All action stopped at midday on each of the four days of Blenheim Horse Trials to pay respects to Her Majesty The Queen after her death on 8 September.
In a moving communal show of appreciation, the competition was paused and everyone on the Oxfordshire site stood, heads bowed, for a two-minute silence, followed by an emotional rendition of the National Anthem sung by soprano Laura Wright. Riders were also wearing black armbands.
Laura spoke about the honour of singing at Blenheim Palace in front of a passionate eventing crowd, who share their love of horses with The Queen.
“It means the world to me to stand here in front of this crowd who are so passionate, and that her late Majesty The Queen was so passionate about this place,” she said. “Not only is it steeped in history, but people all around us who are so passionate [about horses] being able to pay their respects in this very special way is such a great honour.
“As a performer, you hold everyone else’s emotions and the moment you start singing you either hear people starting to join in with you, or they give you that confidence to sing those words. We’re hearing different words for the first time in 70 years. My young daughters won’t know anything other than ‘God save The King’ now. It’s a very, very emotional time for everyone.”
Blenheim Horse Trials was not the first time during this period of mourning that Laura has performed in front of sports fans. She also sang the National Anthem at the start of the third test match between England and South Africa, at the Oval on 10 September – the first time this version had been officially sung at a sporting event since the time of King George VI.
Laura, 32, has also performed at the opening ceremony for Prince Harry’s inaugural Invictus Games, and the Grand National, and was involved in the Diamond Jubilee celebrations with her song Stronger As One.
She has also met The Queen, for the first time when she was 16.
“I’d echo the words of so many people who have had experiences with [The Queen], those stories of humour and kindness and generosity,” she said. “I met her at the Royal Albert Hall, and she just had this way of making you feel comfortable, secure and really like you were the only person in the room she was speaking to – which is quite something when you think of the many hundreds of thousands of people she met in her time.”
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The Queen – a happy and glorious life (21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022)
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