November 5 1964

"Excuse me," said Fourmost Mike Millward, "if I don't sit down, but I'm still rather sore. It's this horse-riding, you know, it takes a bit of getting used to."

"He's right," added Brian O' Hara, "Dave Lovelady and I are aching all over - and we're supposed to be the athletic ones."

They decided to sit, but their pained expressions made me wonder whether they might have been more comfortable standing.

Billy Hatton hobbled bow-legged across the floor of the London Palladium dressing room and lowered himself tenderly into a lying position on a battered old sofa. "Ouch!" groaned Billy - and refrained from further comment.

But far from being discouraged after their introduction to riding, the Fourmost are all madly enthusiastic about their newly-found hobby.

"It all started a few weeks ago when we went up to Coventry for a Sunday concert with Cilla," explained Mike. "We stayed the night at a hotel and the owner arranged for us to go riding the next morning. Billy and Brian had gone home, but Dave, Jim Lamb, our road manager and I decided we'd give it a try. Cilla and her road manager, Bobby Willis, came along too, but Cilla said she had no slacks and decided not to ride.

"It was the first time I'd ridden since I was a kid, and then I was thrown when the pony bolted. We all enjoyed it so much that we went back again the next weekend - with Billy and Brian this time."

Just then Jim Lamb limped in - to the accompaniment of hoots of laughter from the boys. "It's all right for them," said Jim, "but I came off at the same spot twice running - just as we were crossing a brook. I got covered in mud."

"I can't wait to get back to Coventry again, said Dave. "I got quite fond of my horse and this time I'm going to make sure I have a supply of sugar lumps for it. This lot wouldn't let me have any of theirs yesterday."

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