Reunited with the knights

No, I was a squire. And not a very good one, because I was a bit scared of the highly-strung polo ponies I was supposed to catch and hang on to when one of the riders was unseated.

But I did look quite good in a short tabard and tights. That was 30 years ago, I hasten to add.

A twenty-something newlywed living in Hertfordshire, I was roped in with my husband by a friend who was the Knights’ master of ceremonies, when they found themselves short of people who could take a whole week off from their day jobs to fulfil a booking at the Hamburg International Horse Show.

For a year or two we were regulars - my husband even appearing on TV in his role as Igor, the evil Black Knight’s hunchbacked squire who gets an axe lodged in his head.

So I was gobsmacked and delighted to find the Knights performing in Hudson’s Field on Monday, and to catch up with the one remaining member of the cast from our youth – the Black Knight himself. We had great fun looking through the stash of old photos I’d dug out.

The whole event was fantastic, with a huge turnout that I gather took the organisers by surprise, and I can only wonder why it took until the Queen’s Jubilee for Salisbury to wake up to the full potential of live music on Hudson’s Field.

Congratulations to everyone involved in organising it. From now on, I think we should celebrate every extra year of the Queen’s reign.

Only two small criticisms. Next time, can we have more than one bar stall please, so people don’t have to queue for half an hour for a beer. And can we have a wider craft tent – or at least one with a one-way system, to avoid the jams.

Readers who submit articles must agree to our terms of use. The content is the sole responsibility of the contributor and is unmoderated. But we will react if anything that breaks the rules comes to our attention. If you wish to complain about this article, contact us here