Royal Windsor’s chief showing steward Nigel Hollings on the show’s origins and the 2026 fixture’s highlights
It’s hard to imagine that the first show in 1943 was a one-day affair called the Windsor Horse and Dog Show. Nevertheless, it helped to raise enough money to buy 78 fighter aircraft for the RAF. My favourite anecdote from that year was that a lurcher stole some chicken from King George VI’s lunch plate so dogs have been banned from the event ever since!
This year’s four-day show and the tragedy that unfolded revealed the harsh reality of running a major fixture. But my role as Royal Windsor Horse Show’s chief showing steward is to focus on the highlights of the showing classes.
History was made.
The royal family dominated the section for retrained racehorses. Two former Horse & Hound award recipients continued to shine. The Count Robert Orssich hack championship, won by an amateur, was pure Windsor magic. The mountain and moorland sections, including the Pretty Polly home-produced classes, were well supported and spectators in the Castle Arena showed their appreciation for all the true-to-type champions on show.
My first show horse was the wonderful lightweight hunter Portman Lad who was equally successful on the flat and over fences. Consequently, I have total admiration for a hunter that meets this criteria, which is a rarity these days.
Craig Kiddier’s charge Mulberry Lane is the dual-purpose show hunter that keeps on giving. Already a twice Royal International supreme champion as a worker and a Horse of the Year Show (HOYS) supreme title holder as a flat horse, he galloped away with the open hunter spoils on his first visit to The King’s back garden.
Although Robert Walker failed in his bid to win this title for a 10th time, his daughter Izzy most definitely kept the Team Walker flag flying high. She made Royal Windsor history when riding Stoneleigh Showtime, now owned by her grandparents, to a fourth victory in the show pony championship in their last season together.
Even the legendary Pretty Polly, her sister My Pretty Maid and her daughter Pollyanna only won the title twice. Pretty Polly’s grandson Gem’s Signet along with the Gilbert-Scotts’ Cusop Heiress came closer by notching up three championship titles.
Sound advice
Outside of the ring, I joined Vicky Smith and Robert Walker in the Performance Hub area to talk about “all things showing’’.
Vicky, who took the riding horse championship here with her reigning HOYS champion Tremarl Timpani, offered some sound advice to anyone starting in showing: “Cut your suit according to your cloth, and above all be willing to learn anything and everything throughout the whole process.”
Robert Walker was asked how he keeps his string of horses fresh during a busy show season. He replied: “Treat each horse as an individual. We do very little work in the school and exercise in the field instead. This will keep them alert and consequently they are more likely to remember what you teach them.”
On my visit to the hub, I was asked, “How do we keep showing up to date?” I explained that it is important to encourage more young people to become stewards and judges, and for them to learn their craft alongside experienced officials.
This year the Orssich committee, tasked with selecting Windsor’s judges, invited some new faces such as Victoria Mullen, Harry Moore, Ellena Thomas and Adam Forster to officiate.
Similarly, showing societies need to promote new and inclusive competitions to increase participation. However, it’s important to do so without losing traditional values.
A favourite quote
Finally, my favourite quote came from the hunter judge Vikki Smith, who summed up the week in a nutshell at what is one of the calendar’s premier events: “Mulberry Lane’s ride and gallop will be a memory of a lifetime!”
● What advice would you offer to anyone starting out in showing? Let us know at hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and county, for the chance to have your thoughts published in a future issue of Horse & Hound magazine
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You might also enjoy reading:
‘We had to go to Plan B’: decorated worker lands Royal Windsor hunter championship
‘This has to be the most special’: history is made as combination clinch Royal Windsor show pony crown yet again
‘We’ve grown up together through the good, bad and ugly’: amateur beats the pros to stand hack champion at Royal Windsor
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