“King Boris has a very special place in my heart, because he’s the first horse that my husband David and I bought together – in the spring of 1985. David was my boyfriend at the time, but we’d been dating for a while and we each paid half for Boris.

“Boris was also the first horse who started the ‘King’ prefix, so that’s another reason why he was so special to me. Most of all, however, he was one of the most lovely, friendly and intelligent horses I’ve ever come across – and incredibly forgiving. I can’t remember the times he got me out of trouble in the early days when I was making plenty of silly mistakes. He always forgave me my errors, no matter how badly I was riding him! 

“Boris also taught me a lot about smoother riding, because his style was steady and he was naturally rhythmic. I have such fond memories of him – he was such an easy horse, who always tried his heart out.”

Want more goss on the eventing superstar and the rest of her horsey clan? Get your copy of 'Mary King, The Autobiography' at the PONY shop, here.