Not as much horseplay but it’s still showtime

THE five-day Fáilte Ireland Dublin Horse Show which opened at Ballsbridge yesterday is still one of the country’s most colourful social and sporting events.

But the high jinks that often permeated the nightly celebrations during horse show weeks in the past are now fading memories, and so are practically all of their associated hunt balls.

The spirit of those days was once symbolised by the actions of The Bird Flanagan, a Dublin legend, hunting man and practical joker, at a time when there was not even a horse show in progress.

He rode his horse through the swing doors of the Gresham Hotel, in 1907, into the lobby, halfway up the main staircase, and asked for a drink.

“It’s after hours, sir,” replied a porter. “It’s not for me, you fool. It’s for the horse,” he said.

That was before the horse show replaced Punchestown Races as the glamour event of the season for scarlet-coated hunt masters, elegant ladies, Dublin glitteratti, excitable debutantes and horsey people with double-barrelled names.

It is reckoned the hunt balls were at their peak in post-war Dublin. Each one was hosted by a different hunt. They were all regarded as jolly good fun by those who attended.

The partying went on until daybreak, often with boisterous behaviour that included champagne cork battles between chaps and chums. Chandeliers were protected by hotel management from more outrageous antics. Women swung from the pink coat-tails of red-complexioned hunting men as they tried to rein them back into a Conga line on the crowded dance floors.

Those who could afford it went to Dublin for horse show week and took a house, an apartment, or stayed in the Shelbourne or the Gresham. They went to almost every single party.

Stories abound of how young men swung off balconies, danced on tables, sounded hunting horns, shouted “Tally Ho” and engaged in bun fights that were infantile in nature.

There were also many visitors from England and young American girls accompanied by their wealthy parents.

Life magazine caught the mood of the hunt balls in 1956 with descriptions of high-speed horseplay, and guests who were livelier than steeds.

“One of the most fashionable and international affairs of its kind, the August show again delighted its devotees with spectacular jumping competitions, stunning show animals and crisp horse trading.

“Then, after the events at the show, came the sparkle of champagne parties and the hilarity of crowded hunt balls that carried on until dawn.

“The young guests pranced through Irish dances, stomping to When the Saints go Marching In and, inevitably, galloping to John Peel over and over again.

“When show week was over, the horses were as sleek and fresh as ever, but not the guests. That’s why Dublin is so dull the rest of the year, a host observed. It takes 51 weeks to recuperate.”

The hunt ball scene began to change along with the rest of Irish society in the 1970s. People could no longer afford the cost of spending a full week in Dublin. The anti-hunt movement intensified. A new order pertained.

Only one known hunt ball — that of the Louth Hunt — is scheduled to take place in Dublin this week, a dramatic change from the days when there was one every night.

By all accounts the horse show hunt balls of recent years were lively and fashionable social gatherings but much tamer than those in the rollicking past.

And, of course, the horse show itself is no longer the preserve of the privileged classes but a cocktail of exciting activities that has wider public appeal with a broad range of activities.

But it is still steeped in tradition and despite the recession and credit crunch it is a tad likely a glass or two of sparking bubbly will again be raised to toast this year’s event and, perhaps, the dancing ghosts of other days and nights.