Only fools on horses

Famous faces will be sporting their jodhpurs and saddling up for the show jumping ring – live on primetime television. Only Fools On Horses is the BBC’s latest reality TV show in which celebrities compete in live show jumping competitions in front of a panel of equestrian judges.

Viewers at home will be able to watch the competitors eat and train together before they battle it out in the show jumping arena. “We’ve seen famous faces do all sorts on TV but we’ve really raised the bar this time – and they’re going to have to jump over it,” said Nick Samwell-Smith, Creative Director of film production company Initial.

The programme, which is in aid of Sport Relief, will be shown on BBC One over nine consecutive days, commencing 7 July. Viewers will also be able to catch up on extra live coverage on BBC Three. The BBC cannot yet confirm which celebrities are taking part but assure that the event is definitely taking place.

At the moment the celebrity contestants are enduring intensive jumping training with some of the UK’s leading equestrian coaches. In the first programme they will all move into a Riding School where they will live together for nine days – within close proximity to their horses. Each evening, the celebrities will compete in a live show jumping event in front of judges and the public will vote for the best rider. Needless to say, after each competition one competitor will be hoofed out of the riding school.

The Grand Finale will be staged live on BBC One, in front of the cream of the horse world. The BBC Controller of Entertainment Commissioning, Jon Beazley says, “This is an exciting new show that should have plenty of entertainment for competitors and viewers alike. It’s fantastic that viewers will be able to make decisions that will help raise much-needed money for Sport Relief”

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