Stabbing at travellers’ horse fair in Appleby
A man is recovering in hospital after being stabbed at the Harness Horse Trials in Appleby, Cumbria on Monday (25 May).
Local paper the Evening Gazette named the victim as bare knuckle fighter Louis Welch, who is known as the “King of the Gipsies” — a title claimed by the best boxer in the travelling community.
This has not been confirmed by the police.
The 40-year-old victim, from Yarm on Teesside, suffered multiple stab wounds and was taken to the Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle, where he is said to be in a stable condition.
Eight men, aged from 19 to 57 and from the Lancaster and Preston areas, were arrested on suspicion of assault and an investigation launched after the attack near a beer tent at the event.
More than 900 people attended the bank holiday event, which is a prelude to Appleby Horse Fair, which begins on 4 June.
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A self-confessed newshound, farmer’s daughter and journalist of many years' experience, Charlotte worked on regional papers before joining H&H in 2007. A regular rider, she visited Ireland in 2010 to investigate the fate of Irish horses through the recession, to much acclaim, and reported from the FEI General Assembly in Rio de Janeiro in 2011. She left Horse & Hound in March 2013.