# Actors and riding



## Coldfeet! (22 March 2013)

Just an observation really, Im always in awe watching formerly non riding actors whizz about on great horses like they have been doing it all their lives, always makes me wonder who teaches them when they can make the likes of Ray Winstone look like he is a natural!

Im just jealous that they ride better after a few months training than I do after 25 years! LOL


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## kizmund (22 March 2013)

I thought they usually had a riding double?


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## 3Beasties (22 March 2013)

They probably have a lot of stunt doubles and are only actually on a horse for the close ups.


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## Coldfeet! (22 March 2013)

They probably do sometimes and stunt doubles but when you can obviously see it is the actor riding I am always impressed.


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## Pearlsasinger (22 March 2013)

You must have been watching different actors from me.  I've seen a few lately who struggled to even sit comfortably on a horse!


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## Hedgewitch13 (22 March 2013)

My YO once taught an actor chappie to ride for that series Sean Bean was in (can't remember the name - one word I think!). He was cantering in days and we put it down to the fact that he had done the Alexander technique for years (part of his actor training) so his position and balance was pretty good from day one. 

Can't say I watched the prog though! 

Oooh I think it was Sharpe?


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## Pearlsasinger (22 March 2013)

You didn't watch Sharpe, HW?

Even though it had Sean Bean *and* horses!


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## mle22 (22 March 2013)

My daughter worked on the horse team for Game of Thrones and believe me not all is as it seems on screen!


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## Spottyappy (22 March 2013)

Here is one of the stables that actors can be taught to ride :
http://www.thedevilshorsemen.com/pages/horses.htm
As you see, they teach any level of ability, but as they are film/stunt riding specialists, they also have an array of riders able to double up too.


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## Coldfeet! (22 March 2013)

Even if an actor isnt "sitting comfortably" though it shows they have the courage to get on and give it a whirl, I admire anyone willing to try and many of them wont be technical experts in a few months of training will they? Although you do see a lot of mouth pulling! Jamie Foxx made me laugh on Jonathan Ross when he was explaining he rides his own mare in Django Unchained and how someone took hold of her bridle and upset her as she has a sensitive mouth and he told them off a bit!  Not many non horsies who were forced to sit on a horse as part of their job would be that comfortable on the horses they use in films. I wouldnt and Im a rider.   

Oh yes Alexander technique, loved Sharpe too!


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## Hedgewitch13 (22 March 2013)

Maybe I ought to take a look on YouTube


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## Coldfeet! (22 March 2013)

Spottyappy said:



			Here is one of the stables that actors can be taught to ride :
http://www.thedevilshorsemen.com/pages/horses.htm
As you see, they teach any level of ability, but as they are film/stunt riding specialists, they also have an array of riders able to double up too.
		
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Interesting! Thanks Spotty appy!


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## 1stclassalan (22 March 2013)

Pearlsasinger said:



			You must have been watching different actors from me.  I've seen a few lately who stuggled to even sit comfortably on a horse!
		
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I'm with you there Pearl!!! I should have a button in my house so I don't keep having to shout at the telly - "LIKE A PIG WITH A SHOVEL!" 

Though I can modify that for - "you haven't done much of that mate eh?" or "perhaps, you'd be better with a cat?" is another favourite!

One of the best poor example of this has been the Emmerdale actress who's supposed to be Horsey - Katey - she looks petrified if the thing moves and can just about manage to sit properly before doing a most peculiar dismount and throws the reins to someone else.

There's never any horse dust on her spotless jodh's either. 

There was a woman local to me here who was a world class stunt person - she did loads of stuff for films (blokes and women) on horses, off of horses, cars etc.,etc., and was voted top stuntperson one year - by other stuntfolk so quite an acolade. If you've ever seen the James Bond where there's a fight scene on the roof of a cable car supposedly in Rio - that was her - at Pinewood Studios.


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## mandwhy (22 March 2013)

I find it quite impressive too actually, I mean I know for the distance shots they're doubles and they can do all sorts of fancy editing now but they must be riding for some of the closer-up shots. Haven't seen Django it sounds good and love to see actors riding! They're probably pooing themselves inside but at least they can act! I think a lot of riding is having really good control over your body and mind, which a lot of really top actors will have worked on a lot.


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## 1stclassalan (22 March 2013)

Coldfeet! said:



			Not many non horsies who were forced to sit on a horse as part of their job would be that comfortable on the horses they use in films. I wouldnt and Im a rider.
		
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Why the hell not? Most are made from wood and screwed to a vehicle!




			Oh yes Alexander technique,
		
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Ah wasn't he the bloke from Macodonia who conquered most of the known world?
That was some technique!




			..... loved Sharpe too!
		
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You'll have to fight my daughter for him ..... and she's been in the Army! Haha...

He's about 7/10 on a horse for me - most actors are either useless or trying way too hard.


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## Coldfeet! (22 March 2013)

mandwhy said:



			I find it quite impressive too actually, I mean I know for the distance shots they're doubles and they can do all sorts of fancy editing now but they must be riding for some of the closer-up shots. Haven't seen Django it sounds good and love to see actors riding! They're probably pooing themselves inside but at least they can act! I think a lot of riding is having really good control over your body and mind, which a lot of really top actors will have worked on a lot.
		
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I like to see actors on horses, mmmmm gerard butler why not put him on a horse? YUM! LOL


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## Fransurrey (22 March 2013)

1stclassalan said:



			If you've ever seen the James Bond where there's a fight scene on the roof of a cable car supposedly in Rio - that was her - at Pinewood Studios.
		
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Are you thinking of Moonraker?

Sorry, off topic. Bond geek, here. *waves*

I know Daniel Craig did a lot of riding for Cowboys and Aliens, but let's be honest, most won't be watching him for his riding skills...


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## Coldfeet! (22 March 2013)

Fransurrey said:



			Are you thinking of Moonraker, set in Switzerland?

Sorry, off topic. Bond geek, here. *waves*

I know Daniel Craig did a lot of riding for Cowboys and Aliens, but let's be honest, most won't be watching him for his riding skills... 

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But lets face it he is a lot more alluring when gyrating about atop a handson steed. Or in his trunks, either way! LOL


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## fatpiggy (22 March 2013)

Years ago I gave an actor some riding lessons - he said he needed to learn the basics PDQ so I taught him how to mount and dismount confidently, hold and shorten the reins,  steer in walk and manage a bit of sitting trot.  For most scenes that would be all he would need, and then the stunt double would take over.


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## Coldfeet! (22 March 2013)

fatpiggy said:



			Years ago I gave an actor some riding lessons - he said he needed to learn the basics PDQ so I taught him how to mount and dismount confidently, hold and shorten the reins,  steer in walk and manage a bit of sitting trot.  For most scenes that would be all he would need, and then the stunt double would take over.
		
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The only real important question I have about that is

Was he hot?


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## Fransurrey (22 March 2013)

Coldfeet! said:



			But lets face it he is a lot more alluring when gyrating about atop a handson steed. Or in his trunks, either way! LOL
		
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I wouldn't know, I haven't seen the CandA film. 

That trunks scene is probably my least favourite in the whole of Casino Royale. Baby blue? Really?!? His bottom running up cranes following that French street runner chap is much better.

Excuse me. I need to go and lie down somewhere cool.


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## Mariposa (22 March 2013)

mle22 said:



			My daughter worked on the horse team for Game of Thrones and believe me not all is as it seems on screen!
		
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Don't shatter my illusions of Jon Snow and Robb Stark..!!!


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## Coldfeet! (22 March 2013)

Me too! HAHHAAAA!


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## Coldfeet! (22 March 2013)

Mariposa said:



			Don't shatter my illusions of Jon Snow and Robb Stark..!!!
		
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Im with you on that one, I love GOT! Lucky lucky girl!


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## Starry_eyes (22 March 2013)

Hugh Jackman on a horse in that film 'Australia'. Phwoar. That is all.


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## Coldfeet! (22 March 2013)

Oh yes hugh too.

Russell Crowe in Gladiator

Faints!


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## Sukistokes2 (22 March 2013)

I was recently watching a The return of Sherlock Holmes episode, in which Holmes and Watson hire some horses. Holmes looked ok but the actor playing Watson looked like he was going to pitch off any second and was holding his reins at about ear level, it did make me chuckle!


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## thinkitwasjune (22 March 2013)

Starry_eyes said:



			Hugh Jackman on a horse in that film 'Australia'. Phwoar. That is all. 

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This


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## mil1212 (22 March 2013)

I think it's fairly standard for actors to include horse riding on their CV even if their only experience was on a beach donkey when they were little! I know of more than 1 actor who this applies to, who then have to learn pretty fast if it's required!


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## lhotse (22 March 2013)

Viggo Mortensen did all his own riding in the LOTR trilogy and also for Hildago, but then he is an accomplished horseman already. Infact, he seemed to purchase most of the film horses afterwards too!
Richard Armitage on a horse in Robin Hood, now we are talking...


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## Cinnamontoast (22 March 2013)

A mate was an extra in Snow White and the Huntsman. He's an equine vet too. He had to do the galloping bits when a crowd of horses comes hurtling down and was wetting himself at the lead actress' riding ability, or lack thereof.

He knows the Devils Horsemen, his dad is in the film industry. I was trying to wangle an introduction at their demo at Herts County Show. I think the lead guy is French.


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## Starry_eyes (22 March 2013)

lhotse said:



			Richard Armitage on a horse in Robin Hood, now we are talking...
		
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Oh god I'd forgotten about Richard....excuse me a moment...I've come over all unnecessary *drool*


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## GlamourPuss86 (22 March 2013)

Moms old boss was John Hurst's (jockey) dad, John taught Richard Geare to ride for first knight!


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## Pippity (22 March 2013)

I liked Sean Bean in Sharpe purely because he actually rode with cavalry seat! Everybody else was riding about a century too modern.

Of course, he may have been doing it accidentally - either way, there was something vaguely resembling historical accuracy in Sharpe! For the one and only time...


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## NorthDevonTraveller (22 March 2013)

The most elegant actor I ever saw was Colin Firth in Pride & Prejudice.  Looked wonderful in a tall top hat and on elegant TB horse.  Far better than in a wet shirt!


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## JGC (22 March 2013)

Starry_eyes said:



			Hugh Jackman on a horse in that film 'Australia'. Phwoar. That is all. 

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lhotse said:



			Viggo Mortensen did all his own riding in the LOTR trilogy and also for Hildago, but then he is an accomplished horseman already. Infact, he seemed to purchase most of the film horses afterwards too!
Richard Armitage on a horse in Robin Hood, now we are talking...
		
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NorthDevonTraveller said:



			The most elegant actor I ever saw was Colin Firth in Pride & Prejudice.  Looked wonderful in a tall top hat and on elegant TB horse.  Far better than in a wet shirt!
		
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STOOOOPPPPP people, I'm swooning


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## 1stclassalan (22 March 2013)

Fransurrey said:



			Are you thinking of Moonraker?
		
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That's the one - I, of course, would love to play the part of a superbondvillian - especially, if it involved swanning about with hoards of delectable women as Hugo Drax does at his mansion which is actually Vaux de Vicompte - one of the finest chateaux palaces in France! 
However; I wouldn't pussfoot around with our James - I'd double tap him very quickly on our first meeting - but it wouldn't make for a very interesting film and obviously - very short! 

I'm no Bond fan BTW - Moonraker lost me when you see a Shuttle start its main engines while still attached to an adapted Boeing 747 lifter - yes, one did carry Shuttles - but empty of all fuel and powered down!!!  




			I know Daniel Craig did a lot of riding for Cowboys and Aliens, but let's be honest, most won't be watching him for his riding skills... 

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He makes a convincing hitman and reminds me of Putin - da? But Bond needs British aesthetism - the book Bond was a cold and somewhat sadistic killer and some would say woman hater rather than the irresistable lover the films made him ..... so Pierce Brosnan  fits more for me as I've seen him other films where he doesn't treat his girls very well.


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## Orson Cart (22 March 2013)

I had my hen night with The Devils Horsemen. 

You can go for a medieval banquet at their yard whilst they put on an amazing show and then they mingle with you afterwards. Best night out EVER!

You can also see them ride at the Festival of History each year at Kelmarsh Hall in Northamptonshire. 

http://www.thedevilshorsemen.com/pages/banquet.htm

xxxx


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## 1stclassalan (22 March 2013)

Pippity said:



			I liked Sean Bean in Sharpe purely because he actually rode with cavalry seat! Everybody else was riding about a century too modern.
		
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Made for telly - the budget was the limiting factor - so you often have quite a big actual battle being fought by the number of folk you can fit in one frame! No one could remake a cavalry charge and have it shown on any medium in these animal cruelty, H & S days - thank the lord! They were squandered in many battles but best used in the final stages when opposing troops were already turning tail - picture that if you will - you realise the day is lost so you turn and run, you drop everything in an effort to run faster and with it any chance of fighting back - not to mention facing the wrong way and then...... BLAM!!! 5,6,7, or sometimes 800 horses charge through you with hardly any space in between - their riders are all armed with 4ft swords or sabres which hit you at 35mph. Have you seen a combine harvester working?  




			- either way, there was something vaguely resembling historical accuracy in Sharpe! For the one and only time...
		
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Only if you don't know the history - and hark at me talking - as if anyone knows what is was really like to by anywhere part from the here and now!


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## SNORKEY (22 March 2013)

Mle22 I'm so jelious of your daughters job!
I hope colin firth can really ride, I love him in pride and prejudice as well.


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## melbiswas (22 March 2013)

A rather scrummy actor from one of yet the early episodes of Downton Abbey learnt to ride on our coloured cob. Apparently his CV said he could ride. He was a friend of the cob's previous owner and they asked to borrow him.

Obviously my eldest daughter and I watched to make sure all went well.
It took some time for this athletic lad to get rising trot by which time said cob got bored and tanked off with him out of the school.
We stopped there reassuring him that his horsey actor colleague was bound to be a schoolmaster, all would be fine, gulp. 

Imagine the horror on our faces as we watched his episode - as he trotted off to join a HUNT "ooh noo he's going to die!" and then headed towards a JUMP.

We knew then he had a stunt double.


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## 1stclassalan (22 March 2013)

Orson Cart said:



			.....The Devils Horsemen. 
http://www.thedevilshorsemen.com/pages/banquet.htm

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They came to our village show a year or so ago - very good - I limped over and had ye wordes with them as one of 'em looks almost as old as me and doesn't do any of the falling off anymore if ever. I asked all the young'uns if they got more money for the falls - haha. Horses far to light for Knights and all the armour and swords are stage stuff.

There are however; many nutcases that enjoy doing things well - just for fun - have a look at this - it's all REAL!  http://microentrys.files.wordpress.com/2009/08/img_1153_sm.jpg

I'm sorry but there's an ad on this that you can skip after 4 secs - and the dialogue is in French but this guy is one of the BEST sword makers in the world! Fast forward to get some idea of what's involved!


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## mandwhy (22 March 2013)

I love that this turned into a Perve-fest, cold showers all round! 

1stclass you would make a brilliant bond villain, I'd go for the old school type with the fluffy cat and gold teeth and eye patch

Colin Firth in P&P is my fave by far..... I love Mr Darcy TOO MUCH!! 

My other fave equestrian scene is the star trek film where Picard and Kirk go riding together, I just love it because I love star trek too much also. So much I can't remember which film it was.


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## Slightlyconfused (22 March 2013)

Oooohhhh CT I think I know who you are talking about as had a convo with my new vet the other day and he mentioned Snow White!

Hugh  and Viggo on horse back *swoon*

*runs off to pm CT*


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## Elf On A Shelf (22 March 2013)

The guy who was in Seabiscuit - Toby Maguire?! Spiderman anywho! He worked with racehorses before he went into acting so he did most of his own riding in that film. 

LOVE LOVE LOVE SHARPE!!!


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## Archangel (22 March 2013)

I feel I must mention Gerald Butler in Attila.  
	
	
		
		
	


	





Is it hot in here suddenly? 

I think I need oxygen.


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## Magicmillbrook (22 March 2013)

JGC said:



			STOOOOPPPPP people, I'm swooning



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Viggo, Hugh, Colin, Sean - I am not fussy, any one of them will do for me!


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## mle22 (22 March 2013)

It was with the devil's horsemen that daughter worked with on game of thrones - when we watched it on tv she would be saying things like - I'm just out of shot here, holding the horse still cause the actor was terrified.
Some of it sounded very dangerous - there was one shot where they had to gallop up a quarry path with a huge drop at one side. None of the actors did those kind of bits!


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## Crazydancer (22 March 2013)

cinnamontoast said:



			A mate was an extra in Snow White and the Huntsman. He's an equine vet too. He had to do the galloping bits when a crowd of horses comes hurtling down and was wetting himself at the lead actress' riding ability, or lack thereof.

He knows the Devils Horsemen, his dad is in the film industry. I was trying to wangle an introduction at their demo at Herts County Show. I think the lead guy is French. 

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He would have probably met my ex-OH then, he was one of the stunt riders, I was loving seeing the photos on his FB page!. He's helped train actors to ride, and also does jousting and re-enactment stuff as well. Looks like an amazing way to make a living! 
(He's pretty easy on the eye too )


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## stormox (22 March 2013)

One actress who is a brilliant rider is Sarah Miles- she used her own horse Daisy on 'Lady Caroline Lamb' and there were very few people who wouldv been able to ride her....


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## Fransurrey (22 March 2013)

If I may be so kind as to provide that cold shower.

Rowan Atkinson. That is all.


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## Pippity (22 March 2013)

1stclassalan said:



			Only if you don't know the history - and hark at me talking - as if anyone knows what is was really like to by anywhere part from the here and now!
		
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I do know the history, ta. Hence my pointing out that Bean was the only person riding with a vaguely period-accurate seat. I wasn't talking about cavalry charges - Sharpe is an infantry officer.


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## 1stclassalan (22 March 2013)

mandwhy said:



			1stclass you would make a brilliant bond villain, I'd go for the old school type with the fluffy cat and gold teeth and eye patch
		
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Yawohl, meine Yunge! Something along these lines :-
http://www.bing.com/images/search?q...B291A71C5B06FE3F82EF32C3F41&selectedIndex=147

und wir das besser Uniformiern haben!!!




			Colin Firth in P&P is my fave by far..... I love Mr Darcy TOO MUCH!!
		
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Now, calm down dear - all you saw in the telly film was his shirt - a dry shirt with water splashed in it too. Whereas in the book ..... our naughty Miss Austen was hinting at something lower down - 19th century breeches didn't leave much to the imagination in any case but I rather think that Mr D'arcy only had his modest covered by his shirt tails!!! 




			My other fave equestrian scene is the star trek film where Picard and Kirk go riding together, I just love it because I love star trek too much also. So much I can't remember which film it was.
		
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Here you go - your lucky day! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrJiU9BOEBI 

Get their foot positions - worse than Prince Charlie's ears! Kirk is half way convincing but allows terrible washing lines and holds very high - Picard? But to the lunge for you I'm afraid!

Mind you - they must be the only horseyfolk stopping to converse - most around here do it while walking down the middle of the road paying no attention!


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## TandD (22 March 2013)

can we add orlando bloom to this list please?


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## Faro (22 March 2013)

Who mentioned Gerard Butler?  He's mine!

And, I have the honour of having ridden in the very same saddle that Sean Bean used in Sharpe!

Most of the large cavalry charges in films nowadays are done by CGI.  My OH was the entire CGI cavalry in "Alexander" and "Kingdom of Heaven".  He went to an equestrian centre to be filmed and had to wear an all black body suit with white markers on all the joints.  He had to do horse standing, rider with sword at side; horse standing with sword sligtly raised; horse standing with sword swinging; etc., then he had to do the same actions through all the paces, and the same again for a variety of weapons and shields.  From the data captured, they created the entire background cavalry.


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## 1stclassalan (22 March 2013)

Pippity said:



			I do know the history, ta. Hence my pointing out that Bean was the only person riding with a vaguely period-accurate seat. I wasn't talking about cavalry charges - Sharpe is an infantry officer.
		
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Sorry pardon - I was expecting slapped wrists when I reread me post but if thou wishes to joust on historic accuracy - how many riflemen do you think made it up through the ranks to be an officer at that time? What do you think the chances are now?

An ordinary bloke - if lucky and alive, can get to Sargeant Major - Colour Sargeant Major if very lucky and brave - in Wellington's army - cannonfodder. He's far too good with swords and sabres too IMHO - officer's weapons - when did he get to practice all that stuff when ordinary soldier weren't even allowed to hold one?


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## 1stclassalan (22 March 2013)

Faro said:



			Most of the large cavalry charges in films nowadays are done by CGI.
		
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And the results are pure rubbish! I can't bare to watch a minute of it - at least in the old days you got four guys bashing one another - at a complete standstill so you could see who they were for a few minutes and then they usually doubled that up by turning the film over!

Pop over to poor old Cinnamon Toast's injury posts to see what happens when a horse treads on you - no swords involved.


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## kellybee (22 March 2013)

I watched the prince caspian dvd bonus features recently and the kid who played edmund was saying how he learned to ride and spent hours learning to vault onto a galloping horse all for one scene. He was very proud of himself and after watching the film can say he really does do all his own stunts lol. I was impressed.

Actors that really can ride, the mel gibsons russ crowes and heath ledgers of this world, i find them much easier to watch than the hunched over leg flappers of the acting world.


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## Pippity (22 March 2013)

1stclassalan said:



			Sorry pardon - I was expecting slapped wrists when I reread me post but if thou wishes to joust on historic accuracy - how many riflemen do you think made it up through the ranks to be an officer at that time? What do you think the chances are now?

An ordinary bloke - if lucky and alive, can get to Sargeant Major - Colour Sargeant Major if very lucky and brave - in Wellington's army - cannonfodder. He's far too good with swords and sabres too IMHO - officer's weapons - when did he get to practice all that stuff when ordinary soldier weren't even allowed to hold one?
		
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And if you re-read my post, you'll notice me saying Bean's seat was the only bit of historical accuracy! C'mon, keep up!


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## Elf On A Shelf (22 March 2013)

You may go on and on about historical inaccuracies in Sharpe but without Bernard Cornwell's fantastic imagination we wouldn't have had that wondeful man.on our screens for over 50 hours with a decent amount of it topless 

Bean wasn't the original Sharpe. The person who was first cast fell off a horse in their first weeks shooting and broke their leg and so Sharpe was recast. Paul McGann I think was the original?!


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## kellybee (22 March 2013)

Jamie foxx also used his own horse in Django Unchained. In an interview i forget where he said he thought he'd feel safer on his own but alas, it wasnt a stunt horse used to fire and crowds and explosions lol


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## gemin1eye (22 March 2013)

I love viggo, and a lot of the actors in lotr practised riding for hours even when they didnt need to. theres a bit on the extended edition where bernard hill and miranda otto were riding...miranda good rider, bernard not so much! They were riding for pleasure as well though Viggo bought a number of the film horses after filming had finished as well as someone said


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## 1stclassalan (22 March 2013)

kellybee said:



			...... how he learned to ride and spent hours learning to vault onto a galloping horse .....
		
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I don't know about - onto a galloping horse - but I was seriously impressed by an older girl who could vault from one she was already riding. She'd set her mount up moving well, bring one leg over and wait holding the pommel of an ordinary saddle - slip off at the right time and used the momentum of hitting the ground to bounce back up - she could repeat this on the other side too! Oh love at first sight - and she was ugly as a bucket full of frogs!

All that summer, I terrified myself by spending long days with her!!!!!! and falling many times under the galloping hooves - I've had them on my face, on my throat as well as many other rather delicate parts without a single bad injury - though my "horses" were lightweight pony breeds even if my favourite was a dun 15hh when he took his big pills.

In the end I could vault on one side and get back on the other facing reverse and twiddle in the saddle and once did eight bounces straight off before running out of galloping room. 

Long after all that, I galloped my mare into a film set by accident - I'd been there a few days before and none of it had been there and it was in a public park - despite it being early, I was later told they were actually filming - so there is a length of 35mm somewhere with supamare on it - I loved to find it filmeypeople!!! About 1978 vintage at Pinewood - set looked like a Saxon/Viking village.


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## 1stclassalan (22 March 2013)

Oh I'll tell you someone who can ride and act a bit - the Plenty advert guy - Juan Sheet!

He was in an episode of Rosemary & Thyme ( yes, I know, just don't ask o.k.) riding a lovely Andalusian and wearing the same garb - obviously how he got his most famous role.

I don't mind actors like him though as he is playing up to it - not moping about saying - "oh dah-ling, the things I haveto do for money!"


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## Cinnamontoast (22 March 2013)

slightlyconfused said:



			Oooohhhh CT I think I know who you are talking about as had a convo with my new vet the other day and he mentioned Snow White!

*runs off to pm CT*
		
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Yes, yes, it was he!! I shall tell him he's famous!!


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## Wagtail (22 March 2013)

It always makes me wince, especially in westerns when the actors yank on the horses mouths, pulling them round or stopping them. You can see the horse's eyes rolling nd the mouths wide open.


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## dominobrown (22 March 2013)

Wagtail said:



			It always makes me wince, especially in westerns when the actors yank on the horses mouths, pulling them round or stopping them. You can see the horse's eyes rolling and the mouths wide open. 

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Those old westerns are very cruel. I have been told that in some films when you see horses galloping of the edge of cliffs, they actual chased them over the edge with dummies on their backs  

If you want to be a geek the extended edition of LOTR shows loads on the horses in the film etc and what happened after.

Just googled it- the film was Jesse James. Also over 100 horse were killed in the making of Ben Hur.


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## Twinkley Lights (22 March 2013)

gemin1eye said:



			I love viggo, and a lot of the actors in lotr practised riding for hours even when they didnt need to. theres a bit on the extended edition where bernard hill and miranda otto were riding...miranda good rider, bernard not so much! They were riding for pleasure as well though Viggo bought a number of the film horses after filming had finished as well as someone said
		
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Yes I think he bought the lovely paint horse from the desert race movie too, lovely man


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## Slightlyconfused (22 March 2013)




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## Cortez (22 March 2013)

Speaking as someone who actually does this for a living, the vast majority of actors have done "a bit" of riding as part of their training; some (very few) can really ride (strange to relate one of these is actually Ray Winstone - who is a bit of a natural), and most have had very a good crash course on EXTREMELY good schoolmaster horses that are worth tens of thousands because of their reliability and photogenic looks (99% Spanish). Everything else that you see is either riding doubles or someone out of shot holding the horse on an invisible line.


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## Booboos (22 March 2013)

The extra documentary on horses in LOTR is absolutely fantastic. It explains all about the training for the actors and horses, what happened to the horses afterwards (happy tearjerker!) and has loads of shots of the set up and the volunteers.


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## Orangehorse (22 March 2013)

Sean Bean? Game of Thrones? Tell me more - tell me anything!  Love it.


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## Cortez (22 March 2013)

Orangehorse said:



			Sean Bean? Game of Thrones? Tell me more - tell me anything!  Love it.
		
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Sean Bean can ride a bit (he's not bad for an actor). GOT is mostly filmed in northern Ireland so all the "background" horses are Irish halfbred types, but all of the "featured" horses are either Spanish or Friesian supplied by Gerard Naprous The Devil's Horsemen - his daughter Camilla is Horsemaster on this production. My OH makes all the swords and weapons


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## Orangehorse (22 March 2013)

Wow Cortez, what a connection.  Don't tell us the ending though!

(Everyone ends up dead I expect!)


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## Booboos (22 March 2013)

Orangehorse said:



			Wow Cortez, what a connection.  Don't tell us the ending though!

(Everyone ends up dead I expect!)
		
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Ending? What ending? GRRM hasn't even written half of it yet, we'll be lucky if he doesn't reach his natural end before he's done with the books.


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## Spring Feather (22 March 2013)

I'm looking forward to the Johnny Depp/Armie Hammer movie The Lone Ranger that comes out in July   For a perfectly memorable reason ...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k6AdQRIW3yk


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## lhotse (22 March 2013)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RvakFEr98qk
Viggo not only buys the horses for himself...


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## TrasaM (22 March 2013)

I'm watching clint Eastwood in Two Mules for Sister Sarah and he looks like he was born on a horse .. Beautiful horse too. Although thats a donkey that Sr Sarah is riding not a mule.


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## TrasaM (22 March 2013)

Booboos said:



			Ending? What ending? GRRM hasn't even written half of it yet, we'll be lucky if he doesn't reach his natural end before he's done with the books.
		
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And he keeps killing all his main characters .. Oops sorry , shush


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## FinnishLapphund (23 March 2013)

mil1212 said:



			I think it's fairly standard for actors to include horse riding on their CV even if their only experience was on a beach donkey when they were little! I know of more than 1 actor who this applies to, who then have to learn pretty fast if it's required!
		
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I wonder what those who really can ride, says in their CV? 

By the way, have anyone seen Arn - The Knight Templar (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arn  The Knight Templar)? As I recall, I've heard that Joakim Nätterqvist, who plays Arn, actually got the part, because Jan Guillou and the others behind the film wanted an actor that really could ride. Joakim Nätterqvist parents and one grandparent has been competitive equestrians, he learned to ride at an early age and have competed in show jumping when he was young/teenager, so he's definitely done more than ridden a beach donkey. And according to Wikipedia, once the stunt crew on Arn realised "how well he could ride, he ended up performing his own horse stunts." 


Anyhow, to those talking about a list, some of the names I've seen mentioned, Depp and Bloom... 







As Legolas...







Butler...







Mortensen...







Bean...


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## feisty_filly (23 March 2013)

Been a while since I watched it but johnny depp in sleepy hollow rode very well, I think he also bought his horse afterwards.


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## TarrSteps (23 March 2013)

I worked on a tv show ages ago where one of the actors was supposed to be able to ride. It was a pretty low budget outfit so I guess they had just taken her word for it but it was pretty clear when she went to get on the horse she'd stretched the truth, as it were. We had to go and tell the director he had a problem - not impressed!


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## fredflop (16 January 2021)

Very late to the party... but as Sharpe just just appeared on TV riding a horse!

from what we see of Sean bean on a horse he certainly looks like he knows what he’s doing.

however one I’m suprised hasn’t been mentioned is Harrison Ford. You can see from the shots (mostly in last crusade) that he can ride, and he can ride well.


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## Pippity (16 January 2021)

I've recently watched Wonder Woman 1984, and was pleasantly surprised to see that the kid playing young Diana definitely knew what she was doing. Apparently both her parents are jockeys, and she does the acting to pay for her showjumping!


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## Miss_Millie (16 January 2021)

Cillian Murphy in the opening scene of the first ever episode of Peaky Blinders. He may have only been walking on that horse, but he made it look VERY nice.

(Pretty sure he was riding bareback too)


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## thefarsideofthefield (16 January 2021)

I used to work at a large yard in Surrey that supplied a lot of horses for film and photographic work . They had a palomino pony who was an occasional stand in for 'Puff the pony ' on the kids programme Magpie and , we had numerous catalogue/calendar/magazine shoots taking place . One of the horses was used in a shoot for Mike Batt's album ' Tarot Suite ' ( a skeleton on a white horse ! ) , Sham 69 ( remember them ? ) were local lads and shot a video for Top of the Pops with them dressed as cowboys for ( I think ) Hersham Boys . They also shot the cover photos for the record in the feed room ( where they look like cowboys in a shoot out  ) and I have a load of the origonal test photos they took for lighting/composition ( must dig them out - they might be worth something now !  ) . Jimmy Pursey was lovely and used to give us lifts into town ( we were in the middle of nowhere ! ) . He drove like a demon and had a big sedan style car with leather bench seats , and no seat belts , so we all used to slide across the seat in a row and slam into the door every time he took a corner at speed . Happy days !
But the one I really remember was the filming of an episode of the kids programme  'Horse in the House ' . The horse they used as ' the horse ' was a liver chestnut stallion called Mandao who was just the most amazing laid back character . He did all his own stunts even , in one episode , jumping off a canal boat onto the tow path . Can't remember what the episode shot at our place was about but we were supposed to be a racing yard and Davy Jones ( off've The Monkees ! ) was the baddie jockey , and he could not only really , properly ride but proper race ride too ! He was absolutely lovely to everyone and all the girls had a bit of a crush on him . They held the wrap party at the yard and I got to slow-dance with Davy Jones ! Thrilling - in theory ! But I am 5'9" and the lovely DJ is tiny so I spent an uncomfortable 3 minutes in a sort of semi-squat position trying to look as though I always danced like a constipated chicken . Ahh - memories …..


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## Smitty (16 January 2021)

Before I nip off for bromide😤 required to get over the thought of teaching Richard Gere to ride, can I just say that I was under the impression that Davy Jones was indeed a flat jockey before becoming a Monkee 😊


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## Smitty (16 January 2021)

Just remembered, my instructor in the early 70s had worked on, and had a small riding double bit in Carry on Cowboy and had the job of trying to teach Sid, Charles, Kenneth etc to ride .  Not quite Sean and co but apparently it was great fun😊


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## The Fuzzy Furry (16 January 2021)

thefarsideofthefield said:



			I used to work at a large yard in Surrey that supplied a lot of horses for film and photographic work . They had a palomino pony who was an occasional stand in for 'Puff the pony ' on the kids programme Magpie …..
		
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I used to care for Puff in his final years! He lived at Huntersfield Farm (owned by Pauline Voss and Jo Taylor). Yul Brynner used to pop in on occasions when he was starring in the King and I, and always popped along the front stable block to give grumpy Puff a treat after he had ridden one of the school horses.


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## thefarsideofthefield (16 January 2021)

Smitty said:



			Before I nip off for bromide😤 required to get over the thought of teaching Richard Gere to ride, can I just say that I was under the impression that Davy Jones was indeed a flat jockey before becoming a Monkee 😊
		
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That would explain a lot !



The Fuzzy Furry said:



			I used to care for Puff in his final years! He lived at Huntersfield Farm (owned by Pauline Voss and Jo Taylor). Yul Brynner used to pop in on occasions when he was starring in the King and I, and always popped along the front stable block to give grumpy Puff a treat after he had ridden one of the school horses.
		
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It's a small world is it not ! Our 'Puff ' was smaller than the real deal I think , and a really washed out pally colour ( I remember the real Puff being a really golden pally ? ) so really looked nothing like him ! He could only have been used for vague " Oh look , there's Puff standing far , far away in the distance " type shots !  And ours was called ( inevitably ! ) Blow .


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## The Fuzzy Furry (16 January 2021)

thefarsideofthefield said:



			That would explain a lot !



It's a small world is it not ! Our 'Puff ' was smaller than the real deal I think , and a really washed out pally colour ( I remember the real Puff being a really golden pally ? ) so really looked nothing like him ! He could only have been used for vague " Oh look , there's Puff standing far , far away in the distance " type shots !  And ours was called ( inevitably ! ) Blow .
		
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Puff was about 12hh and def no bigger than 12.2,  he was a grumpy little soul unless you produced treats lol. He looked bigger on screen as most of the cast were not particularly tall 😏 Susan, Jenny and Tommy arrived with a huge cake for Puffs 30th birthday!  
He only went pale in the winter - like palomino's do.


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## Caol Ila (16 January 2021)

This is a good zombie thread.

Read somewhere that Liv Tyler, Arwen in LOTR, was terrified of horses. No way was she getting on one. So for all the close-up shots, they used a mechanical horse that rocked back and forth, and for the wider angle ones, a stunt rider rode that pretty PRE. I think the stunt rider/trainer ended up owning the stallion at the end of filming.

Seen a couple Netflix shows recently where the actors rode the horses to a secluded spot for an intense, heart-to-heart conversation, and they just let the reins drag on the ground while the horses grazed, going nowhere, and the characters paid zero attention to them. Obviously their handlers were just off screen, but I'm sure every horse person who watched that was thinking, "Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh."

Also, watched a couple episodes of Outlander and could not get past people riding Friesians around the Scottish Highlands in the 1745 Rebellion. I couldn't do it. Could suspend disbelief for the time travelling bit, but not the damned Friesians.


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## Millie-Rose (16 January 2021)

As much as I love Sean Bean in Sharpe it's amusing that we all like him on a horse as in the books he hates horses and avoids whereever possible. As an officer he is supposed to ride but prefers to walk with his men and is always getting grief from his superiors for it. He also once joined a cavalry charge as he "couldn't stop the bloody horse" 😂


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## Mrs B (16 January 2021)

I know Micky Dolenz from the Monkees rode as I suddenly found him next to me when I was out hunting in about 1983 ... nearly fell off!

I did some stunt riding of sorts for a poster campaign for Manikin cigars when I was 19 - they wanted a blonde, curvy girl to ride an white horse bareback at a gallop and whilst it did a full rear (again bareback) ... and the art dept would put wings on it to turn it into Pegasus, which was the Manikin logo ...

I worked as a booker for a Page 3 agency at the time (long story!) and they'd contacted us for potential models and we didn't have any who could ride much, so I took a flyer and went to the casting myself ... which is how a short-haired brunette with a body like an ironing board got the gig  😆

Then they decided the model should be bareback too and that's how I ended up in a HUGE blonde wig and war paint galloping an Andalusian stallion, pretty much buck-naked alongside one of the roads to Torremolinos ...

The poster got banned by Mary Whitehouse. One of my proudest moments.


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## Crazy_cat_lady (16 January 2021)

I saw a film think it was called Gift Horse, on Netflix recently- the spoilt girl was mean to her "champion" horse...

This "champion" horse was jumping 2 foot fences 

Stable girl took over said "Champion" horse, was having lessons but continued holding the reins upside down, the "champion" horse was so stuffy she could barely make it trot

It culminated in her winning at some tiny show, 

It would have been better if it was some future Badminton horse and she had to learn to ride to be able to ride it etc as it was it was annoying me especially the rein holding and the repeated reminder this was a champion horse!


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## TheOldTrout (16 January 2021)

lhotse said:



			Viggo Mortensen did all his own riding in the LOTR trilogy and also for Hildago, but then he is an accomplished horseman already. Infact, he seemed to purchase most of the film horses afterwards too!
Richard Armitage on a horse in Robin Hood, now we are talking...
		
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Didn't VM buy one of the LOTR horses and give it to one of the stunt riders on the film who'd taken a shine to it? I'm sure I read that somewhere.


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## FinnishLapphund (16 January 2021)

Caol Ila said:



			This is a good zombie thread.

Read somewhere that Liv Tyler, Arwen in LOTR, was terrified of horses. No way was she getting on one. So for all the close-up shots, they used a mechanical horse that rocked back and forth, and for the wider angle ones, a stunt rider rode that pretty PRE. I think the stunt rider/trainer ended up owning the stallion at the end of filming.

Seen a couple Netflix shows recently where the actors rode the horses to a secluded spot for an intense, heart-to-heart conversation, and they just let the reins drag on the ground while the horses grazed, going nowhere, and the characters paid zero attention to them. Obviously their handlers were just off screen, but I'm sure every horse person who watched that was thinking, "Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh."

Also, watched a couple episodes of Outlander and could not get past people riding Friesians around the Scottish Highlands in the 1745 Rebellion. I couldn't do it. Could suspend disbelief for the time travelling bit, but not the damned Friesians.
		
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As I understand it, some of those who rode a faked horse in Lord Of The Rings did it because they couldn't really ride. Some others could, but it just didn't always work with using a real horse.


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## Caol Ila (16 January 2021)

FinnishLapphund said:



			As I understand it, some of those who rode a faked horse in Lord Of The Rings did it because they couldn't really ride. Some others could, but it just didn't always work with using a real horse.







Click to expand...

That clip made my night. The outtakes must be epic. People are meant to be super serious and dour because they're riding off to war, but they're actually pretending to have sex with a f*cking barrel. Who could keep a straight face?

Enjoyed the anecdote about David Wenham disappearing from a shot because his horse took off. Which actor said something along the lines of never work with animals or children in film?


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## FinnishLapphund (16 January 2021)

TheOldTrout said:



			Didn't VM buy one of the LOTR horses and give it to one of the stunt riders on the film who'd taken a shine to it? I'm sure I read that somewhere.
		
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He bought Florian who played Arwen's white horse, and gave to the stunt woman who rode him. I've read that Mortensen said in 2020 that both his 2 LOTR horses have now died, but that Florian is still alive.


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## HashRouge (16 January 2021)

Mrs B said:



			I know Micky Dolenz from the Monkees rode as I suddenly found him next to me when I was out hunting in about 1983 ... nearly fell off!

I did some stunt riding of sorts for a poster campaign for Manikin cigars when I was 19 - they wanted a blonde, curvy girl to ride an white horse bareback at a gallop and whilst it did a full rear (again bareback) ... and the art dept would put wings on it to turn it into Pegasus, which was the Manikin logo ...

I worked as a booker for a Page 3 agency at the time (long story!) and they'd contacted us for potential models and we didn't have any who could ride much, so I took a flyer and went to the casting myself ... which is how a short-haired brunette with a body like an ironing board got the gig  😆

Then they decided the model should be bareback too and that's how I ended up in a HUGE blonde wig and war paint galloping an Andalusian stallion, pretty much buck-naked alongside one of the roads to Torremolinos ...

The poster got banned by Mary Whitehouse. One of my proudest moments.  

Click to expand...

You have GOT to share a copy of the poster!!!


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## FinnishLapphund (16 January 2021)

Caol Ila said:



			That clip made my night. The outtakes must be epic. People are meant to be super serious and dour because they're riding off to war, but they're actually pretending to have sex with a f*cking barrel. Who could keep a straight face?

Enjoyed the anecdote about David Wenham disappearing from a shot because his horse took off. Which actor said something along the lines of never work with animals or children in film?
		
Click to expand...


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## Caol Ila (16 January 2021)

Does anyone remember the Top Gear episode where Richard Hammond rode a cob in a hunt, which was chasing Jeremy Clarkson driving a Daihatsu Terios? Richard didn't look amazing, but he could have done worse. I think his wife is very horsey, so he must ride a wee bit.


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## FinnishLapphund (16 January 2021)

Crazy_cat_lady said:



			I saw a film think it was called Gift Horse, on Netflix recently- the spoilt girl was mean to her "champion" horse...

This "champion" horse was jumping 2 foot fences

Stable girl took over said "Champion" horse, was having lessons but continued holding the reins upside down, the "champion" horse was so stuffy she could barely make it trot

It culminated in her winning at some tiny show,

It would have been better if it was some future Badminton horse and she had to learn to ride to be able to ride it etc as it was it was annoying me especially the rein holding and the repeated reminder this was a champion horse!
		
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Am I the only one who often gets so mesmerized by the fact that there is a horse in the scene, so it has to be really blatant like white rubber reins on a horse in the supposedly 17??/18?? something, for me to get a bit distracted by it?


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## millikins (16 January 2021)

Smitty said:



			Just remembered, my instructor in the early 70s had worked on, and had a small riding double bit in Carry on Cowboy and had the job of trying to teach Sid, Charles, Kenneth etc to ride .  Not quite Sean and co but apparently it was great fun😊
		
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Not horses but I read a "Carry on" story. Either Carry on Cleo or Up the Kyber, they were supposed to be in a desert, but the sand dunes on the South Coast were all the budget would run to. The camel they used was borrowed from Chessington Zoo, it had never set foot on sand in its life and refused to walk on it so they had to lay boards for it to use and cover them with sand!


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## thefarsideofthefield (16 January 2021)

Mrs B said:



			I know Micky Dolenz from the Monkees rode as I suddenly found him next to me when I was out hunting in about 1983 ... nearly fell off!

I did some stunt riding of sorts for a poster campaign for Manikin cigars when I was 19 - they wanted a blonde, curvy girl to ride an white horse bareback at a gallop and whilst it did a full rear (again bareback) ... and the art dept would put wings on it to turn it into Pegasus, which was the Manikin logo ...

I worked as a booker for a Page 3 agency at the time (long story!) and they'd contacted us for potential models and we didn't have any who could ride much, so I took a flyer and went to the casting myself ... which is how a short-haired brunette with a body like an ironing board got the gig  😆

Then they decided the model should be bareback too and that's how I ended up in a HUGE blonde wig and war paint galloping an Andalusian stallion, pretty much buck-naked alongside one of the roads to Torremolinos ...

The poster got banned by Mary Whitehouse. One of my proudest moments.  

Click to expand...

Epic !!!


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## Lyle (16 January 2021)

In my youth, I was a riding double for the kid's tv show 'The Saddle Club', based on the books of the same name. Was an incredible experience for 12 year old me! No school for 4 months, and just riding horses alllllll day


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## The Fuzzy Furry (16 January 2021)

Caol Ila said:



			Does anyone remember the Top Gear episode where Richard Hammond rode a cob in a hunt, which was chasing Jeremy Clarkson driving a Daihatsu Terios? Richard didn't look amazing, but he could have done worse. I think his wife is very horsey, so he must ride a wee bit.
		
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Hammond can ride, he's safe enough to do 3 gears on a hack and pop the odd small jump


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## Mrs B (16 January 2021)

HashRouge said:



			You have GOT to share a copy of the poster!!!
		
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Not a good shot of it but ... It was the wording 'Sheer Enjoyment' plus riding a horse naked that upset them, apparently ...😎


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## FinnishLapphund (16 January 2021)

Caol Ila said:



			Does anyone remember the Top Gear episode where Richard Hammond rode a cob in a hunt, which was chasing Jeremy Clarkson driving a Daihatsu Terios? Richard didn't look amazing, but he could have done worse. I think his wife is very horsey, so he must ride a wee bit.
		
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Didn't find the whole episode, but I found this






And this shortish clip from Burma







Oh, totally besides the subject, but I'm sure some of you might enjoy watching this Pony Express vs Muscle Cars from Top Gear USA, which I stumbled across while searching for the above


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## alexomahony (16 January 2021)

Talking of fit actors and riding horses - I found the Duke on Bridgerton to have fantastic technique. He was a great rider too!


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## Rokele55 (16 January 2021)

My mother's claim to fame is legging up Roger Moore at pinewood studios. She doesn't remember the film, but does remember his thighs...


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## Cloball (16 January 2021)

Stables I went for a trek at in Glen Orchy told me that lots of the local girls and their ponies and the trekking yard ponies were extras for the riders of Rohan in LOTRs. They wore fake beards and the ponies kept getting over excited and galloping off sans teenage girl. I thought it made for a highly entertaining picture 🤣


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## fredflop (17 January 2021)

Indianna was on last night 😍😍


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## sarahmac77 (17 January 2021)

mle22 said:



			My daughter worked on the horse team for Game of Thrones and believe me not all is as it seems on screen!
		
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Oh my god.... tell us more!


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## OldNag (17 January 2021)

Rokele55 said:



			My mother's claim to fame is legging up Roger Moore at pinewood studios. She doesn't remember the film, but does remember his thighs...
		
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How wrong is it on a scale of 1 to 10 that I'm pretty jealous of your mother


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## OldNag (17 January 2021)

Mrs B said:



			Not a good shot of it but ... It was the wording 'Sheer Enjoyment' plus riding a horse naked that upset them, apparently ...😎


View attachment 63443

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That's an amazing story MrsB 

Even better that it annoyed Mrs Whitehouse 

Do you think they'd have objected if the strapline had been "mild enjoyment" or "moderate enjoyment"?


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## thefarsideofthefield (17 January 2021)

OldNag said:



			That's an amazing story MrsB 

Even better that it annoyed Mrs Whitehouse 

Do you think they'd have objected if the strapline had been "mild enjoyment" or "moderate enjoyment"? 

Click to expand...

I should jolly well think they objected - you're not wearing a hat or sensible boots !

But seriously - what an amazing photo , you look absolutely stunning  ! Every woman should have a photo of themselves looking like that , for all the days when we feel totally cr*p !


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## teapot (17 January 2021)

I know of a univeristy degree course for theatre/acting, where they can do two semesters of riding as one of their 'skills'. Apparently the rise in Downton esk series has driven the demand for actors that know which end of a horse is which.


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## Slightlyconfused (17 January 2021)

Kayley Cuoco show jumps and not little tracks either, she rides 1.30 courses. Her and her husband both do it and he has a good instagram account which he gives updates on his horses and sometimes has a live chat when he is cooling them down explaining a few things he does and why. I like the fact all his horses have their own saddles.


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## Mrs B (17 January 2021)

thefarsideofthefield said:



			I should jolly well think they objected - you're not wearing a hat or sensible boots !
		
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I did get concussion falling from one of the horses we rode in the practice week in the UK - they were Chipperfield's Circus arabs and one of them just fired me straight off as soon as I got him into a canter up the field. They were a bit sheepish about that, as apparently he was known to do it and they wanted to see if I could stay on ... gee, thanks! 

And thank you - it's a loooong time ago now and I can't quite believe it's me, but its lovely to have done it.


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## Caol Ila (17 January 2021)

How have I not seen the Top Gear Burma episode??


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## Rowreach (17 January 2021)

I’m just watching Daniel Craig in Defiance. He cannot ride 😂

And his horse is wearing very 21st century tack.


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## HashRouge (17 January 2021)

Patrick Swayze could ride, he and his wife bred Arabs. Don't know if he ever did it in a film though! 

Enjoying this thread BTW!


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## BBP (17 January 2021)

Cloball said:



			Stables I went for a trek at in Glen Orchy told me that lots of the local girls and their ponies and the trekking yard ponies were extras for the riders of Rohan in LOTRs. They wore fake beards and the ponies kept getting over excited and galloping off sans teenage girl. I thought it made for a highly entertaining picture 🤣
		
Click to expand...

Who did you ride and when??!

I used to work at the trekking place in Glenorchy so got a lot of inside goss on the Riders of Rohan scenes. So now I watch the movies just watching out for ‘my’ horses.


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## BBP (17 January 2021)

Has Kevin Costner been mentioned on here yet? I’m thinking dances with wolves.


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## Cinnamontoast (17 January 2021)

Watching The Great (don’t judge, I was hoping for a reasonable historical thing) and Nicholas Hoult at one point bombs off on a horse (are they all bloody Friesians, in the 18th century?!). Looks like he can really ride. Either that or he has amazing balance.



Caol Ila said:



			This is a good zombie thread.

Read somewhere that Liv Tyler, Arwen in LOTR, was terrified of horses. No way was she getting on one. So for all the close-up shots, they used a mechanical horse that rocked back and forth, and for the wider angle ones, a stunt rider rode that pretty PRE. I think the stunt rider/trainer ended up owning the stallion at the end of filming.

Seen a couple Netflix shows recently where the actors rode the horses to a secluded spot for an intense, heart-to-heart conversation, and they just let the reins drag on the ground while the horses grazed, going nowhere, and the characters paid zero attention to them. Obviously their handlers were just off screen, but I'm sure every horse person who watched that was thinking, "Uhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh."

Also, watched a couple episodes of Outlander and could not get past people riding Friesians around the Scottish Highlands in the 1745 Rebellion. I couldn't do it. Could suspend disbelief for the time travelling bit, but not the damned Friesians.
		
Click to expand...

Why is it always Friesians??



Lyle said:



			In my youth, I was a riding double for the kid's tv show 'The Saddle Club', based on the books of the same name. Was an incredible experience for 12 year old me! No school for 4 months, and just riding horses alllllll day
		
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Omg, absolutely superb!



Mrs B said:



			Not a good shot of it but ... It was the wording 'Sheer Enjoyment' plus riding a horse naked that upset them, apparently ...😎


View attachment 63443

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Wow, stunning! That pout, you look AMAZING!! 😍


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## Chinchilla (17 January 2021)

Have not read whole thread but can only think of 2 actors who actually ride: viggo mortensen and William shatner 🤷

Also CI is right about the lotr stunt double, but mortensen bought the stallion for the stunt rider and one of the horses he rode for himself apparently.


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## Cortez (17 January 2021)

There are very few actors that can *really* ride, if they look like they can it's usually down to clever editing and a good stunt double. 

Friesians were around in the 18th century, for those of you who object to them in an historical setting. They are often used because they are generally steady, up to weight, and eye catching. Everything else is usually Spanish


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## Pearlsasinger (17 January 2021)

I used to enjoy  quiet Sunday mornings ogling  a young Clint Eastwood in repeats of Rawhide.  OH thought I was watching the horses


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## McFluff (17 January 2021)

I thought that friesian and Spanish horses were historically accurate? 
They’re certainly made for the camera.


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## Peregrine Falcon (17 January 2021)

Ct, but it is funny! 😂


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## laura_nash (17 January 2021)

Caol Ila said:



			Also, watched a couple episodes of Outlander and could not get past people riding Friesians around the Scottish Highlands in the 1745 Rebellion. I couldn't do it. Could suspend disbelief for the time travelling bit, but not the damned Friesians.
		
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I know!  Really, is it that difficult to find a few quiet highlands for them.  I remember OH thought it was funny how thrilled I was that they actually had the right type of horse and tack when we watched Beowulf and Grendel.  Then some idiot film critic was on around the time complaining that "real vikings didn't ride ponies" though, so I guess they can't win.


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## laura_nash (17 January 2021)

Cortez said:



			Friesians were around in the 18th century, for those of you who object to them in an historical setting.
		
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I know its more your area than mine Cortez, and I take your point its theoretically possible as the breed did exist at the time, but is it really likely they were the horse of choice for Highlanders during the rebellion?


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## brighteyes (17 January 2021)

OldNag said:



			How wrong is it on a scale of 1 to 10 that I'm pretty jealous of your mother 

Click to expand...

12


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## Lexi_ (18 January 2021)

alexomahony said:



			Talking of fit actors and riding horses - I found the Duke on Bridgerton to have fantastic technique. He was a great rider too!
		
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I saw this little clip on Instagram today of what looks like him having lessons/riding practice : 




__
		http://instagr.am/p/CKHvLTcpAKl/


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## Caol Ila (18 January 2021)

I know Friesians were around in the 18th C, but I would be very surprised if anyone was using them in the Scottish Highlands. Infrastructure as we know it did not exist up there until after (and during) the '45 Rebellion, built by the army, initially, to make it easier to put down unrest. Prior to building General Wade's Road, people traveled overland on rough, boggy tracks (or used boats, which could be quicker).  A fancy carriage horse would be pretty useless. Travel accounts from that era, like Thomas Pennant's, described people using things resembling Highlands. Even now, not much else can cope with the terrain, the midges, and the weather.


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## Lyle (18 January 2021)

I think it's important to note as well, that there are usually multiple filming units, so while the actors are off filming all the acting scenes, there will be other units off on different locations filming other stuff, such as the riding. So even if actors can ride, they really don't have many opportunites.


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## Cloball (18 January 2021)

BBP said:



			Who did you ride and when??!

I used to work at the trekking place in Glenorchy so got a lot of inside goss on the Riders of Rohan scenes. So now I watch the movies just watching out for ‘my’ horses.
		
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I can't remember his name but he was a lovely bay gentlemanly hunter type. I think it must be the same place. We rode up the Dart. Fantastic day! This was 2015.


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## HashRouge (18 January 2021)

Talking of historically accurate horses, I always really liked the black and white cob ridden by Heston the viking in The Last Kingdom. I remember they had the brothers Erik and Siegfried on what looked like Shire horses too. Always felt a bit more authentic, though I have no idea if it was!


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## Splash2310 (18 January 2021)

Lexi_ said:



			I saw this little clip on Instagram today of what looks like him having lessons/riding practice : 




__
		http://instagr.am/p/CKHvLTcpAKl/


Click to expand...

There was another clip on Facebook too: https://fb.watch/35bUcqh-qp/

I like how in the clip you posted he talks about having a conversation with someone who knows much more than him - clearly someone taught him well!


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## Cortez (18 January 2021)

laura_nash said:



			I know its more your area than mine Cortez, and I take your point its theoretically possible as the breed did exist at the time, but is it really likely they were the horse of choice for Highlanders during the rebellion?
		
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Oh no, absolutely not accurate; they would have been riding garrons or highlands. But remember, Highlander is about time travel, so it's fantasy, not history.


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## Cortez (18 January 2021)

HashRouge said:



			Talking of historically accurate horses, I always really liked the black and white cob ridden by Heston the viking in The Last Kingdom. I remember they had the brothers Erik and Siegfried on what looked like Shire horses too. Always felt a bit more authentic, though I have no idea if it was!
		
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*Wasn't. Vikings would have ridden something like a Fjord or an Icelandic horse if "at home", and local horses if raiding. Shires were not really Shires until the later 18c, and there is not much evidence for piebald/skewbald horses in the 10/11c.


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## Kipper's Dick (18 January 2021)

Cortez said:



			*Wasn't. Vikings would have ridden something like a Fjord or an Icelandic horse if "at home", and local horses if raiding. Shires were not really Shires until the later 18c, and there is not much evidence for piebald/skewbald horses in the 10/11c.
		
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I love this sort of information, really fascinating.  Do you have any thoughts, Cortez, as to what type of breeding the destrier might have been?  Apparently the knights of old in their shining (and quite heavy) armour weren't riding big ponderous draft horses at all, but smaller and lighter horses?
(Sorry, not meant to de-rail thread, just interested.)


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## stormox (18 January 2021)

Smitty said:



			Just remembered, my instructor in the early 70s had worked on, and had a small riding double bit in Carry on Cowboy and had the job of trying to teach Sid, Charles, Kenneth etc to ride .  Not quite Sean and co but apparently it was great fun😊
		
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The yard I worked at supplied horses for that, and 'Carry on Dick' as well as all the Hammer Horrors. Great fun.


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## Pippity (18 January 2021)

Kipper's Dick said:



			I love this sort of information, really fascinating.  Do you have any thoughts, Cortez, as to what type of breeding the destrier might have been?  Apparently the knights of old in their shining (and quite heavy) armour weren't riding big ponderous draft horses at all, but smaller and lighter horses?
(Sorry, not meant to de-rail thread, just interested)
		
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From Royal Armouries (https://royalarmouries.org/stories/all-the-kings-horses/):

"Investigating the physical remains of horses recovered during archaeological excavations can further elaborate on the size and conformation of medieval horses. By the 16th century, warhorses were becoming lighter and swifter, while jousting tournaments continued to favour sturdier destrier-type medieval chargers. The latter were ideal for jousting as they had been carefully bred and trained for mêlée-style combat. Contrary to common belief, these horses were relatively small, rarely reaching more than 14hh or 15hh at the shoulder, more similar to a sturdy pony than the heavy draft horses depicted in modern media."

They rode cobs. This explains so much about cobs.


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## Caol Ila (18 January 2021)

Yeah, on that Clydesdale documentary that aired on BBC, the most interesting part (for me), was in the brief history of the breed, where they said that during the 19th C, there was basically a draft horse arms race, breeding horses bigger and bigger so they could pull increasingly heavier stuff and plow more fields. That implied that the huge drafts we see today were not the warhorses of old, but rather came out of the 19th century version of Top Gear -- who can get the most horsepower, quite literally.

As far as Outlander goes, the writing and acting weren't good enough for me to look past the wrong horses, or the film locations that were plainly nowhere near Inverness. The time travel thing would have been fine if the script was strong enough carry it, alongside the leaden weight of Friesians, putting the Callanish stones on the mainland, and adding a distinctive pointy rock formation where there is none. 

I never said I wasn't a tough audience.


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## Kipper's Dick (18 January 2021)

Pippity said:



			From Royal Armouries (https://royalarmouries.org/stories/all-the-kings-horses/):

"Investigating the physical remains of horses recovered during archaeological excavations can further elaborate on the size and conformation of medieval horses. By the 16th century, warhorses were becoming lighter and swifter, while jousting tournaments continued to favour sturdier destrier-type medieval chargers. The latter were ideal for jousting as they had been carefully bred and trained for mêlée-style combat. Contrary to common belief, these horses were relatively small, rarely reaching more than 14hh or 15hh at the shoulder, more similar to a sturdy pony than the heavy draft horses depicted in modern media."

They rode cobs. This explains so much about cobs.
		
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What an interesting article, thanks for posting the link.


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## Cinnamontoast (18 January 2021)

Peregrine Falcon said:



			Ct, but it is funny! 😂
		
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I really like Nicholas Hoult’s character, although he’s obviously really horrible! 🤣


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## FinnishLapphund (18 January 2021)

Cortez said:



			*Wasn't. Vikings would have ridden something like a Fjord or an Icelandic horse if "at home", and local horses if raiding. Shires were not really Shires until the later 18c, and there is not much evidence for piebald/skewbald horses in the 10/11c.
		
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Besides mentioning the Icelandic, and Fjord Horse breeds, according to what I've read, the now extinct breed Ölandshorse had the same origin as today's Icelandic Horse. Today's North Swedish Horse, and the Norwegian Dølehorse, and Nordlandshorse also have the same origin.

The last image of an Ölandshorse, the mare Lilly, from 1922.







From 2005 they've tried to reinvent a type of Ölandshorse, by importing some Estonian Native Horse/Klepper, that was found to have the  same genome. The Klepper is said to have developed from an ancient forest horse some thousands years ago.
Today's Klepper/Estonian Native Horse:







Today's North Swedish Horse







But I've also read that there is old drawings/other material which shows Vikings riding horses resembling today's Danish Jutsk/Jutland Horse:







By the way, I think the name Klepper was used in several countries from the middle ages, or around that time, on a type of riding horse. I know it was used in Sweden (ETA but spelled Klippare), but that type of horse was a bit larger than the Estonian Klepper.


Anyhow, back to the subject, I've read that Sam Elliott is more than a decent rider


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## Rowreach (18 January 2021)

I forgot all about this chap.  Practically grew up on a horse.  Not sure where his trousers went.


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## FinnishLapphund (18 January 2021)

Chinchilla said:



			Have not read whole thread but can only think of 2 actors who actually ride: viggo mortensen and William shatner 🤷

Also CI is right about the lotr stunt double, but mortensen bought the stallion for the stunt rider and one of the horses he rode for himself apparently.
		
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Mortensen bought 3 horses, besides the horse he gave to the stunt woman, he bought the chestnut, Kenny, who played Hasufel, which Aragon/Mortensen rode in the beginning of the Two Towers, and the brown horse Uraeus (spelling?) who played Brego.


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## Cortez (18 January 2021)

Pippity said:



			From Royal Armouries (https://royalarmouries.org/stories/all-the-kings-horses/):

"Investigating the physical remains of horses recovered during archaeological excavations can further elaborate on the size and conformation of medieval horses. By the 16th century, warhorses were becoming lighter and swifter, while jousting tournaments continued to favour sturdier destrier-type medieval chargers. The latter were ideal for jousting as they had been carefully bred and trained for mêlée-style combat. Contrary to common belief, these horses were relatively small, rarely reaching more than 14hh or 15hh at the shoulder, more similar to a sturdy pony than the heavy draft horses depicted in modern media."

They rode cobs. This explains so much about cobs.
		
Click to expand...

He he; I made a bit of a contribution to that Royal Armouries article.....and yes, cobs, but not the really heavy hairy ones, more like lightweight, cleaner-legged small draughts. There are basically 3 phenotypes from post Ice Age: the northern Forest Horse, precursor of the draught horses: the pony, ancestor of native pony-types; and the desert/eastern horse, like Akahl Tekes, Barbs, Turcomans, and much later, the Arab, finally resulting in the Thoroughbred. Mix that lot up together and you have the fine array of modern horses that we have today.


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## stormox (18 January 2021)

Tatum O'Neill is an excellent rider, we had the film horses stabled at Tramore, her Dad Ryan was in the film 'Barry Lyndon' - he wasn't a great rider but could 'sort of' ride but little Tatum was only  9 or 10 and used to help us excersise the carriage horses, galloping flat out down the beach.... she later went on to star in 'International Velvet'


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## Errin Paddywack (18 January 2021)

FinnishLapphund said:



			Today's Klepper/Estonian Native Horse:
		
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I really like this chap.


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## ycbm (18 January 2021)

Cortez said:



			Oh no, absolutely not accurate; they would have been riding garrons or highlands. But remember, Highlander is about time travel, so it's fantasy, not history.
		
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You've just ruined my day . It's not true, then?  🙇‍♀️


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## ycbm (18 January 2021)

Mrs B said:



			I know Micky Dolenz from the Monkees rode as I suddenly found him next to me when I was out hunting in about 1983 ... nearly fell off!

I did some stunt riding of sorts for a poster campaign for Manikin cigars when I was 19 - they wanted a blonde, curvy girl to ride an white horse bareback at a gallop and whilst it did a full rear (again bareback) ... and the art dept would put wings on it to turn it into Pegasus, which was the Manikin logo ...

I worked as a booker for a Page 3 agency at the time (long story!) and they'd contacted us for potential models and we didn't have any who could ride much, so I took a flyer and went to the casting myself ... which is how a short-haired brunette with a body like an ironing board got the gig  😆

Then they decided the model should be bareback too and that's how I ended up in a HUGE blonde wig and war paint galloping an Andalusian stallion, pretty much buck-naked alongside one of the roads to Torremolinos ...

The poster got banned by Mary Whitehouse. One of my proudest moments.  

Click to expand...

Fabulous!


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## brighteyes (18 January 2021)

stormox said:



			Tatum O'Neill is an excellent rider, we had the film horses stabled at Tramore, her Dad Ryan was in the film 'Barry Lyndon' - he wasn't a great rider but could 'sort of' ride but little Tatum was only  9 or 10 and used to help us excersise the carriage horses, galloping flat out down the beach.... she later went on to star in 'International Velvet'
		
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I watched some YT footage of her being trained for the role and she really did sit well, pretty much from the off!


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## brighteyes (18 January 2021)

ycbm said:



			You've just ruined my day . It's not true, then?  🙇‍♀️
		
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Also, it's Outlander, not Highlander- and even then, it's actually 'Cross Stitch' et seq...


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## southerncomfort (19 January 2021)

Mrs B said:



			I know Micky Dolenz from the Monkees rode as I suddenly found him next to me when I was out hunting in about 1983 ... nearly fell off!

I did some stunt riding of sorts for a poster campaign for Manikin cigars when I was 19 - they wanted a blonde, curvy girl to ride an white horse bareback at a gallop and whilst it did a full rear (again bareback) ... and the art dept would put wings on it to turn it into Pegasus, which was the Manikin logo ...

I worked as a booker for a Page 3 agency at the time (long story!) and they'd contacted us for potential models and we didn't have any who could ride much, so I took a flyer and went to the casting myself ... which is how a short-haired brunette with a body like an ironing board got the gig  😆

Then they decided the model should be bareback too and that's how I ended up in a HUGE blonde wig and war paint galloping an Andalusian stallion, pretty much buck-naked alongside one of the roads to Torremolinos ...

The poster got banned by Mary Whitehouse. One of my proudest moments.  

Click to expand...

Best anecdote I've ever read on here! 😄


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## stormox (19 January 2021)

Mrs B said:



			I know Micky Dolenz from the Monkees rode as I suddenly found him next to me when I was out hunting in about 1983 ... nearly fell off!

I did some stunt riding of sorts for a poster campaign for Manikin cigars when I was 19 - they wanted a blonde, curvy girl to ride an white horse bareback at a gallop and whilst it did a full rear (again bareback) ... and the art dept would put wings on it to turn it into Pegasus, which was the Manikin logo ...

I worked as a booker for a Page 3 agency at the time (long story!) and they'd contacted us for potential models and we didn't have any who could ride much, so I took a flyer and went to the casting myself ... which is how a short-haired brunette with a body like an ironing board got the gig  😆

Then they decided the model should be bareback too and that's how I ended up in a HUGE blonde wig and war paint galloping an Andalusian stallion, pretty much buck-naked alongside one of the roads to Torremolinos ...

The poster got banned by Mary Whitehouse. One of my proudest moments.  

Click to expand...

Fab story .... but I thought it was Davy Jones from The Monkees was a jockey


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## Rowreach (19 January 2021)

stormox said:



			Fab story .... but I thought it was Davy Jones from The Monkees was a jockey
		
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Well there's no reason they both can't ride


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## Rowreach (19 January 2021)




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## Keith_Beef (19 January 2021)

FinnishLapphund said:



			Oh, totally besides the subject, but I'm sure some of you might enjoy watching this Pony Express vs Muscle Cars from Top Gear USA, which I stumbled across while searching for the above







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I think I must have watched too many westerns when I was a child. That would explain why, for the first year, my riding instructors kept telling me to stop flapping my elbows as if I was trying to take off.


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## Wishfilly (19 January 2021)

I've done a tiny bit of work on film sets with my old boss, and it is very interesting the camera trickery they can do to make someone look as if they can ride! Now I know how it's done, I can nearly always spot it. 

In my very limited experience, producers are also quite reluctant to let actors do anything where there might be a risk of them falling off (e.g. cantering over open country) even if they are relatively competent. Obviously an actor injuring themselves could delay filming a lot- which, if it's a major character, can be really costly. 

That said, Viggo Mortensen has always come across as someone who really loves horses- apparently he also bought TJ- the pony who played Hidalgo in Hidalgo!


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## littleshetland (19 January 2021)

Smitty said:



			Just remembered, my instructor in the early 70s had worked on, and had a small riding double bit in Carry on Cowboy and had the job of trying to teach Sid, Charles, Kenneth etc to ride .  Not quite Sean and co but apparently it was great fun😊
		
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Imagine teaching Kenneth Williams to ride!


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## FinnishLapphund (19 January 2021)

Wishfilly said:



			I've done a tiny bit of work on film sets with my old boss, and it is very interesting the camera trickery they can do to make someone look as if they can ride! Now I know how it's done, I can nearly always spot it.

In my very limited experience, producers are also quite reluctant to let actors do anything where there might be a risk of them falling off (e.g. cantering over open country) even if they are relatively competent. Obviously an actor injuring themselves could delay filming a lot- which, if it's a major character, can be really costly.

That said, Viggo Mortensen has always come across as someone who really loves horses- apparently he also bought TJ- the pony who played Hidalgo in Hidalgo!
		
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Perhaps there is a difference between some directors/moviemakers. In my reply from 2013 on this thread (#80), I mentioned Arn - The Knight Templar. The people behind it made it a requirement that the lead actor truly must be able to ride, because they wanted to be able to film his horse scenes without using a stunt double. 

Joakim Nätterqvist comes from an equestrian family, competed in show jumping with pony/ponies, but sometime in his teenage years decided to focus on acting instead. According to what I've read, since Arn, Nätterqvist participated yearly in medieval jousting. At least up until 2019 when the horse he was riding got trapped in fabric, Nätterqvist fell off, and broke his pelvis. 

But we've mostly seem to mention male actors who can ride. To mention a female one instead, have Julia Roberts been mentioned on this thread?

I've read that she grew up doing Barrel racing, and for example spent some weeks with nomads, and their horses, in Mongolia.


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## Keith_Beef (20 January 2021)

littleshetland said:



			Imagine teaching Kenneth Williams to ride!
		
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I bet there would have been lots of jokes about "getting your leg over" and so on. Would have been a right hoot.


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## Wishfilly (21 January 2021)

FinnishLapphund said:



			Perhaps there is a difference between some directors/moviemakers. In my reply from 2013 on this thread (#80), I mentioned Arn - The Knight Templar. The people behind it made it a requirement that the lead actor truly must be able to ride, because they wanted to be able to film his horse scenes without using a stunt double.

Joakim Nätterqvist comes from an equestrian family, competed in show jumping with pony/ponies, but sometime in his teenage years decided to focus on acting instead. According to what I've read, since Arn, Nätterqvist participated yearly in medieval jousting. At least up until 2019 when the horse he was riding got trapped in fabric, Nätterqvist fell off, and broke his pelvis.

But we've mostly seem to mention male actors who can ride. To mention a female one instead, have Julia Roberts been mentioned on this thread?

I've read that she grew up doing Barrel racing, and for example spent some weeks with nomads, and their horses, in Mongolia.






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Yes, I'm sure a lot comes down to the preference of the producers! It might also come down to budget as well? The particular production I'm thinking of was a made for TV movie, so probably not such a high budget and quite a tight time frame, I think!

I love that photo of Julia Roberts, too!


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## Meredith (21 January 2021)

alexomahony said:



			Talking of fit actors and riding horses - I found the Duke on Bridgerton to have fantastic technique. He was a great rider too!
		
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Sorry if this has been quoted before. I haven’t seen the series or read all the posts.

https://www.shondaland.com/inspire/...7OzIqCANi2SpQ71wQhyVg27yO1v4gr0TMny3FqXa2Q9Ms


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## Caol Ila (21 January 2021)

FinnishLapphund said:



			Perhaps there is a difference between some directors/moviemakers. In my reply from 2013 on this thread (#80), I mentioned Arn - The Knight Templar. The people behind it made it a requirement that the lead actor truly must be able to ride, because they wanted to be able to film his horse scenes without using a stunt double.

Joakim Nätterqvist comes from an equestrian family, competed in show jumping with pony/ponies, but sometime in his teenage years decided to focus on acting instead. According to what I've read, since Arn, Nätterqvist participated yearly in medieval jousting. At least up until 2019 when the horse he was riding got trapped in fabric, Nätterqvist fell off, and broke his pelvis.

But we've mostly seem to mention male actors who can ride. To mention a female one instead, have Julia Roberts been mentioned on this thread?

I've read that she grew up doing Barrel racing, and for example spent some weeks with nomads, and their horses, in Mongolia.






Click to expand...

Jesus, we really are sexist, aren't we? I love this photo.

In the misogynist land of most movies and TV, many of the horse riding action sequences are peformed by men. I guess that's one of the reasons we keep talking about men on this thread. Except when they're not. I remember seeing on some LOTR behind-the-scenes thing that a lot of the background riders were women, wearing fake beards. Not enough male riders in New Zealand, LOL.


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## FinnishLapphund (22 January 2021)

Caol Ila said:



			Jesus, we really are sexist, aren't we? I love this photo.

In the misogynist land of most movies and TV, many of the horse riding action sequences are peformed by men. I guess that's one of the reasons we keep talking about men on this thread. Except when they're not. I remember seeing on some LOTR behind-the-scenes thing that a lot of the background riders were women, wearing fake beards. Not enough male riders in New Zealand, LOL.
		
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To use Poldark as an example, I can only be honest, and say that when Demelza rode in a scene I was looking at the horse, and her clothes, but when Ross rode in a scene I was looking at the horse, and Aidan Turner. For me, I think it most of the time is simply down to that I'm a heterosexual female, I like looking at a handsome man riding around on a horse in a scene. 

On the subject of Poldark, I've read that Aidan Turner had done a little riding as a kid + in The Hobbit, but nothing major, and that he sometimes needed a stunt double in the first Poldark season, but he did his own riding scenes in the following Poldark seasons. 
On the page where I read the above, it also said that Eleanor Tomlinson was the best rider on the set, that she grew up around horses, and can gallop riding side-saddle.


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## Mule (22 January 2021)

Mrs B said:



			I know Micky Dolenz from the Monkees rode as I suddenly found him next to me when I was out hunting in about 1983 ... nearly fell off!

I did some stunt riding of sorts for a poster campaign for Manikin cigars when I was 19 - they wanted a blonde, curvy girl to ride an white horse bareback at a gallop and whilst it did a full rear (again bareback) ... and the art dept would put wings on it to turn it into Pegasus, which was the Manikin logo ...

I worked as a booker for a Page 3 agency at the time (long story!) and they'd contacted us for potential models and we didn't have any who could ride much, so I took a flyer and went to the casting myself ... which is how a short-haired brunette with a body like an ironing board got the gig  😆

Then they decided the model should be bareback too and that's how I ended up in a HUGE blonde wig and war paint galloping an Andalusian stallion, pretty much buck-naked alongside one of the roads to Torremolinos ...

The poster got banned by Mary Whitehouse. One of my proudest moments.  

Click to expand...

That's brilliant!


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## Mule (22 January 2021)

Cortez said:



			He he; I made a bit of a contribution to that Royal Armouries article.....and yes, cobs, but not the really heavy hairy ones, more like lightweight, cleaner-legged small draughts. There are basically 3 phenotypes from post Ice Age: the northern Forest Horse, precursor of the draught horses: the pony, ancestor of native pony-types; and the desert/eastern horse, like Akahl Tekes, Barbs, Turcomans, and much later, the Arab, finally resulting in the Thoroughbred. Mix that lot up together and you have the fine array of modern horses that we have today.
		
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Would the small draughts you referred to be like Irish Draughts?


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## PurBee (22 January 2021)

Has Dean Martin and his Andalusians been mentioned already?
There’s a few vids of him and his horses on youtube for those interested


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## SatansLittleHelper (22 January 2021)

Off track slightly but is there anything with Jason Mamoa on a horse..??!! I really feel that needs to be a thing.....😛😛😛😛😛😛😳😳😳😳😋😋😋😋


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## FinnishLapphund (22 January 2021)

PurBee said:



			Has Dean Martin and his Andalusians been mentioned already?
There’s a few vids of him and his horses on youtube for those interested








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I don't think he's been mentioned before this. Thanks for sharing the video.


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## FinnishLapphund (22 January 2021)

SatansLittleHelper said:



			Off track slightly but is there anything with Jason Mamoa on a horse..??!! I really feel that needs to be a thing.....😛😛😛😛😛😛😳😳😳😳😋😋😋😋
		
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However, according to what I've read today, Momoa is in the group of Can't actually ride-actors. 
He has even said that he doesn't like horses, caused by that he didn't get along with his horse in Conan, said it constantly tried to kill him on set. Mentioned something about breaking some ribs, horse not stopping when it should, and falling off more than once. 
Also said that even though he liked the horse (horses?) in Game of Thrones, he had to go back, and do some more Conan horse scenes, so went back to not liking horses again.


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## Smitty (22 January 2021)

Let's not forget Robert Redford😜 who had to learn to ride pretty well for Butch Cassidy and has ridden ever since, apparently doing a lot of the horse handling in The Horse Whisperer.


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## Shady (22 January 2021)

SatansLittleHelper said:



			Off track slightly but is there anything with Jason Mamoa on a horse..??!! I really feel that needs to be a thing.....😛😛😛😛😛😛😳😳😳😳😋😋😋😋
		
Click to expand...

Or Jason Mamoa on anything really.......

There's something fascinating about Russel Crowe on a horse. I always think he looks very graceful and comfortable


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## Shady (22 January 2021)

Smitty said:



			Let's not forget Robert Redford😜 who had to learn to ride pretty well for Butch Cassidy and has ridden ever since, apparently doing a lot of the horse handling in The Horse Whisperer.
		
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I could watch him forever. 

Does anyone know if Omar Sharif was actually a good rider because I caught some of an old film with him in it called The Horsemen and if that was him riding in the polo/ chaos scenes he was quite something


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## Keith_Beef (22 January 2021)

FinnishLapphund said:



			To use Poldark as an example, I can only be honest, and say that when Demelza rode in a scene I was looking at the horse, and her clothes, but when Ross rode in a scene I was looking at the horse, and Aidan Turner. For me, I think it most of the time is simply down to that I'm a heterosexual female, I like looking at a handsome man riding around on a horse in a scene.

On the subject of Poldark, I've read that Aidan Turner had done a little riding as a kid + in The Hobbit, but nothing major, and that he sometimes needed a stunt double in the first Poldark season, but he did his own riding scenes in the following Poldark seasons.
On the page where I read the above, it also said that Eleanor Tomlinson was the best rider on the set, that she grew up around horses, and can gallop riding side-saddle.












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Whereas when I look at the first of your pictures, I'm looking at the tack, the horse, the boots, the coat and waistcoat, the hat (I have a tricorn that I don't wear anything like often enough). And when I look at the second one, I'm looking at the horse, sure, but that red hair streaming out in the wind, the woman's face, and wondering what boots and other things are hidden under that long coat... You've got me googling for pictures of Eleanor Tomlinson riding horses, now.

The picture of Julia Roberts in Mongolia is nice, but she doesn't do anything for me, never has, not even when she's dancing to You Can Keep Your Hat On.


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## BBP (22 January 2021)

I’m a big fan of Kaley Cuoco now, ever since I read a quote from her where she said she would far rather be remembered as a horsewoman who did some acting, than an actress who rode horses.

Jamie Foxx is a keen horseman, Tony in the movie Django Unchained was apparently his own horse Cheetah.

Also, if anyone is looking Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson has just listed his horse farm for sale. A bargain at $2.5million less than he paid for it.
https://www.google.co.uk/amp/s/www....ists-sprawling-Georgia-horse-farm-7-5MIL.html. Having seen a photo, he clearly isn’t a rider, but it looks like his kids do.


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## Cortez (22 January 2021)

Mule said:



			Would the small draughts you referred to be like Irish Draughts?
		
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Sort of; bit heavier than most modern draughts maybe. In working with the Royal Armouries, we came to the conclusion that the Grete Horse was most like the Latvian Draught (based on iconography and the measurements of extant horse armours), generally between 13.2 - 14.2. Rouncies, Jenets, etc. were lighter, and Coursers were generally Spanish.

On the "actors riding" theme, I have actually put Jason Momoa on his horse multiple times - he is a terrible rider  So is Aidan Turner (lovely fellow though), but he's got a bit better at it over time. Hugh Dancy can really ride, we did a few dressage/alta escuela lessons when he was filming King Arthur.

On the subject of women riding in film, most horse riding occurs in historical settings when women didn't do much on horseback anyway. I have doubled for Helen Mirren a few times, and I've also worn multiple beards


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## Rowreach (22 January 2021)

Cortez said:



			I have doubled for Helen Mirren a few times, and I've also worn multiple beards 

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** wins the thread


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## Meowy Catkin (22 January 2021)

Keith_Beef said:



			The picture of Julia Roberts in Mongolia is nice, but she doesn't do anything for me, never has, not even when she's dancing to You Can Keep Your Hat On.
		
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Possibly because it was Kim Basinger in that video.


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## Shady (22 January 2021)

Rowreach said:



			** wins the thread 

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I want to agree with this, but she also put her hands on Jason Mamoa....
* dreams of where I would put mine*


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## FinnishLapphund (22 January 2021)

Shady said:



			I could watch him forever.

Does anyone know if Omar Sharif was actually a good rider because I caught some of an old film with him in it called The Horsemen and if that was him riding in the polo/ chaos scenes he was quite something
		
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As far as I've been able to find, Omar Sharif's riding skills was only a part of his acting skills. However he did enjoy/love owning some racehorses, but he also betted on horses, and a lot of other things, he lost large sums of money due to gambling addiction. 

By the way, I found out that he was once one of the top 50 contract bridge players in the world, and there is apparently some books by/with him about playing bridge. Completely pointless random info that my brain will probably decide is something I must remember.


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## Keith_Beef (22 January 2021)

Meowy Catkin said:



			Possibly because it was Kim Basinger in that video. 

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Neither of them do much for me, then.

And it turns out that Karen Gillan is a probably a worse rider than Matt Smith.


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## thefarsideofthefield (22 January 2021)

Shania Twain rides her horse on to the stage and sings ' You're Still the One ' to it ! Horse doesn't bat an eyelid . The song was originally written for her husband but when they split up she decided to dedicate it to her horse instead  Nice video on YouTube ( Live in Las Vegas  2014 ) . Actually makes me want to cry a little bit .


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## Suechoccy (23 January 2021)

Cillian Murphy as Thomas Shelby in Peaky Blinders?
https://www.induehorse.com/celebrity-lists/10-reasons-to-watch-peaky-blinders-if-you-love-horses/


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## Suechoccy (23 January 2021)

And the best of the best:
http://dawnfrenchvideos.com/french-saunders/french-and-saunders-ponies/


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## thefarsideofthefield (23 January 2021)

Suechoccy said:



			And the best of the best:
http://dawnfrenchvideos.com/french-saunders/french-and-saunders-ponies/

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So which one were you as a child - Dawn or Jennifer ?
I was a Jennifer - naughty ponies , wellies and emergency string  !


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## blackcob (23 January 2021)

Have we done Henry Cavill?


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		http://instagr.am/p/B8yMOkRBAed/


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		http://instagr.am/p/B1EHNgjBpb2/


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## Griffin (23 January 2021)

blackcob said:



			Have we done Henry Cavill?


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		http://instagr.am/p/B8yMOkRBAed/


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		http://instagr.am/p/B1EHNgjBpb2/


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I am quite happy to do Henry Cavill (sorry, I lowered the tone there ) and he can build a computer too!

I think I have read a few times in H&H that Michael C Fox from 'Downton Abbey' is a keen rider and eventing fan.

I am really enjoying this thread, well done to whoever resurrected it!


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## Cloball (23 January 2021)

Cortez said:



			Sort of; bit heavier than most modern draughts maybe. In working with the Royal Armouries, we came to the conclusion that the Grete Horse was most like the Latvian Draught (based on iconography and the measurements of extant horse armours), generally between 13.2 - 14.2. Rouncies, Jenets, etc. were lighter, and Coursers were generally Spanish.

On the "actors riding" theme, I have actually put Jason Momoa on his horse multiple times - he is a terrible rider  So is Aidan Turner (lovely fellow though), but he's got a bit better at it over time. Hugh Dancy can really ride, we did a few dressage/alta escuela lessons when he was filming King Arthur.

On the subject of women riding in film, most horse riding occurs in historical settings when women didn't do much on horseback anyway. I have doubled for Helen Mirren a few times, and I've also worn multiple beards 

Click to expand...

I am loving the equine history. Although I am picturing the 14hh Ardennes X Highland I rode last year built like an outhouse with huge knees and the best ears.


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## Cortez (23 January 2021)

Cloball said:



			I am loving the equine history. Although I am picturing the 14hh Ardennes X Highland I rode last year built like an outhouse with huge knees and the best ears.
		
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 << Modern Latvian


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## Lexi_ (23 January 2021)

Griffin said:



			I am quite happy to do Henry Cavill (sorry, I lowered the tone there ) and he can build a computer too!
		
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Ha, same! He likes horsey women too 😄


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## Pippity (23 January 2021)

I've just started watching Cadfael. First episode opens with an actor (Christian Burgess?) wobbling along on a palomino, giving the most tremendous pony club kicks!


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