’s, and my biggest concern after arriving on foreign shores was: ‘Mum, what am I going to tell the nuns when I go back to school?’ Perplexed, she asked me to explain. ‘I’ve been above the clouds…. and there is NO heaven.’)

I can’t remember how I got around that one.

It was almost 20 years later when I was next back in the (camel) saddle, in Egypt with the White Rabbit interloper (for those that haven’t read my previous blogs, simply ignore). I even inflicted my ‘passion’ on said interloper by adopting a camel in his name.

Then, another 10 years or so later, with my ex-husband in Petra, Jordan, I spent a wedding anniversary astride a grumpy, swearing, hilarious dromedary. Given my marital status it’s not rocket science to work out which bit of that holiday made me most happy 😉

You will be forgiven for thinking I have gone off on a tangent, but no – we had camel racing, courtesy of the East Anglian Air Ambulance, Musketeer’s official charity this year, at Burnham Market. With Mitsubishi Motors Badminton, Rockingham and Saracen Feeds Houghton looming I did not step forward this time in case I fell off and bent myself, but I did take the opportunity to have a sneaky ‘bonding session’ with Bertie (pictured – isn’t he handsome?), on whom I have been promised the ride in 3 weeks time when I am a jockey at Houghton…. shameless plug: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Hilary-Manners.

It’s love. What more can I say?

Aside from that, Burnham Market was also a great weekend because a) client of almost 15 years, Oliver Townend (have I said, British number 1 for the last 3 years? Probably…) won the headline 3* class for the 10th time since 2007 b) it’s a rare feeling for an equestrian press officer to get your event mentioned in the Daily Mail, Sunday Express… and even the Daily Star (thanks to the camel/Zara Tindall combo – and to Rhiannon Rix for starring, despite wearing a jacket zipped to the neck – that must be a first for the Daily Star) c) we had fantastic spectator numbers and d) I survived the late night chat/eat/drink sessions with Lorna and my top photographer, Trevor Holt.

Post Burnham I was remarkably sociable – totally out of character for me, but it seems my Norfolk friends have sussed how to get me out of my cave. I even found myself having a ‘make-over’ with Fiona Reddick, bizarrely planned while she was checking the fit of George’s saddle during Burnham – I love a woman who multi-tasks!

So now I am packing for the ‘big one’, Badminton… I can’t wait. I leave at sparrow’s fart in the morning. Will Herr Jung do it again? After his performance in Kentucky last weekend no one can doubt he’s on form and I will never bet against the magic Sam. Time will tell… the really good news is that another client, Piggy French, is back on the Radio Badminton team for the second year… sorry Pigs, but I think it’s time we all heard this again:

Piggy’s post-cross country interview with Michael Jung at Badminton 2016 – classic Piggy!

Easing in gently

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March got off to an unusual start for me – for the first time since 2003 I didn’t go to Isleham Horse Trials on the opening weekend of the season. No Oasby, no Great Witchingham. In fact I didn’t go to my first event until 31st… I rather like this new regime.

So what have I been doing? Primarily writing press releases and copy for magazines, plus the redesign for Piggy French‘s website went live. I’m somewhat mystified as to how the month passed so quickly when, on paper at least, it doesn’t look like I was that busy. It ended at full speed, however, with Belton International Horse Trials. It was my first year there as press officer, and back where I lived before moving to Norfolk.

It’s a great event, with so much going on aside from the eventing. Fortunately the sun shone (most of the time) and we had record crowds. The media all behaved themselves, I caught up with my web guru, Neil, and clients Piggy, Oliver and Ros all did well. I also took the opportunity to stay one night with my ex-neighbours and one with a friend who worked with me when I ran Eventing Worldwide. Two very entertaining evenings, although it was surreal to look out of my bedroom window on Friday night and see the house that I lived in for 10 years across ‘my’ paddock!

A major highlight in March was the opportunity to have a play in a 1938 Hornet Moth. It was a huge privilege to take to the skies in this beauty, such a contrast to the RV7 that I usually fly. Charlotte, one of my oldest friends – we were in the Pony Club together, shared houses at college etc – came to stay, and whilst I couldn’t entice her into the air (she works for a safari company and has, I think, had her fair share of alarming moments in small planes) we did do a lot of beach walking and even more talking.

So, time to switch focus to Burnham Market International and Badminton – blogs to sort, copy to write, and I am determined to keep on top of the garden this year. One thing I didn’t know until today was that if you catch a mouse that has been ‘released’ in the house by a devilish cat, you have to swing it round by its tail as you return it to the outside world. Otherwise it will climb back up its tail and bite you. And no, of course I didn’t do the swinging – my thanks to Gavin Howling, not very ably assisted by James and Zoe 😉

February blues

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I’ve never been a fan of February. Back in the day, before clients and commitments, I would pack a small bag and head off travelling. The nights might be getting shorter but I find the glimpses of Spring almost tortuous – snow drops and aconites peek out from under my favourite curly hazel tree, but then Storm Doris comes along, rips tiles from the roof, and slays one of a row of lovely big old oaks in the field behind my house.

The highlight of the month is that I now have a lawn and terrace in front of the house – the quagmire is no more. Andy and his boys at Garden Works survived the elements and are just the best.

Aside from that there has been quite a lot of writing, some chauffeuring (Manners Media photographer Leigh parted company with a bronking horse and managed to snap his medial collateral ligament and damage the anterior cruciate – not ideal when his bees needed feeding due to the cold weather), and we got the contracts signed with Ecqlusive, which now sponsors both Ros Canter and Cholmondeley Castle Horse Trials.

Earlier this week I made the trip down to Badminton for the annual pre-event Media meeting. It’s a mighty long way to go for a meeting, but always worthwhile. With my partner in crime Ellie Crosbie a very new mother, Ellary (so much easier to function under one name when we do the same job… Nina and Claire are known as Clina… I forget why Sally has morphed into Jeff!) is awol this year – but I’m happy to reveal that for 2017 I will be half of Selary, having met up with this year’s media partner Stephanie.

Hugh Thomas treats us all to a great lunch in the Old Royal Ship in Luckington after the meeting, although my delicious lasagne had to be abandoned unfinished when the ‘very very nice man’ from the RAC arrived to tell me that the grinding noise coming from my car was totally knackered brakes. I gingerly followed his van to a local garage, MGS… good choice. Super-efficient, absolutely charming, and if you ever need mechanical help near Chippenham, that’s where you should head.

It was quite a month for catching up with my past which, whether alarming, surprising or entertaining, is almost always thought provoking. John Swire’s hugely moving memorial service in Canterbury Cathedral hosted people I rarely see, from my Far East travelling companion (who on one memorable occasion failed to successfully mime to our delightful Burmese hosts how long he’d like an egg boiled for – credit where it’s due… he ate it!) to my ex-husband. Along with the hyacinths which are just bursting forth, some real blasts from the past have popped up out of the woodwork and been helping to banish my February blues.

Exciting news on the work front

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BeachJanuary got off to a bad start – I won’t bore you with the details but strongly advise anyone against ever shopping at Currys Online. I lost count of the hours I wasted on hold, simply trying to talk to someone in order to get my new but faulty cooker returned. I never did get to talk to them, but fortunately Zanussi sent a charming man who made it work, and they weren’t rude enough to charge me for the privilege.

Things improved when I was asked to take on the press officer role for both Belton and Osberton International Horse Trials. Belton is very much in my old stomping ground – I used to live about 4 miles away, and it has always been a favourite event of mine. Osberton I’ve not been to for a while, but with so many ‘age’ championships I’m pretty sure that I will have my work cut out.

I nipped over to the BEDE offices for a meeting with the team, so took the opportunity to stay the previous night with Mark & Tanya Kyle, who have been firm friends since I bought George from them 14 years ago. I hadn’t been to Cripwell Farm for ages and the changes were amazing – it has to be one of the most beautifully designed rider homes in the country (all due to Tanya), and I slept in a super-smart little flat that is available for clients who are staying for a few days of training.

I made the most of my time in the Midlands with a flying visit to Rockingham Castle to see Andrew Norman and run through my To Do list – and have subsequently been uber-efficient drafting plans for pretty much every social media post and press release that I am expecting to write between now and October. That’s a first.

We’ve had some hilarious meetings at Musketeer, most notably with the East Anglian Air Ambulance (our official charity for 2017) who took our invitation to ‘think outside the box’ literally. I look forward to welcoming camels to our little corner of North Norfolk come April.

Away from work, Emily (Lochore) rang me one Sunday morning with an invitation to ride on the beach. George might be 20, but you wouldn’t have guessed it as he almost cantered up the ramp, neighing as he went. Now I have no transport he hadn’t seen the sea for a couple of years, and it was the perfect day for it. The only downside is that he was so full of beans on the lorry that he managed to literally destroy the top of his tail which is now embarrassingly bald!

Less happy was the trip to Sussex for the funeral of a childhood friend’s father. Charlotte & I were in the Pony Club together, shared houses at college, and a million other memories. Her father was a lovely man, a doctor – my lasting memory of him is from years ago when she and I were off to Greece and he chased me round their garden armed with an injection that I patently didn’t want to be given. It was the first – and will probably be the last – funeral I attend where the final piece of music was the Welsh National Anthem, Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau, recorded at the Millennium Stadium when packed to the rafters with Welsh rugby supporters. Unforgettable and brilliant.

Happy New Year!

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utahbeachDecember was a blast! The first highlight was a trip to Normandy to see a long lost friend with whom I’d gone to the 2010 World Equestrian Games in Kentucky (a total Thelma & Louise trip – it might have been work but it didn’t feel like it).

Hilary (she’s another one) has just come out the other side of the Big C and, given another great friend who’s had a bad time with cancer has also received good news, I’m reminded of the huge progress being made in treating this insidious disease, despite my heartbreaks of the last 18 months.

It was a 48 hour flying visit to what I can only call Chateau Bonkers. It used to boast the best nightclub in Normandy, had a fully operational pub as well as the nightclub when Hils and her husband bought the place, and was once home to the SS. Despite that, it had no bad vibes – I slept in a turret room and can only imagine what those walls would tell me if they could speak, going way back before WW2.

I ticked one thing off my Bucket List – a trip to one of the Landing Beaches (in my case, Utah – pictured) which was incredibly moving. The beach was deserted, the sky blue, but it was impossible not to feel the huge power of history and what had happened there – enforced, no doubt, by having driven through Dead Man’s Corner to reach the beach.

Aside from that it was non-stop chat and laughter, and I can’t wait to go back.

On the work front, Alec hosted a farewell supper for Sam, who has been a lynch pin of Musketeer Events for the last few years – we will so miss her in 2017, although I have no doubt she won’t miss us… her husband has taken a fabulous-sounding job in Australia.

I snuck in a birthday, but given the number I’ve had we can gloss over that one….

Then it was off for Christmas. I am incredibly lucky to stay most christmas’s in a stunning castle, courtesy of some ‘not-quite but sort-of relations’. Every year it is filled to the gunnels with great people, delicious food and more alcohol than is to be recommended. 2016 lived up to expectations 🙂

Riding George, long beach walks with friends, and pub lunches filled the gap between Christmas and New Year – which was wonderfully quiet (bar the monthly White Rabbit contest of course – my surprise White Rabbit website successfully knocked my opponent off his stride!).

And so to 2017. It’s going to be a good one I hope. Time to crack on and do some work!

Fierce winds, fabulous food and farewells

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ashes2I’ve hit a pre-Christmas ‘OMG I haven’t done any serious work for weeks’ panic. It’s the downside of knowing that I have very few deadlines at this time of year, and I have been kidding myself that I don’t actually have any work. WRONG.

It’s been, mostly, fun… although the scattering of my brother’s ashes in the sea at Hayling Island on what would have been his 59th birthday was a tear jerker. I also found myself staying in the top floor, corner room of a seafront hotel in Eastbourne the night Storm Angus hit the South Coast. Suffice to say I got no sleep thanks to rattling sash windows and shaking walls, but the sight of the churning sea was unforgettable.

I’d gone to Eastbourne for a concert in memory of my mother, performed by the Aanna Colls Singers. The music was fabulous, and when Aanna sung a piece, the words to which were written for her by mum, that was both me and my great friend Katie gone. A very bracing and very, very breezy walk along the seafront, topped off by a night cap with my sister-in-law and her family, and our equanimity was restored…

I haven’t been on a total skive. There were the usual writing commissions, the launch of a new website for Coromandel Crewel, and a trip to London to visit a PR company which I might at some stage do some work for. Guy, who instigated this meeting, treated me to a delicious and entertaining lunch – the image of an owl wearing a tweed cap, with a claw literally through his hand, will never leave me :-0

I had a visit from Neil, the absolute bedrock of Manners Media website success. He and his son, Tom, came over for a catch up, a bit of sea air and, of course, chips! I then spent last Saturday with the charming Jacksons – why am I’m pretending this was work-related? Ben is a total star raising awareness about Rockingham International and Blaston Show as a presenter for BBC Radio Leicester, but a trip to Burnham Deepdale Christmas Market followed by scrumptious slow cooked beef in his and Hellen’s lovely holiday cottage – nothing to do with work there.

Work did take me on an overnight stay to web client Ros Canter‘s. I was there to introduce a hopeful new sponsor to Ros (all still under wraps), and under any circumstances it would have been spoiling, but given I’d been without a bathroom or oven for over 2 weeks, a ‘proper meal’ and long soak in a bath was heaven (I have been washing, I hasten to add – nipping round to my very accommodating neighbours).

Talking of which, the end is in sight re the builders. By Friday all should be pretty much finished. Most importantly I will have both a bath and a shower. The cats barely speak to me now there is underfloor heating in ‘their’ room – so Pig no longer serenades me in the early hours which makes whatever it cost cheap at half the price. Anyone in Norfolk, I can 100% recommend Jason Palmer and his team – really great guys to have making a mess in your house, I’ll almost (not quite) miss them! Happy Days.

Whilst not wanting to end on a sad note, one of the kindest, most perceptive and interesting men I have met died last week. John Swire, father of a close friend, has been a joy to know over the last 30 years. His ‘how a man should flirt’ dinner conversation with me when I was barely out of my teens set the standard – which, to be honest, has never been met!

Mud & Mayhem

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piggytommaxHow could I have thought that having builders in the autumn was a good idea – it looks like a battleground in front of the house. Hopefully things will crack on more speedily soon – we had the time consuming problem of discovering a well when the builders were digging the footings for the new walls, necessitating both extra Building Regs visits and the handing over of more money 🙁 The new room is starting to take shape though, and the re-located office has fresh paint on the walls and no longer sports a shocking artex ceiling!

Work is blissfully containable – Little Downham was my last report of the year for Horse & Hound and it was good to catch up with Piggy French, Tom and baby Max there. I’m sure Piggy will be a force to be reckoned with again when she returns to competing next year. Oliver Townend has finished the season a remarkable 1000+ points ahead in the British Eventing Rankings, while also nipping out to Australia and winning a CIC3* on a horse he had only sat on three times before the competition started – I’m not convinced he’s human.

Closer to home we found out that Sam is leaving Musketeer, her husband having taken a job in Australia – exciting for her but gutting for us. She’s going to leave very big shoes to fill.

This is the time of year where I tend to hunker down, catch up on the things that fell off my To Do list, royalalberthalland make plans for next year – I’m still seeking that elusive light bulb moment as to how to revolutionise the lives of all my clients, but I’m sure it will come.

Growler braved the builders and came to stay for a few days of beach walks, chat and good food, and I have even ventured down to London which is a rare event for me these days. I was thoroughly spoilt with one friend taking me to tea at The Wallace Collection and another to see Michael Morpurgo and Joanna Lumley read the story of War Horse at the Royal Albert Hall.

How things change on the turn of a card though. Louise, who I went to the RAH with, parted company with her horse out hacking two days later and now has a broken back. Fortunately she will recover, but what a reminder that we don’t know what’s around the corner. I’ve been holding extra tight when riding a newly-clipped George recently; strong winds and a plentitude of pheasants in the hedges is proving exciting.

What was all the fuss about?

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zip… I say, lying through my teeth.

My trip up to Blair involved a diversion to stay with some great friends in the Borders. I don’t get to see them often, and George – one of their sons/my godson – becomes ever more gorgeous as the years go by. If I keep the Blair job, I have an excuse to visit them every year 🙂

Blair was great. The sun shone (most of the time) which after last year’s European Championships is definitely news-worthy, the internet worked almost seamlessly (ditto) and I found myself zip-wiring from the top of the Blair Castle tower in aid of Barnardo’s. Ellie Crosbie joined me in the Media Tent and Trevor & Lorna were there, taking photos of Manners Media clients Oliver Townend & Bill Levett – with the dream-team what could go wrong! Oliver was on fire – he had 7 rides, all finishing in the top 6 of their classes and Cillnabradden Evo winning the Event Rider Masters.

From Blair I back tracked down to Pitlochry before diverting east for another trip to the incredible Fealar estate. My charming host had dropped a Land Rover at the bottom of the 8 mile obstacle course, flatteringly referred to as the drive, so I could abandon the Jazz and enjoy a much speedier trip to the house than 12 months ago, arriving in time for dinner.

Sadly, with Burghley looming, I could only stay for 36 hours, but I came away feeling restored – a long, long walk, another encounter with a golden eagle, totally delicious food, slightly too much alcohol and great company. The 10 hour drive home was less enjoyable!

As last year, I stayed with the wonderful ‘Growler’ for Burghley. She received some bombshell news on the day of my arrival, so I was more pleased than ever to be there to keep her spirits up. My lasting memory is of setting mouse traps (a long story), giggling uncontrollably – the mouse didn’t stand a chance.

shantyBurghley passed in something of a blur. I can’t complain, Ellie fitted in a job in Germany in the three days between Blair and Burghley – it was all I could do not to dribble by the Sunday. Oliver, Bill, Ros Canter and Harry Dzenis were all in action, Oliver finishing as best Brit. I also met up with new client Ruth Edge to discuss her website, now she has hung up her eventing boots to focus on dressage.

I genuinely slept for a week once I was home again. It’s such bliss to actually have time to ride George most days, fly, indulge in a few massages (I have found a wonderful woman who comes to the house – heaven!), go for long beach walks and catch up with friends. Admittedly one such walk did end up with 2 fire engines, a boat and over 20 strapping men joining in the fun – poor Shanty, the Highland cow, had got herself stuck in a dyke and the only option was to call the cavalry.

I have one more job for Horse & Hound next week and that is me done for 2016. Time to finish the garden, endure a month or so of builders, and get my paintbrush out again…

The calm before the storm

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h-sOne problem with knowing that you have another full-on work blitz pending is that time runs away even faster than it should. My last blog ended just ahead of me travelling south for a weekend.

Charlotte & Pete hosted a fantastic 25th wedding anniversary party (though I’m too old to still be up at 4am – ouch), and the following day, rather bleary-eyed, I headed on for lunch with more old friends. A side effect of the weekend was a plan to take one of my godsons out for dinner in London, in cahoots with a fellow godmother, to celebrate his 21st.

Now I don’t go to London often, and I remembered why as I sat in Covent Garden feeling like a complete country bumpkin. There were some great performers doing their thing, and some superb live music, but I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw how many people (of all ages) were walking along in silence, staring at their phones. The whole Pokemon thing hasn’t really reached North Norfolk, and it was like the human race had been possessed. Very disturbing!

Dinner was eye wateringly expensive but also eye wateringly delicious and great fun, so worth every penny and then some.

Back in Bumpkinsville and life became really very social (not like me at all). My sister-in-law came to stay so I had the opportunity to almost frighten her to death in the air, various folk came to supper, and it was Paul Graham & Martin Renfrey’s Las Vegas themed wedding party – I can now confirm that Elvis Presley is alive and well, and performing in Leicester.

I’ve just had time to get my flying godson airborne again, renew my CAA medical and now I’m bracing myself for the Blair/Burghley double whammy….