A wonderful tradition in the making with the second annual Sidmouth Horse Trials.

Sidmouth Herald: Sidmouth Horse Trials.Sidmouth Horse Trials. (Image: Archant)

It is a highly entertaining all-comers event for hobby horses, unicorns, goats, morris animals and other beasts of disguise – a wonderfully silly event celebrating the ‘beasts’ that are integral to ritual dance traditions in the United Kingdom and beyond. A splendid new trophy has been created and donated by Aardman Animations, home of Wallace and Gromit, Shaun The Sheep, Morph and more, to be awarded to the Sidmouth FolkWeek Best Beast!

The Aardman Award has been designed by long-time Sidmouth FolkWeek fan Peter Lord, who says: “The Aardman Award at the Sidmouth Festival is very dear to my heart, combining as it does two great enthusiasms of mine; British folk music and ludicrous anthropomorphic animals. When I danced with Bristol Morris - quite a long time ago - we had a particularly wonderful horse which with daring invention we called “Horse”. This bug-eyed creature terrorised children and wore out dancers in equal measure thanks to its sturdy construction. Ever since, few things have given me greater pleasure than to watch a true thoroughbred beast of some sort going through its paces, exhibiting prodigious feats of rhythm, athleticism and low farce. Let’s hope for a splendid field of competitors in 2017.”

The event takes place at Port Royal on Sunday 6th August at 1pm. There are several categories involved in the trials, including most entertaining performance and naughtiest beast! However, the overall winner – judged as the mightiest of beasts on show – will walk away with the Aardman Award, presented by Peter Lord.

For further details, including rules for entrants, visit https:// www.facebook.com/Sidmouth-Horse-Trials-1750717138508302/

Sidmouth Herald: Aardman Animations has created and donated a trophy for Sidmouth's second Horse Trials.Aardman Animations has created and donated a trophy for Sidmouth's second Horse Trials. (Image: Archant)