Membership Login Club Mail Login
Share article on whatsapp Share article on twitter Share article on facebook Print
August 02

Horse Country to air tonight on RTE 1

The Irish Sport Horse world has rich and deep roots in Ireland even though it gets less attention than thoroughbred racing.

Encompassing the strands of Show jumping, Eventing and Dressage as well as other recreational activities, this sport and industry is an important part of the social and recreational life of rural Ireland.

Horse Country is a six-part series that tells the stories of people and their horses who make up that world. It’s set in the Covid summer of 2021 when many sport horse events were cancelled, and those that did take place were attended only by the competitors and their close connections. While that diminished the atmosphere, the competitive passions were always in evidence with every character featured in Horse Country.

Horse Country tells stories of success, failure, frustration and exhilaration. They are treaded through different programs with many coming together at the Dublin Horse Horse Show at the RDS in the final episode. What each story thread has in common, is the passion and love that Irish people have for their horses.

This is not a series with formal interviews — nearly all the interviews take place in fields or stables with horses nearly always present. Like humans, horses are complex creatures who sometimes just don’t feel like performing. It’s a tangled relationship with its fair share of trust issues and disappointing outcomes. But hope springs eternal and that often contradictory combination of human and horse expectations provides plenty of drama and unexpected outcomes.

Horse Country follows a group of people and their horses as the humans try to achieve a set of goals.

Liam Lynskey paves roads in the west of Ireland for a living but his lifelong enthusiasm is breeding from his top class Connemara and Irish Draught stallions. Last summer his Connemara pony made the challenging journey to the Dublin Horse Show finals with both thrilling and humbling results.

For six teenage members of the Kildare Pony Club qualifying for the Three Day Eventing national championship in Tattersalls in County Meath is what the year is all about. It’s a wild and bumpy ride.

Finbar and Joanne Mulligan have a modest breeding operation with one big goal: to breed a full sibling to the star Irish Sport Horse, Kilkenny. They own Kilkenny’s mother but she can no longer deliver a foal. The other problem is that Kilkenny’s father is dead. A fascinating saga of cutting edge veterinary science, frozen semen, surrogacy, embryos from Italy, and high hopes.

Abbie (20), Holly (21) and Ryan Sweetnam (17) are close-knit, high performing show jumpers. The siblings qualify four horses for the Dublin Horse Show championships. Their experience at the RDS — particularly for Ryan — was a real mixed-bag.

The Burchill family: West Cork farmer and part time construction worker John has passed on the horse bug on to his daughters: college student Deirdre and precocious 11-year-old Emma. The trio compete their horses and ponies with both success and frustration.

Noel Cawley was a business legend as CEO of Kerrygold and now the retiree is one of the top breeders of show jumpers in the country. Now Cawley’s obsession is a contest for three year olds at the Horse Show that he’s entered unsuccessfully for 30 years. Maybe, this is the year.

Margaret and Des Jeffares have been breeding and selling top class horses alongside their blackcurrant farm in County Wexford. In 2021 they decided to compete themselves with a 4 year-old who made it to the RDS Horse Show finals. It was a bitter-sweet experience.

Cathal Daniels became Ireland’s top Three Day Eventer at the age of 24. In 2021 he was chosen as part of the team to represent Ireland at the Tokyo Olympics. Sarah Ennis is a veteran ‘Eventer’ who was often shortlisted for the Olympics but finally selected for Tokyo.

Horse Country is directed and produced by Kate O’Callaghan and Patrick Farrelly, award winning documentary film makers (IFTA, Best Documentary; Dublin Film Festival, Best Irish Film; and Emmy Award nomination). Their most recent work for RTE was the critically acclaimed feature documentary, ‘Marian’ about the life of the late Marian Finucane.

Related Posts

May 16

AIRC team confirmed for 2025 World Club Tournament in France

May 14

Premier Performance RDS West Leinster Qualifier

May 14

Foran Equine RC70/RC80 West Leinster Qualifier

May 14

NER RC70/RC80 SJ Team Qualifier Association of Irish Riding Clubs sponsored by Foran Equine

Association of Irish Riding Clubs, 1st Floor, Beech House, Millennium Park, Osberstown, Naas, Co. Kildare, ​W91 TK7N
045 246 686
[email protected]
Membership Login
Club Mail Login
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms
We made this!
  • Home
  • About Us
    • Our History
    • Our Committees
    • Our Regions
    • Our Awards
    • Our Charities
  • Get Involved
    • Become a Member
    • Become a Volunteer
    • Set up a Club
    • FAQs
    • Commercial Opportunities
  • Latest News
  • Events Calendar
    • Events Calendar
    • National Events
    • Results Archive
    • International Opportunities
    • Show Officials
  • Clubs
  • Downloads
  • Horses
  • Education
  • Safeguarding & Vetting
  • Members
    • Member Benefits
    • Athlete Health & Safety
    • Photo Gallery
    • Issuu Publications
    • Videos
  • Shop
  • Contact Us
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT