Lawyer’s on the case with cobs

9:33am Monday 4th August 2008

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A FAMILY lawyer from Worcestershire is really on the case – winning a sideboardful of trophies with his horses.

John Llewellyn-James is one of the Midlands’ leading exhibitors of Welsh cobs and this summer has scooped a string of top prizes.

There have been eight in the last three months, including the coveted Lord Kenyon Trophy at Lampeter Welsh Stallion Show for his stallion, Avonvalley Cardiff Arms.

Mr Llewellyn-James, who by day deals with matrimonial cases for Thomas Guise solicitors of Foregate Street, Worcester, devotes his spare time to looking after 16 horses at his home near Drakes Broughton, between Pershore and Worcester.

Five of his Welsh cobs have recently won at top level shows, including Avonvalley Pendderyn, which has won prizes at the Cheshire County show and Ponies UK in Malvern, and Avonvalley Buffy, which won at the Three Counties show. His cobs also won two firsts at the Devon County show in May.

With a non-horsey background, this is quite some achievement.

Mr Llewellyn-James said: “I grew up in the middle of Cardiff in the 1950s and the only horses I saw were those pulling the carts of the fruit and veg man, the coalman and the wood man, but they fascinated me, which I suppose was unusual, because no one else in the family liked horses.

“However, I had a friend who lived on a farm outside Cardiff, I used to visit him as often as I could and by the age of seven I had learnt to ride.

“I first saw Welsh cobs when I was showing whippets for my grandmother at Abergavenny Show as a lad and immediately fell in love with them. But I didn’t start keeping them until I moved to Worcestershire in 1974.”

The breed is renowned for its endurance and hardiness, having evolved in the wild to survive in often harsh conditions. It is used for a number of different equine pursuits, including riding, driving and competitive sports.

The clutch of prizes tops a record breaking year for John, who said: “It’s a pleasure to be able to breed Welsh cobs here in Worcestershire, and particularly satisfying to keep winning prizes for them outside Wales.”

He is a member of the Equine Lawyers Association and in his day job has dealt with a number of enquiries from the equine world. He has also judged many shows, including Royal Windsor, Royal Highland and even been invited to judge in Australia, where last year he officiated at events in Queensland and Victoria.

Thomas Guise’s managing director, Wayne Thomas, said: “John has had a great run of success recently and we’re all really pleased for him. The team here has a wide range of interests and we actively encourage all of our staff to pursue them. He may be horse-mad, but with John we know that we’re on to a winner.”