The Pride of Portugal display - the stunning Lusitanos at London International Horse Show, December 2023 - Equine, Wedding and Family Photography by Jo Hansford

Back in December we were invited to photograph the Pride of Portugal display at London International Horse Show. We have long been big fans of the Lusitano breed and we knew some of the riders from our shoots in Portugal, so of course we jumped at the opportunity.

We had photographed the Pride of Portugal back in 2016 (see our blog post here) so we knew the performance would be good, but nothing prepared us for just how brilliant this display was and just how engaged and excited the audiences were! The ten riders and their horses performed twice daily, and we loved spending a couple of days at the show to capture a few of the displays.

The combination of choreography and music, with brilliant horsemanship and stunning horses, was second to none, and blew us away! Each performance was just 10 minutes long, and as each one came to a close, I found myself wanting more and disappointed that it was over! Judging from the audience’s reactions, we weren’t alone!

Sherene Rahmatallah, of Sussex Lusitanos,who were the display organisers in association with N PImenta, told us “It was a huge privilege to bring the Pride of Portugal Display to London – great riders showcased the truly unique qualities of the Lusitano horse!”

Anyone else want to see them again soon?? We certainly do, we hope the Lusitanos will be back in UK to perform before too long.